CAPENHURST’S nuclear clean-up site has reached a world-class safety milestone of more than 1.5 million man-hours of work – equivalent to more than four years – without any accidents resulting in an employee having to take more than three days off.

The site, which is managed and operated by Sellafield Ltd on behalf of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and houses the UK’s first uranium enrichment plant, is scheduled to become the country’s first nuclear site to complete its clean-up programme in 2009.

Capenhurst’s Safety First campaign allows employees on the shop floor, not managers, to be largely responsible for keeping hazards around the site under control – while all the time undertaking some of the biggest demolition projects in the North West.

Ian Mason, Capenhurst’s head of decommissioning, said: “This is a great achievement for the site given that we are the most advanced nuclear decommissioning programme in the UK and our day-to-day work includes large-scale demolition activities.

“Our success is built on the fact that we operate in safety state of mind, which reflects a healthy unease about hazards and a positive approach to ensuring they are constantly managed. What really keeps us going is a genuine desire to ensure that no one is harmed by our operations.”

The safety milestone comes in the same year that Capenhurst was awarded its fifth consecutive safety award from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) and its second consecutive safety gold medal and these achievements were recognised recently during a visit to the site by Sellafield Ltd managing director Barry Snelson.

Demolishing buildings is the final stage of clean-up at Capenhurst and the current building demolition project – an area the equivalent of four football pitches – is the largest undertaken at the site.

The work represents a significant challenge, given the nature of the decommissioned facilities and the layout of the site, which is adjacent to Urenco Capenhurst Ltd.

Despite this, Sellafield Ltd has cleared more than 72,000 square metres of building footprint to date and is entering the final stages of site clearance.

Capenhurst’s decommissioning site ceased its uranium enrichment operations in 1982 and the gaseous diffusion plant, the UK’s first, is now one of several buildings on site scheduled for demolition.