Climbers head to Trawsfynydd
Whilst many people head to Snowdonia to go climbing, the former nuclear power station at Trawsfynydd isn’t one of the usual destinations.
The vertical concrete walls of the 50 year old landmark structure aren’t on the area’s long list of adventure sports destinations - the climbers and abseilers you see here are carrying out repairs and maintenance rather than adding a new peak to their lifetime list.
On the face of it, working suspended 200ft above the ground on the side of a nuclear reactor building may seem like a risky operation but this is by far the safest, fastest and cheapest way of carrying out the essential work.
Dave Wilson, Trawsfynydd Site Director, said: “The concrete reactor ‘safestore’ buildings need to be maintained to keep them safe and to provide a protective weatherproof structure surrounding the reactors for decades to come.
“We’ve found that by using professional climbers, who are experts at working safely at height, there are far fewer risks and both the cost and time it takes to do the work is dramatically reduced.”
Magnox’s Trawsfynydd Site is one of the UK’s first generation of nuclear power stations and is currently undergoing a programme of decommissioning. The site, which is owned by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, is due to be placed into a state of care and maintenance by 2016
