The UK government’s Nuclear Waste Services (NWS) is set to carry out seismic surveys off the Cumbrian Coast between July and August this year, in order to find a place to dispose of the waste produced by Britain’s nuclear reactors. They will use seismic blasting, a process that allows to find out more about the geography of the sea bed. Loud, repetitive blasts of sound are produced from an underwater airgun - like a powerful horn - and their echoes are measured to map the underwater rocks. Shearwater GeoServices, the company which last year saw the high court put an end to its work on South Africa’s ecologically sensitive Wild Coast, is carrying out the investigations. Allegedly, they were granted a permit of exemption to carry out these surveys by NWS for ‘scientific research’. But Radiation Free Lakeland says the survey is not for ‘scientific research’ but a plan to dispose of nuclear waste, and call for these plans to be postponed, claiming the impact assessment is "deeply inadequate" and "lacking in appropriate scientific and academic rigor." said Marianne Birkby, Founder of Radiation Free Lakeland. “Despite the marine protections this part of the Irish Sea has, it is an outrage that independent environmental impact assessments have not been carried out. Protection clearly mean nothing when the nuclear waste industry wants to pave the way to a deep nuclear dump.” she added Low frequency sounds generated by a single seismic airgun can extend over large distances, particularly in deeper waters. Studies have shown that, because seismic surveys can disturb, injure or kill a wide variety of marine life, they can impact entire ecosystems. Zooplankton are also very vulnerable to these loud noises, according and researchers have found that seismic surveys significantly increase the death rates of zooplankton in the 1.2 kilometre range they tested, killing all larval krill in the range. Many other marine animals rely on sound for survival too. Seismic testing can interfere with basic functions such as communication, navigation, feeding and mating. https://www.euronews.com/green/2022/06/22/the-uk-is-searching-the-sea-for-a-nuclear-dump-site-and-the-risks-to-marine-life-are-huge