The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), the Environment Agency (EA) and Radioactive Waste Management Limited have commissioned an £8.6m, five-year research programme – Radioactivity And The Environment (RATE).

This programme is augmented by support from the Science & Technology Facilities Council (STFC) through access to training and other resources via its Global Challenge Networks.

The high level goal is to build UK capacity in radioactivity and the environment, so that a major contribution to enhancement of environmental protection and a safeguarding of human health from releases of radioactivity from nuclear power plants, waste repositories and legacy-contaminated sites, as well as natural radiation, can be made.
Research programme

Three research consortia co-ordinated by a science co-ordination team (SCT) have been funded, and are planned to run between 2013–14 and 2017–18. They will address areas of research within the field of radioactivity and the environment that are currently under-represented in the UK.

To be delivered under the 2013–2018 NERC strategy 'The Business of the Environment' the programme was developed under the previous environment, pollution and human health (EPHH) strategic theme and is forming part of NERC's contribution to the wider RCUK Energy Programme.