Waste Services
Source: gov.uk (2025-09-24)

Our dedicated Waste Services teams deliver and develop integrated waste management capabilities, support national strategies, and manage customer and supplier relationships across the waste lifecycle.

Expert Support and Alternative Solutions

Our Expert Service and Support Team provides specialist waste management services across three key areas:
- expert support to customers throughout the waste lifecycle, including technical consultancy, project management, and compliance
- alternative waste solutions for radioactive waste not covered by existing frameworks
- project delivery
Services are delivered via internal personnel and cost-effective procurement via the ESAS framework.

Waste Characterisation

Characterisation is vital in the nuclear industry, supporting decommissioning strategies, regulatory compliance, waste minimisation, environmental protection, and public confidence. The Nuclear Waste Services (NWS) Characterisation framework helps UK customers understand their waste and ensure compliant treatment and disposal, aiding accelerated decommissioning.

Services include investigations, sampling, analysis, data interpretation, and project management. A new consolidated order process for Low Level Waste (LLW) has improved efficiency and reduced costs. Support is delivered through internal teams and the Characterisation framework, covering all stages of the waste lifecycle.

Disposal Services at the Repository

The Very Low Level Waste (VLLW) service is supported by external providers and enables disposal of high-volume, low-activity waste like rubble and soil at their licensed landfill site, avoiding the need for engineered protections. The LLW service handles waste requiring engineered disposal at the NWS facility, with each consignment assessed against Waste Acceptance Criteria before transport, inspection, and emplacement at the Low Level Waste Repository.

Packaging Services

Our Packaging Services Team provides a comprehensive suite of solutions for customers under contract, ensuring safe and compliant transport of radioactive waste. Their offerings include the design, manufacture, and expert operational support of licensed packages such as ISO containers (reusable and disposal), Type B Novapak and TN Gemini containers for fissile materials, IP-rated drums and soft-sided packages, and bespoke packaging.

They also supply approved spares and ancillary equipment to maintain package compliance, offer Quality Engineer services for ACEP and CSC plate inspections on both NWS and non-NWS containers, and provide waste loading plan services including writing, checking, and reviewing customer plans. Additionally, customers gain access to a broader supply chain for alternative containers and benefit from a suite of Packaging Guidance Notes that offer operational advice for NWS’s fleet of IP-2 packages.

Transport Services

Since 1 April 2023, NWS has implemented a Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) to engage hauliers for road transport services, replacing the previous Road Transport Framework. This offers a flexible, open-market approach, enabling competitive tendering for work packages.

NWS continues to manage transport requests, ensuring safe and cost-effective movement of LLW between the sites where it originates and the treatment or disposal facilities. Our hauliers offer a wide range of vehicles and trailers, such as skeletal, flatbed, tautliner, side loader, and specialist STGO-rated units, as well as on-site transport services.

NWS also collaborates with Nuclear Transport Solutions (NTS) to provide integrated multi-modal transport options, maintaining a 100% safety record and optimising operations through surveillance, proven systems, and efficient empty return mileage. The service is designed to meet diverse customer needs through close collaboration with hauliers.

Alternative Solutions

Our Solutions service offers effective methods for managing a wide range of non-standard wastes such as volume reduction, conditioning, or bespoke disposal. This also includes the sorting and segregation of waste on their physical, chemical and/or radiological properties to enable waste handling or treatment, and is a key part of the waste management process.

Combustible Waste Treatment

Thermal treatment is an effective method for reducing the disposal volumes of LLW, offering waste producers greater cost efficiencies, increased flexibility, and resulting in less waste being sent to the NWS Site and less volume to landfill. In some cases, thermal treatment can reduce the volume of waste requiring disposal by up to 100%.

A wide range of wastes are suitable for thermal treatment, including paper, cardboard, packaging materials, plastics, wood, oil, and protective clothing.

Our suppliers utilise advanced high temperature incineration technology and operate under strict limits defined and monitored by the environmental regulators.

Metallic Waste Treatment

Metallic waste treatment involves the segregation, size-reduction, decontamination, shot-blasting and melting of metallic LLW. Materials such as carbon steel, stainless steel, aluminium, brass, copper, lead and other metals have been successfully treated via these techniques.

The use of this service enables customers to recycle metallic waste whilst reducing the volumes of LLW disposed of at the NWS Site. This brings environmental benefits, greater flexibility on waste producer sites and ensures the right waste is disposed of at the NWS Site.

Supercompaction Waste Treatment

Supercompaction involves the high force compaction of 210 litre drummed soft LLW to ensure that waste which does need to be sent to the NWS Site has a minimised volume. Soft waste can be reduced in volume by up to 70% through supercompaction, and so the use of supercompaction improves the packaging efficiency of waste in disposal containers.

Contact Us

If you would like any further information or require advice on any of our Waste Services, please contact the Customer Team:

Waste Management Services Customer Team

Pelham House Pelham DriveCalderbridgeCumbriaCA20 1DB

Email xxx@xxx.xx (mailto:xxx@xxx.xx)

Telephone xx-xxxx-xxxx