The UKAEA has announced that the Dounreay Materials Test Reactor (DMTR) is entering its final stage of decommissioning. The reactor block is now ready for demolition following a period of passive care and maintenance to allow for further radioactive decay.
From 1959-1969 the reactor tested how different materials performed when irradiated. Its water coolant was removed in 1971, and it was left in a state of care and maintenance until 1996. A decommissioning team then began work to remove redundant equipment from the contaminated building, which was followed by passive care and maintenance.
UKAEA Dounreay director Peter Welsh said: "Our task now is to consign the reactor to history in a way that protects the environment, so I am pleased that we have now safely completed the penultimate stage of its decommissioning and delivered another of the milestones in the Dounreay Site Restoration Plan".
