TERRORISTS could easily make a crude atomic bomb from MOX fuel produced at
British Nuclear Fuels’ new plant in north-west England, according to a
confidential report submitted to the British government and seen by New
Scientist. The report comes as the state-owned company is trying to get the
government’s go-ahead to make MOX, a mixture of plutonium and uranium oxide, for
reactor operators in Europe and Japan.
Although the MOX plant, at Sellafield in Cumbria, was completed in 1996, the
government has postponed authorising its start-up because of doubts over its
economic viability. Last week, as a fourth consultation exercise…
