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Professor John Robertson OBA

From WION on 29 August 2025 (Indian English language news channel)

European nations dumped 200,000 barrels of radioactive waste in the ocean, and humans might soon pay the price – A team of scientists has found 3,355 barrels of radioactive waste at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. The discovery was made at a depth of 13,000 feet, and hundreds of miles offshore from France. This is only a tiny part of the actual number of barrels filled with nuclear waste scattered at the bottom of the sea. Between 1946 and 1990, over 200,000 such barrels were dumped by European nations, assuming it was the best way to keep people on land safe. This was done under the supervision of the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA), a body comprising 34 countries [including the UK but with no regard for Scotland] that is tasked with ensuring nuclear safety and waste management. But now there are fears that this waste can reach humans via the food chain. Scientists have warned that this radioactive material could be absorbed by marine life, which can enter sea creatures and then humans who eat the contaminated seafood. This could cause long-term health issues, damage tissues, and increase the risk of cancer.

Using Grok AI:

Does the Bay of Biscay water mix with the flow north around Scotland?

Yes, the waters of the Bay of Biscay mix with the northward flow around Scotland, primarily through large-scale ocean currents in the North Atlantic. The Bay of Biscay, located between western France and northern Spain, is influenced by the North Atlantic Current, an extension of the Gulf Stream. This current carries warmer, saline waters northward along the western European coast.As the North Atlantic Current moves north, it splits into various branches. One major branch flows toward the Norwegian Sea and the Arctic, passing west of the British Isles, including around Scotland. Waters from the Bay of Biscay are entrained into this broader circulation, mixing with other water masses as they move north. The mixing is driven by complex processes like eddies, wind-driven currents, and interactions with coastal topography.Directly around Scotland, the Scottish Coastal Current and the North Atlantic water masses interact, incorporating some of the Bay of Biscay’s waters into the flow. However, the extent of mixing depends on seasonal variations, wind patterns, and tidal influences. Tracers like salinity and temperature show that Bay of Biscay waters contribute to the warmer, saltier Atlantic waters reaching Scotland’s west coast. For a precise understanding, oceanographic studies or models like those from the Copernicus Marine Service could quantify the mixing ratios, but generally, the Bay’s waters are part of the broader Atlantic circulation reaching Scotland.

The information provided is based on general oceanographic knowledge about North Atlantic circulation patterns, particularly the North Atlantic Current and its interactions with regional waters like those in the Bay of Biscay and around Scotland. Below are some sources and references that support this understanding:

1. Copernicus Marine Service: The Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service provides detailed oceanographic data and models for the North Atlantic, including the Bay of Biscay and waters around the UK. Their datasets, such as those from the Iberia-Biscay-Ireland (IBI) model, describe how waters from the Bay of Biscay are integrated into the North Atlantic Current and flow northward. Relevant link: Copernicus Marine Service
2. National Oceanography Centre (NOC): The NOC in the UK conducts research on Atlantic circulation, including the North Atlantic Current and its branches affecting the British Isles. Studies from the NOC highlight how waters from southern regions like the Bay of Biscay contribute to the flow around Scotland via the Slope Current and coastal currents. Relevant link: National Oceanography Centre
3. Scientific Literature: Research articles on Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) and regional currents provide evidence of water mass mixing. For example: Holliday, N. P., et al. (2020). “Ocean circulation causes the largest freshening event for 120 years in the eastern subpolar North Atlantic.” Nature Communications. This study discusses the northward transport of Atlantic waters, including those from southern regions like the Bay of Biscay. Marsh, R., et al. (2017). “Recent trends in the North Atlantic Current system.” Progress in Oceanography. This paper details the pathways of the North Atlantic Current and its influence on waters around the UK.

General Oceanographic Texts: Books like Introduction to Physical Oceanography by Robert H. Stewart describe the Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Current, explaining how waters from regions like the Bay of Biscay are carried northward and mix with other water masses near Scotland.

Just one more benefit from the Union to add to nuclear subs leaking into the Clyde, the most toxic nuclear site in Europe on our border and the highest cancer rates in Europe?