Dounreay Backs Science Campaign In Caithness Schools
23rd February 2012
Dounreay Site Restoration Ltd has agreed a three-year funding package to support the promotion of science and engineering in local schools.
The sponsorship is part of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority's work to help the local economy adjust to the effects of Dounreay's closure.
DSRL, site closure contractor to the NDA, will provide �5000 a year for the next three years to the Caithness International Science Festival, an annual event held as part of the national science and engineering week.
This year's event takes place between March 12-16.
"Caithness has a history of exporting skills and technologies to the world and our contribution aims to help foster a new generation who can continue that tradition when Dounreay has gone," said DSRL socio-economics manager Ken Nicol.
"Predictions suggest that there will be substantial future employment opportunities in science and engineering related industries. Enthusing school children about these subjects is therefore important for our economy both locally and nationally. We are delighted to be supporting the science festival and contributing to investment in our future."
Professor Iain Baikie, festival chairman, said: "I am absolutely delighted that DSRL continues to provide key financial support underpinning Science O3 projects with local schools including the Caithness International Science Festival. DRSL is also contributing a stand at the Public Science Fair in Thurso and Wick immediately preceding the festival."
Related Businesses
Related Articles
At its recently opened Central Support Facility (CSF), UKAEA has commissioned an electron beam additive manufacturing machine that can be used to incorporate tungsten into components, alongside a selective laser manufacturing machine. Fusion can play a key role in a global low carbon energy future.
As part of the Fusion Futures (FF) programme, UKAEA's Remote Applications in Challenging Environments (RACE) has partnered with industry leaders to develop two groundbreaking technologies for remote maintenance in fusion energy engineering. Thanks to FF funding, industry has taken the lead in maturing UKAEA technology concepts—delivering real-world solutions that enhance operational autonomy and reduce maintenance burdens in extreme environments.
UKAEA has launched the International Fellowships Scheme, an initiative to help expand the global talent pool supporting the fusion industry. The scheme is part of the UKAEA's Fusion Opportunities in Skills, Training, Education and Research (FOSTER) Programme, which aims to train, support, and empower the next generation of professionals, who will help deliver fusion power to the grid.
The NDA has published its strategy for consultation, setting out the roadmap to decommission the UK's earliest nuclear sites safely, securely and sustainably. Today, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) has published its revised strategy for public consultation, setting out a clear roadmap for one of the UK's most complex long-term environmental challenges.
A Pictish stone believed to date back 1,700 years has been retrieved and preserved for future generations with financial help from Dounreay's operators. Dounreay isn't the only site in Caithness where relics of the past are being retrieved and made safe for the future.
NRS Dounreay has been awarded Gold status for skills and training for the fourth consecutive year by the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board. The engineering construction industry values its members, who design, construct, maintain, renew and dismantle the UK's strategically important industrial infrastructure.
Research offers a positive outlook for communities impacted by the decommissioning process. A new study has revealed that Scotland's £25 billion nuclear decommissioning programme could deliver significant long-term economic and social benefits at both national and local levels over the next 90 years and beyond.
One of the most challenging puzzles in the UK's nuclear clean-up programme is being solved. Waste is now being routinely retrieved from one of the world's oldest nuclear waste stores for the first time in its history.
Spot, the robot "dog," recently assisted colleagues in Dounreay's Fuel Cycle Area by reactivating a crucial building crane in a reprocessing plant. The crane had been deactivated at the switchboard in 2023 due to concerns about the ageing asset.
One of Britain's most complex environmental restoration projects is taking on 23 new apprentices. The decommissioning of the former centre of fast reactor research and development at Dounreay is continuing to create long-term opportunities for young people.