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SCP-5285 Safe ? low confidence
SCP-5285
Expected annual
$7.8M
One-time setup
$48.3M
Annual recurring
$6.1M
Personnel
23
One-time stabilization and potential remediation dominate upfront costs (~$48.3M) driven primarily by shaft/structural works and possible spent-fuel remediation; recurring annual costs (~$6.14M/yr) are driven by specialist staff, security, logistics and an incident reserve.
🏗️ One-Time Capital Costs Total: $48.3M
Spent Fuel Remediation $25.0M
[#4] Contingent spent-fuel removal/packaging/transport/secure storage or entombment if fuel/loose radioactive material is present; wide cost range so a large one-time contingency is allocated.
Facilities $17.1M
[#1, #2, #25, #26] Structural and construction work: weld/seal reinforcement of entrance (#1), shaft capping/grouting/bulkhead (#2), optional high-risk subterranean access lab build (#25), and potential entombment/cap options (#26). Sum of selected mid-range estimates.
Initial Research And Lab Setup $2.6M
[#3, #14, #16] Initial radiological survey and characterization (#3), forensic/pathology lab setup (#14), and research infrastructure / memetic-safe remote study buildout (#16).
Equipment $2.1M
[#7, #11, #17, #12, #15] One-time purchase of remote borehole/ROV/camera systems (#7), initial power/communications install (satellite/genset/batteries) (#11), remote manipulators and tooling (#17), PPE buyout and decon trailers (#12), and secure cold/radiation-shielded storage units (#15).
Waste Handling Disposal $500K
[#18] One-time costs for licensed disposal or long-term storage arrangements for contaminated biological and radiological waste associated with remediation/cleanup.
Cover Story Initial $500K
[#20] Initial legal/diplomatic/cover-story establishment costs, payments or contract fees to secure access and plausible deniability in-region.
Biohazard Cleanup $300K
[#5] Removal/disposal of decomposed cattle and human remains, forensic processing and pathogen screening, incineration/secure burial and DNA testing costs.
Initial Training Sop Development $100K
[#24] Initial development of specialized SOPs, memetic-hazard training materials and initial large-scale drills.
🔄 Annual Recurring Costs Total: $6.1M/yr
Staff Wages $2.3M/yr
[#8, #9] Salaries, rotations and hazard/travel premiums for a multidisciplinary specialist team (nuclear engineers, microbiologists, entomologists, forensic staff) and core local security detachment.
Logistics And Transport $1.0M/yr
[#10, #22] Repeated airlift/heavy-lift logistics, cold-weather mobilization and fuel/resupply, plus medevac/air ambulance standby contracts and evacuation capability.
Incident Response Reserve $1.0M/yr
[#19] Annual replenishment for a contingency reserve to fund emergency contractor mobilization, rapid remediation, evacuation and legal contingencies.
Research And Monitoring $510K/yr
[#6, #14, #15, #16, #23] Continuous environmental and radiation monitoring operations (#6), ongoing forensic lab operations (#14), sample storage maintenance (#15), research infrastructure operations (#16), and archival/analysis support (#23).
Cover Story And Legal $500K/yr
[#20, #21] Ongoing legal/cooperation payments, OPSEC, counter-surveillance and cyberdefense activities to conceal the site and maintain cover relations.
Administrative Overhead $400K/yr
[#27] Program management, accounting, security clearances, classified logistics handling and documentation.
Personnel Health $150K/yr
[#13] Psychological screening, trauma care, counseling, health monitoring and potential disability/rehab support for affected staff.
Robotics Ops Maintenance $100K/yr
[#7, #17] Annual maintenance, spares and operation costs for borehole cameras, tethered sondes, ROVs and remote manipulators.
Facilities Maintenance $80K/yr
[#11] Fuel, backup genset maintenance and basic site/facility upkeep for power and communications systems.
Supplies And Consumables $50K/yr
[#12] PPE replacements, decon consumables, medical supplies and disposal of used hazmat gear.
Training And Sop Refresher $50K/yr
[#24] Recurring refresher training, drills and SOP updates for memetic/psychological hazard response.
⚡ Cost Scenarios
📊 Baseline (baseline) $6.1M/yr
80.0% probability / year
Routine welded-sealed monitoring posture with periodic inspections and normal rotations; no major remediation or re-entry.
routine_monitoring scheduled_inspections no_detection_of_loose_fuel
🚨 Minor Incident $7.1M/yr
12.0% probability / year +$1.0M vs baseline
Local discovery or limited contamination requiring biohazard cleanup, expanded forensic processing and short-term surge logistics.
local_discovery limited_contamination forensic_cleanup
🚨 Spent Fuel Remediation Event $31.1M/yr
4.0% probability / year +$25.0M vs baseline
Detection of loose or degraded spent fuel requiring licensed remote remediation, packaging and secure transport/storage or entombment.
detection_of_loose_fuel radiological_leak regulatory_intervention
🚨 Active Reentry And Study $19.1M/yr
4.0% probability / year +$13.0M vs baseline
Policy decision to re-enter and actively study/interact with interior levels, requiring hardened subterranean access lab and surge of specialist operations.
decision_to_reenter expanded_research neutralization_effort
👥 Personnel 23 total
Role Count Notes
Research Scientist 6 [#8] Nuclear engineers, microbiologists, entomologists and anomaly specialists forming the core scientific team.
Research Technician / Forensic Staff 4 [#14, #8] Forensic technicians, lab operators and sample processors supporting ongoing analyses.
Security Officer / MTF Agent 8 [#9] Local guards and rapid-reaction personnel tasked with perimeter control and immediate response.
Engineer / Maintenance 2 [#11, #17] Power/comms and equipment maintenance specialists for remote systems and ROVs/manipulators.
Medical Officer 1 [#12, #22] On-call medical/occupational health support and medevac coordination.
Administrative Staff 2 [#27, #20] Program manager(s) and administrative support for logistics, legal coordination and classified handling.
📋 Confidence Notes
High uncertainty due to unknown condition of reactor/spent fuel, the degree of interior degradation, political/legal constraints in-region and broad cost ranges given (some items span orders of magnitude). Estimates use mid-range assumptions but real costs could be much higher or lower.
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