Inventory of Rad Waste in Canada 2012.Qxd

Inventory of Radioactive Waste in Canada

Low-Level Radioactive Waste
Management Office

Ottawa, Canada
2012

March 2012

LLRWMO-01613-041-10003 CC3-1/2012 978-1-100-54191-4

Low-Level Radioactive Waste Management Office

1900 City Park Drive, Suite 200
Ottawa, Ontario Canada
K1J 1A3

Executive Summary

This report presents the inventory of radioactive waste in Canada to the end of 2010. It is intended to provide an overall review on the production, accumulation and projections of radioactive waste in Canada. The data presented in this report has been gathered from many sources including regulatory documents, published reports and supplemental information provided by the nuclear regulator, waste producers and waste management facilities.

Radioactive waste has been produced in Canada since the early 1930s when the first radium mine began operating at Port Radium in the Northwest Territories. Radium was refined for medical use and uranium was later processed at Port Hope, Ontario. Research and development on the application of nuclear energy to produce electricity began in the 1940s at the Chalk River Laboratories (CRL) of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL).

At present, radioactive waste is generated in Canada from: uranium mining, milling, refining and conversion; nuclear fuel fabrication; nuclear reactor operations; nuclear research; and radioisotope manufacture and use.

Radioactive waste is primarily grouped into three categories: nuclear fuel waste, low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste, and uranium mining and milling waste.

In accordance with Canada’s Radioactive Waste Policy Framework, the owners of radioactive waste are responsible for the funding, organization, management and operation of long-term waste management facilities required for their waste. The policy recognizes that arrangements may be different for each of the three waste categories.

Radioactive waste is currently managed in a safe, secure, and environmentally responsible manner by storing the waste in accordance with the requirements set out by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), Canada's independent nuclear regulator.

The following table presents a summary of the quantity of radioactive waste produced in 2010 and the cumulative inventory to the end of 2010.

Waste Data to 2010

Waste Inventory to the
Waste Category

Nuclear Fuel Waste

Waste Produced in 2010

298 m³

End of 2010

9,075 m³
208 m³
5,116 m³

32,906 m³

Intermediate-Level Radioactive Waste

Low-Level Radioactive Waste Uranium Mill Tailings
2,338,000 m³
214 million tonnes 175 million tonnes
0,7 million tonnes

N/A

Waste Rock

Note : N/A - not available

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In order to assess the future requirements for the management of radioactive waste, a projection of the inventory to the end of 2011 and 2050 is also provided in the table above. The year 2050 is selected as a future reference because it is forecasted as the end of operation for the last constructed power reactors, Darlington Generating station (Ontario Power Generation, 2010a).

Waste Inventory Projections to 2011 and 2050

End of 2011
End of 2050
Waste Category

Nuclear Fuel Waste

9,400 m³

20,000 m³

33,400m³

67,000 m³

Intermediate-Level Radioactive Waste

Low-Level Radioactive Waste

2,343,000 m³

2,594,000 m³

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Table of Contents

Page

1.0

INTRODUCTION

1

1.1

Policy and Legislative Framework for Radioactive Waste

Management in Canada

122337

2.0 3.0 4.0
REPORT OBJECTIVE REPORT SCOPE AND ORGANIZATION SOURCES 4.1 4.2
Nuclear Fuel Waste Low- and Intermediate-Level Radioactive Waste

4.2.1 Ongoing Waste
4.2.1.1 Operations

88

4.2.1.2 Decommissioning
4.2.2 Historic Waste

13 14

4.3

Uranium Mining and Milling Waste

15

4.3.1 Operating Sites 4.3.2 Closed or Decommissioned Sites 4.3.3 Development Sites

19 20 21

5.0

CURRENT INVENTORY AND ACCUMULATION RATE

22 22 24

5.1 5.2
Nuclear Fuel Waste Low- and Intermediate-Level Radioactive Waste

5.2.1 Ongoing Waste
5.2.1.1 Operations 5.2.1.2 Decommissioning

25 28 28 29

5.3

30

5.3.1 Uranium Mill Tailings 5.3.2 Waste Rock

30 34

6.0

PROJECTIONS

6.1 Nuclear Fuel Waste

34 34

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Table of Contents (cont’d)

Page
6.2

6.3
Low- and Intermediate-Level Radioactive Waste

36

6.2.1 Ongoing Waste
6.2.1.1 Operations 6.2.1.2 Decommissioning

38 38 39 40

40

6.3.1 Operation Sites 6.3.2 Closed or Decommissioned Sites 6.3.3 Development Sites

41 41 41

7.0 8.0
SUMMARY

42 43

SOURCES OF INFORMATION
Appendix A - Policy Framework for Radioactive Waste List of Tables Table 4.1 Table 4.2 Table 4.3

Summary of CNSC Power Reactor Operating Licences Summary of CNSC Research Reactor Operating Licences

56

Uranium Refinery, Conversion Facility and Fuel Fabrication Plant Licences

9

Table 4.4 Table 4.5 Table 5.1 Table 5.2 Table 5.3 Table 5.4

Summary of CNSC Waste Management Licences Uranium Mine and Mill Facility Licences

12 16 22 25 26

Nuclear Fuel Waste Accumulation Rate and Inventory, 2010 LLRW Accumulation Rate and Inventory, 2010 ILRW Accumulation Rate and Inventory, 2010 Uranium Mill Tailings Accumulation Rate and Inventory, 2010

31 33 35 37 42

Table 5.5 Table 6.1 Table 6.2 Table 7.1

Waste Rock Inventory, 2010 Projected Nuclear Fuel Waste Inventory to 2011 and 2050 Projected L&ILRW Inventory to 2011 and 2050 Summary of Current and Future Inventories

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Table of Contents (cont’d)

Page
List of Figures Figure 4.1

Radioactive Waste Sites in Canada as of December 31, 2010 Nuclear Reactor Sites

4

Figure 4.2 Figure 4.3 Figure 4.4 Figure 4.5 Figure 4.6 Figure 4.7 Figure 4.8

7

Process Flowchart for Uranium Refining and Conversion Process Flowchart for Nuclear Fuel Fabrication

910 10 13 17

Process Flowchart for CANDU Reactor Operations Process Flowchart for CANDU Reactor Decommissioning Uranium Mine and Mill Tailings Sites in Canada Uranium Mine and Mill Tailings Sites near Elliot Lake, Ontario

18

Figure 4.9

Uranium Mine and Mill Tailings Sites near Bancroft, Ontario

19 24 26 26 27 27 33 33 36 36 38 38

Figure 5.1 Figure 5.2 Figure 5.3 Figure 5.4 Figure 5.5 Figure 5.6 Figure 5.7 Figure 6.1 Figure 6.2 Figure 6.3 Figure 6.4 Figure 6.5

Nuclear Fuel Waste Inventory, 2010 Ongoing LLRW Accumulation Rates, 2010 Ongoing ILRW Accumulation Rates, 2010 L&ILRW Inventory, 2010 Ongoing L&ILRW Inventory, 2010 Inventory of Uranium Mill Tailings, 2010 Waste Rock Inventory, 2010 Nuclear Fuel Waste Inventories Projection, 2050 Nuclear Fuel Waste Inventory, 2010 and Projection to 2050 LLRW Inventories, 2010 and 2050 ILRW Inventories, 2010 and 2050 Annual Volume of Radioactive Waste from Decommissioning of Power Reactors to 2105

40 42

Figure 7.1

Summary of Radioactive Waste Inventories, 2010

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1.0 INTRODUCTION

This report provides the annual accumulation rate and inventory of radioactive waste in Canada to the end of 2010.

Radioactive waste has been produced in Canada since the early 1930s when the first radium mine in Canada began operating at Port Radium in the Northwest Territories. Ore from the mine was processed at Port Hope, Ontario, first to extract radium for medical use and, later, for uranium. Research and development on the application of nuclear energy to produce electricity began in the 1940s at the Chalk River Laboratories (CRL) of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL).

At present, radioactive waste is generated in Canada from: uranium mining, milling, refining and conversion; nuclear fuel fabrication; nuclear reactor operations; nuclear research; and radioisotope manufacture and use.

1.1 Policy and Legislative Framework for Radioactive Waste Management in Canada

The components of Canada's 1996 Radioactive Waste Policy Framework consist of a set of principles governing the institutional and financial arrangements for disposal of radioactive waste by waste producers and owners and these include:

•

•
The federal government will ensure that radioactive waste disposal is carried out in a safe, environmentally sound, comprehensive, cost-effective and integrated manner;

The federal government has the responsibility to develop policy, to regulate, and to oversee producers and owners to ensure that they comply with legal requirements and meet their funding and operational responsibilities in accordance with approved waste disposal plans; and

•

The waste producers and owners are responsible, in accordance with the principle of

"polluter pays", for the funding, organization, management and operation of disposal and other facilities required for their waste. This recognizes that arrangements may be different for nuclear fuel waste, low-level radioactive waste and uranium mine and mill tailings.

Radioactive waste is currently managed in a safe and environmentally responsible manner by storing the waste under the requirements of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), Canada’s independent nuclear regulator.

In accordance with Canada’s Radioactive Waste Policy Framework (see Appendix A), the owners of radioactive waste are responsible for the funding, organization, management, and operation of long-term waste management facilities required for their waste. The policy recognizes that arrangements may be different for each of the waste categories.

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The Nuclear Safety and Control Act (NSCA) was passed by Parliament on March 20, 1997. The NSCA established the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, as Canada's nuclear regulator, and authorizes it to make regulations. The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) regulates the use of nuclear energy and materials to protect health, safety, security and the environment, and to respect Canada's international commitments on the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

The CNSC regulatory framework consists of regulations and associated regulatory policies, standards and guides that apply to all nuclear industries including, but not limited to: nuclear power reactors; non-power nuclear reactors, including research reactors; nuclear substances and radiation devices used in industry, medicine and research; the nuclear fuel cycle, from uranium mining through to waste management; and the import and export controlled nuclear and dual-use substances, equipment and technology identified as a proliferation risk.

The 2002 Nuclear Fuel Waste Act is a key piece of legislation that governs the long-term management of nuclear fuel waste in Canada. This Act sets out responsibilities for both the federal government and the nuclear fuel waste owners. It required the nuclear energy corporations to establish a waste management organization to manage the full range of long-term nuclear fuel waste management activities. In 2002, the Nuclear Waste Management Organization was created to carry out this important work. Under the Act, an important responsibility, among others, of the Government was to select an approach for the long-term management of nuclear fuel waste that is in the best interest of Canadians and the environment. On June 14, 2007, the Government of Canada announced that it had selected the Adaptive Phased Management (APM) approach, as recommended by the NWMO, for the long-term management of nuclear fuel waste in Canada. The NWMO is now required to implement the Government's decision, pursuant to the NFWA and other relevant legislation.

2.0 REPORT OBJECTIVE

The objective of this report is to:

•

provide an overall review on the production, accumulation and projections of radioactive

waste in Canada.

3.0 REPORT SCOPE AND ORGANIZATION

The scope of the report includes radioactive waste of the following three categories: •••high level radioactive waste; low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste; and uranium mining and milling waste.

The data on radioactive waste inventory are based on regulatory documents, published reports and supplemental information provided by the nuclear regulator, waste generators and waste management facilities. Regulatory documents include: annual or quarterly compliance reports,

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annual safety reviews and decommissioning reports submitted to the CNSC. The following sections of this report are outlined as follows:

••••
Section 4 of this report describes the sources and producers of each of the three categories of radioactive waste. Section 5 summarizes the accumulation rates during 2010 and waste inventory to the end of 2010. Section 6 presents projections for nuclear fuel waste, and low- and intermediate level waste to 2011 and 2050. Section 7 summarizes current and future inventories.

Appendix A provides the Federal Policy Framework for Radioactive Waste.

4.0 SOURCES

This section briefly identifies how radioactive waste is produced, where it is located and the producers and owners of the waste. Information on the operations and status of nuclear facilities and waste management facilities is as of December 31, 2010. Figure 4.1 provides a map showing where radioactive waste is currently located.

4.1 Nuclear Fuel Waste

For the purpose of this report, nuclear fuel waste includes nuclear fuel bundles, other fuel forms and some liquids. These waste forms can also be referred to as High Level Radioactive Waste (HLRW). Nuclear fuel waste is discharged from:

•••the CANDU power reactors; prototype and demonstration power reactors; and research and isotope production reactors.

In terms of liquid HLRW, Canada has approximately 300,000 litres in storage at Chalk River Laboratories, Ontario from the production of medical isotopes and Cold War-era fuel processing experiments.

Power Reactors

There are 22 power reactors in Canada owned by three provincial electric utilities. Ontario Power Generation Inc. (OPG) owns 20 reactors while Hydro-Québec and New Brunswick Power each own one reactor. Bruce Power Inc. currently leases and operates the Bruce nuclear power plants from OPG. The Bruce plants consist of eight CANDU nuclear reactors. These 22 reactors have a total generation capacity of 15,000 megawatts of electricity.

As of December 31, 2010, 17 nuclear power reactors were operating, producing about 15% of

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Canada’s electricity. At present, nuclear power meets approximately 50% of Ontario’s electricity needs (CNSC, 2010).

Ontario Power Generation Inc. has 16 reactors in operation (including six reactors operated by Bruce Power Inc.); two reactors are in voluntary layup; and two reactors are undergoing refurbishment. Refurbishment work by Bruce Power Inc. began at Bruce A, Units 1 and 2 in 2005. The reactors are scheduled for return to commercial operation in 2012. New Brunswick Power began refurbishment of the Point Lepreau Generating Station in 2008 and it is scheduled to return to commercial operation sometime in 2012. The reactor owned by Hydro-Québec, Gentilly-2, is operational.

Nuclear fuel waste, a by-product of nuclear power generation, is currently safely managed in facilities licensed for interim storage at nuclear reactor sites in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and at Atomic Energy of Canada Limited’s nuclear research site in Manitoba and Chalk River Laboratories in Ontario. The waste will remain at these sites until a deep geological repository becomes operational.

Table 4.1: Summary of CNSC Power Reactor Operating Licences

Type and Number of

Facility and Location

Licensee

Bruce Power Inc.

Units/Capacity

Bruce Generating Station A, Tiverton, Ontario Bruce Generating Station B, Tiverton, Ontario Pickering Generating Station A, Pickering, Ontario Pickering Generating Station B, Pickering, Ontario Darlington Generating Station, Bowmanville, Ontario Gentilly-2 Generating Station, Bécancour, Quebec
CANDU-PHW 4 x 750 MW(e) CANDU-PHW 4 x 840 MW(e) CANDU-PHW 4 x 500 MW(e) CANDU-PHW 4 x 500 MW(e) CANDU-PHW 4 x 850 MW(e)
CANDU-PHW 600 MW(e)
Bruce Power Inc. Ontario Power Generation Inc. Ontario Power Generation Inc. Ontario Power Generation Inc. Hydro-Québec
Point Lepreau Generating Station, Point Lepreau, New Brunswick
New Brunswick Power Corporation
CANDU-PHW 600 MW(e)

Notes : Nuclear fuel waste from these reactors is stored at the respective sites.
MW(e) - megawatt (nominal electrical power output)

Research Reactors

There are three prototype power reactors, Douglas Point, Nuclear Power Demonstration (NPD) and Gentilly-1, located at Douglas Point and Rolphton, Ontario, and Bécancour, Quebec, respectively. Each of these facilities has been partially decommissioned and is in Phase 2 decommissioning (storage-with-surveillance). All three reactors await dismantling. Nuclear fuel waste from the Douglas Point and Gentilly-1 reactors is in dry storage at the on-site waste management facilities. Nuclear fuel waste from the NPD reactor was transferred to a waste management facility at AECL's Chalk River Laboratories (AECL-CRL).

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Nuclear fuel waste is also produced by the research and radioisotope production reactors at AECL and at research reactors located at universities. There are two nuclear research laboratories in Canada: AECL-CRL in Chalk River, Ontario is operational, and AECL’s Whiteshell Laboratories (AECL-WL) in Pinawa, Manitoba is undergoing decommissioning. There are two operational research and radioisotope production reactors at AECL-CRL: the National Research Universal (NRU) and Zero Energy Deuterium-2 (ZED-2) reactors. Waste generated at these sites are stored in waste management facilities at each site. There are six research reactors operating at universities in Canada as of December 31, 2010. The nuclear fuel waste as well as low-level and intermediatelevel radioactive waste produced at these sites is either shipped to AECL-CRL or to a licensed facility in the United States for processing.

Table 4.1 lists power reactors operating under CNSC Licences and Table 4.2 lists research reactors operating under CNSC Licences. Figure 4.2 shows the location of these reactors.