REVELATIONS of radioactive leaks from Trident’s base were branded “as shocking as they are unsurprising” today as the government faced calls to urgently investigate.

Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) documents obtained by The Ferret revealed that the watchdog was aware of the 2019 discharge of radioactive water from the home of Britain’s nuclear arsenal at Faslane and Coulport — just 30 miles from Glasgow, Scotland’s most populous city — into Loch Long, citing the cause as the Royal Navy’s failure to properly maintain a network of 1,500 pipes.

Scottish CND executive member David Kelly told the Star: “The failures in pipework at Coulport, and the subsequent release of nucleotides into Loch Long are as shocking as they are unsurprising.

“‘How cheaply can we run a nuclear arsenal’ seems to be the Ministry of Defence’s (MoD) approach to this most deadly of facilities.  

“All mechanical components, as complex as a nuclear submarine, or as simple as a pipe, are designed for a specific life.

“At Scottish CND we make as much noise as we can about the four Vanguard class nuclear submarines which host the missiles we lease from America being well beyond their design life.

”Of course, the very same principles apply to a simple pipe.”

Describing the leak as “particularly chilling for my constituents who live near the site,” Scottish Green MSP for the West Region Ross Greer said: “UK ministers must now investigate and explain why it happened and the steps they are taking to ensure it never does again.

“We need full transparency and accountability, not more secrecy.

“Nuclear weapons are a moral obscenity. These incidents underline the direct risk to the local communities who host them.”

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: “We place the upmost importance on our responsibilities for handling radioactive substances safely and securely. There have been no unsafe releases of radioactive material into the environment at any stage.

“We frequently engage with regulators who report there is no significant impact on the environment or public health and are supportive of an open reporting culture.”