Dounreay in golf club row

The golf course is next to Sandside Beach

Bosses at the Dounreay nuclear plant have defended its radiation monitoring programme amid fresh concerns about contamination.

The owner of a nearby golf course said he may be forced to shut it down because radioactive particles have been found on the adjacent beach.

Geoffrey Minter demanded assurances from the UK Atomic Energy Authority, which operates Dounreay.

A spokesman for Dounreay said no contamination was found during a recent one-off survey of the course.

Managers defended the monitoring programme

He also voiced confidence that any migration of particles from the beach would be detected during monthly monitoring of the area.

Mr Minter, who owns owns Reay Golf Course, has been involved in a long-running battle with the UKAEA over safety levels at the Caithness plant.

An estimated 17 radioactive particles have been found on Sandside Beach next to the golf course since monitoring started in 1983.

The particles, which are the size of a grain of sand, are believed to have come from the plant, although the exact source has never been identified.

Mr Minter warned that play may have to be suspended at the golf club if he does not receive an indemnity from the UKAEA by the end of this month.

Substantially increased

After taking advice from an independent expert he is now concerned that radioactive particles on Sandside Beach could easily be blown onto the course.

In the meantime, he has called for monitoring by Dounreay staff to be substantially increased in order to protect the public.

The plant, which is storing 24 tonnes of radioactive fuel from Dounreay's Prototype Fast Reactor, is no longer to be used for reprocessing.

The announcement last week by Energy Minister Brian Wilson has been welcomed by anti-nuclear campaigners.