INSIGHT Into Nuclear Decommissioning
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ISSUE 12 2013 INSIGHT into nuclear decommissioning Delivering progress across the UK WASTE MANAGEMENT Contents 2-3 Your views are sought New consultation seeks 4 Giant crane success 5 Remote control at Sellafield views on site selection 6-7 Iconic chimney set to fall The NDA has welcomed the launch of the 8 Waste storage discussions Government’s consultation on how aspects of the 9 Sizewell half-way there site-selection process for a geological disposal 10 Spray-on pond finish facility (GDF) for higher activity radioactive waste 11 Work ramps up at Welsh site could be revised and improved. 12-13 Recycling pays The 12-week consultation, which runs consultation period. Responses to the 14 Baths are all washed out until 5 December, seeks feedback consultation will be used to develop an 15 Demolition approaches on new ways of working with local updated site selection process in 2014. communities who may be interested 16-17 Small and growing in learning more about potentially RWMD is responsible for technical implementation of the GDF, while 18 Research head honoured hosting the multi-billion pound facility in their area. DECC is responsible for the policy. 19 Wild and wonderful Welcoming the consultation, Bruce To support the consultation RWMD 20 Building a sustainable legacy McKirdy, Managing Director of NDA's has published An Overview of International Siting Processes which 21 Office development Radioactive Waste Management Directorate (RWMD), said: "For more looks at how other countries are 22 Store cleaned out than 50 years, we have all benefitted approaching the issue. 23 Faster by 27 years from the use of clean and secure Geological disposal is recognised nuclear energy, but we have not internationally as the best way to 24 Event for suppliers successfully addressed the long-term deal with higher activity radioactive disposal of higher activity radioactive waste and many other countries are waste. Geological disposal is an also in the process of developing internationally recognised, technically underground facilities. Some have sound solution for higher activity waste opted to identify suitable geology as management to protect people and the first step, and then sought volunteer our environment.” communities. Others, like the UK, have He added: "As the body responsible for invited communities to express interest, Front cover: Windscale pile. the design, development and delivery followed by geological investigations. of a geological disposal facility, we look Political and planning systems, forward to working with communities, along with geological and cultural Welcome to the autumn stakeholders and the Government to considerations, all influence the 2013 edition of Insight, the take responsibility for our past and choices being made by overseas news magazine where we aim avoid passing the burden of legacy Governments. In each case, however, to provide a snapshot of some waste to future generations." local communities are closely involved of the developments across The consultation document is in the decision-making. Finland, the NDA estate. available at: Sweden and France are furthest along with the process. https://www.gov.uk/government/ If you have any comments, http://www.nda.gov.uk/documents/ please contact the editor consultations/geological-disposal- facility-siting-process-review upload/Geological-Disposal- Deborah Ward on Overview-of-international-siting- 01925 832280 or A series of regional stakeholder and processes-September-2013.pdf [email protected] public events will be held during the “Geological disposal is an internationally recognised, technically sound solution for higher activity waste” Bruce McKirdy, Managing Director of NDA's Radioactive Waste Management Directorate (RWMD) 2 Managing Radioactive Waste Safely Feedback welcome The consultation document Clarifying that communities would Providing communities with an invites views and comments be represented throughout the siting ongoing right to withdraw from process by their representative local the siting process, exercised by on a number of suggested authority - District Council or nearest the representative authority and changes to the process. equivalent (noting differences across introducing the requirement for These include: devolved administrations). a demonstration of community support as a final step in the Providing communities with more Introducing a more continuous siting process. information – on issues like geology process with two main phases. and socio-economic impacts - at a The "Learning" phase includes the Prior to the learning phase there will much earlier stage. production of independently reviewed be a public information programme reports on local geology and the to raise awareness about radioactive Clarifying the scale and timing of potential socio-economic impact of a waste and geological disposal. community benefits and the likely facility. The "Focusing" phase would investment in an area. start if both the local authority and the Government wish to proceed. This is Images: Designating the GDF as a nationally Top, graphic shows potential depth significant infrastructure development when potentially suitable local sites would be identified and investigated of a GDF. project and brought within the Above, a cross-section of the facility. Nationally Significant Infrastructure in more detail. Project planning regime. INSIGHT EDITION 12 3 Legacy ponds and silos spotlight on Sellafield Giant crane built for retrievals The installation of a giant-sized crane at one of Sellafield’s oldest facilities marks a vital step towards retrieving the waste that has accumulated over the decades. The Semi Goliath crane is an integral reach through specially designed silo the 1950s Pile Fuel Cladding Silo and part of the new Waste Retrieval Facility doors to remove the waste. erection of the Semi Goliath crane means (WRF) being built alongside the Pile Fuel we can now see the picture on the box.” Neil Crewdson, Head of PFCS Projects Cladding Silo (PFCS). It will lift historic said: “The Semi Goliath arrived in 12 The waste ultimately retrieved from the waste packages onto road transporters separate lorry loads and was erected silo compartments will be packaged for transfer to an interim storage facility. over two weeks in an extremely tight into 3m3 storage boxes and handled The PFCS was built in 1951 to store space. The team had to carry out the by the Semi Goliath Crane as they are radioactive fuel cladding from the delicate job with surgical precision in transferred for transport and storage. A military Windscale Piles, and later order to ensure the safety of the legacy significant procurement process is under stored cladding from Calder Hall and waste silo and its radioactive contents.” way for the manufacture of 2,000 3m3 Chapelcross reactors. boxes to accept the retrieved waste. The £3 million crane is extremely Effectively a massive concrete container complex, with many years spent on Photograph: with six individual silos, PFCS has now the design and test phase before The crane in action alongside the silo reached the end of its life. To break manufacturing began. Weighing through the thick concrete walls, extreme 109 tonnes, the crane was effectively safe-breaking skills will be used, enabling test-constructed at a site in Gateshead, the waste to be removed. where load and works testing were Contractors: carried out. The WRF, a giant concrete Semi Goliath Crane - Clarke Chapman Group; Silos Retrieval superstructure, will be fitted with Paul Foster, NMP Chief Operating Facility superstructure - Sir Robert bespoke waste retrieval modules which Officer for Sellafield Ltd, said: “There’s a McAlpine; Waste Retrieval Modules will dock onto the side of the PFCS and complex jigsaw of pieces that need to be - Bechtel Babcock Nuclear in place to decommission 4 Hands off as robots lead the way A long-redundant medical isotope plant has become the first Sellafield facility to be taken apart using full remote control technology. The Caesium Extraction Plant (CEP) once for which there is no blueprint and we’re produced radioactive material for cancer constantly using innovation to clean up treatment and became highly radioactive the legacy of the past. The expertise we during its eight-year operational life, have built up carrying out this project preventing workforce access for the remotely has been invaluable and is 10-year decommissioning process. being used on other decommissioning projects at Sellafield. An additional challenge was its location, built on top of a facility that still stores “I’m immensely proud of the workforce, the Highly Active Residues (HAR) which who had to carry out this technically fed into the medical process. Liquid difficult job in a high radiation HAR was refined, concentrated and environment.” encapsulated into platinum capsules for pioneering radiotherapy uses. Photographs: Right, remote-control equipment was key Andrew MacPherson, CEP delivery to the project. manager, said: “This ends a 10-year Below, staff supervise the work. programme of decommissioning, removing redundant plant and clearing what was a highly contaminated legacy facility. It’s also the very first decommissioning project to be completed fully remotely on the Sellafield site.” The plant comprised four rooms full of processing vessels and pipework, furnaces and shielded tanks. It was closed in 1958 after suffering a number of operational problems, and partially cleaned out. Subsequent surveys showed that significant quantities of radioactive materials