Disposal of Low Activity Radioactive Waste Proceedings of an International Symposium, Córdoba, Spain, 13–17 December 2004 Organized by the International Atomic Energy Agency hosted by the Government of Spain through the Empresa Nacional de Residuos Radiactivos, S.A. and the Consejo de Seguridad Nuclear in co-sponsorship with the Agence nationale pour la gestion des déchets radioactifs and in cooperation with the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency DISPOSAL OF LOW ACTIVITY RADIOACTIVE WASTE © IAEA, 2005 Permission to reproduce or translate the information contained in this publication may be obtained by writing to the International Atomic Energy, Wagramer Strasse 5, P.O. Box 100, A-1400 Vienna, Austria. Printed by the IAEA in Austria June 2005 STI/PUB/1224 PROCEEDINGS SERIES DISPOSAL OF LOW ACTIVITY RADIOACTIVE WASTE PROCEEDINGS OF AN INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON DISPOSAL OF LOW ACTIVITY RADIOACTIVE WASTE ORGANIZED BY THE INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY AND HOSTED BY THE GOVERNMENT OF SPAIN THROUGH THE EMPRESA NACIONAL DE RESIDUOS RADIACTIVOS, S.A. AND THE CONSEJO DE SEGURIDAD NUCLEAR IN CO-SPONSORSHIP WITH THE AGENCE NATIONALE POUR LA GESTION DES DÉCHETS RADIOACTIFS AND IN COOPERATION WITH THE OECD NUCLEAR ENERGY AGENCY, AND HELD IN CÓRDOBA, SPAIN, 13–17 DECEMBER 2004 INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY VIENNA, 2005 COPYRIGHT NOTICE All IAEA scientific and technical publications are protected by the terms of the Universal Copyright Convention as adopted in 1952 (Berne) and as revised in 1972 (Paris). The copyright has since been extended by the World Intellectual Property Organization (Geneva) to include electronic and virtual intellectual property. 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B o x 1 0 0 A-1400 Vienna Austria fax: +43 1 2600 29302 tel.: +43 1 2600 22417 http://www.iaea.org/books IAEA Library Cataloguing in Publication Data International Symposium on Disposal of Low Activity Radioactive Waste (2004 : Córdoba, Spain) Disposal of low activity radioactive waste : proceedings of an International Symposium on Disposal of Low Activity Radioactive Waste / organized by the International Atomic Energy Agency and hosted by the Government of Spain through the Empresa Nacional de Residuos Radiactivos, S.A. … [et al.], and held in Córdoba, 13–17 December 2004. — Vienna : The Agency, 2005. p. ; 24 cm + 1 CD-ROM — (Proceedings series, ISSN 0074–1884) STI/PUB/1224 ISBN 92–0–102905–5 Includes bibliographical references. 1. Radioactive waste disposal — Congresses. 2. Hazardous wastes — Management — Congresses. I. International Atomic Energy Agency. II. Empresa Nacional de Residuos Radiactivos (Spain) III. Series: Proceedings series (International Atomic Energy Agency). IAEAL 05–00403 FOREWORD The largest part, by mass and volume, of the radioactive waste created in the operation and decommissioning of nuclear power plants, in the production of nuclear fuel, in the use of radionuclides in medicine, industry and research and as a by-product of various industrial processes, is of low activity. Management solutions exist for some, but not all, of the waste types that can be described as low activity. A new urgency exists in many countries to develop or extend existing arrangements for low activity waste management and disposal because of the ongoing or imminent decommissioning phase of their commercial nuclear power plants. In other countries, the problems associated with the management of the low activity radioactive waste from non-nuclear industries, for example, waste including naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM), is becoming more recognized. The subject of low activity radioactive waste management raises several issues of both a philosophical and a technical nature, such as the question of when a waste is to be considered radioactive from a regulatory perspective, the issue of guiding suitable management strategies for waste that is both long lived and present in large volumes and of finding suitable disposal routes for new types of low activity waste. The IAEA organized this international symposium to provide an opportunity for the exchange of information on the subject among its Member States and to look for common approaches to the problems so identified. The symposium explored the subject through five topical sessions: policies and strategies for low activity radioactive waste management and disposal; very low activity waste; low activity radioactive waste from decommissioning; long lived low activity radioactive waste and unique low activity waste. This publication, which constitutes the record of the symposium, includes the opening and closing speeches, the invited papers, the summaries of the discussions during the sessions and during the panel sessions and an executive summary of the symposium. A CD-ROM containing the unedited contributed papers to the symposium can be found at the back of this book. The IAEA gratefully acknowledges the support and generous hospitality of the Government of Spain through its Empresa Nacional de Residuos Radiactivos, S.A. (ENRESA) and its Consejo de Seguridad Nuclear (CSN). It also acknowledges the support of the French Agence nationale pour la gestion des déchets radioactifs (ANDRA) and of the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency. EDITORIAL NOTE The Proceedings have been edited by the editorial staff of the IAEA to the extent considered necessary for the reader’s assistance. The views expressed remain, however, the responsibility of the named authors or participants. In addition, the views are not necessarily those of the governments of the nominating Member States or of the nominating organizations. Although great care has been taken to maintain the accuracy of information contained in this publication, neither the IAEA nor its Member States assume any responsibility for consequences which may arise from its use. The use of particular designations of countries or territories does not imply any judgement by the publisher, the IAEA, as to the legal status of such countries or territories, of their authorities and institutions or of the delimitation of their boundaries. The mention of names of specific companies or products (whether or not indicated as registered) does not imply any intention to infringe proprietary rights, nor should it be construed as an endorsement or recommendation on the part of the IAEA. The authors are responsible for having obtained the necessary permission for the IAEA to reproduce, translate or use material from sources already protected by copyrights. CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY. i OPENING SESSION Opening Addresses Y.A. Sokolov . 3 M.-T. Estevan Bolea . 7 Keynote Addresses J.M. Grávalos. 11 J.C. Lentijo . 15 F. Jacq . 19 L. Echávarri . 23 POLICIES AND STRATEGIES FOR LOW ACTIVITY RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT AND DISPOSAL (SESSION 1) The management of low activity radioactive waste IAEA guidance and perspectives D. Louvat, J.H. Rowat, J.-M. Potier . 31 Policies and strategy for low activity radioactive waste management in Spain J.M. Redondo García . 43 Management and disposal strategies for low activity waste in the United States of America M.V. Federline . 53 The management of low level waste in France F. Jacq . 71 Policy on management and disposal of low level waste in Japan Y. Kawakami . 87 Management of low activity radioactive waste from Russian nuclear power plants and radiochemical plants P.P. Poluektov, L.P. Sukhanov, Y.V. Glagolenko et al. 95 The Joint Convention and improved management of low activity radioactive waste G.C. Jack . 109 Radioactive waste management in Portugal R. Trindade, I. Paiva, L. Portugal . 119 Panel Statement P. Bredell . 127 Statement J.P. Boyazis . 128 Statement J. Tomás Zerquera. 129 Statement V. Štefula. 130 Discussion: How can existing radioactive waste management strategies better address the needs of countries with limited resources?. 132 VERY LOW LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE (VLLW) (SESSION 2) Very low level waste — the need for a new category of radioactive waste? L. Baekelandt . 141 Disposal of very low level waste and safety assessment M. Dutzer, F. Chastagner, N. Ricquart, F. Duret . 153 Review of low level radioactive waste management in the United Kingdom T. Selby . 165 Management of very low activity radioactive waste in Spain P. Zuloaga . 175 Very low level radioactive waste: Perspective of the European Commission A. Janssens, U. Blohm-Hieber, B. Andrés Ordax . 185 Panel Statement R.L. Jackson. 205 Statement I. Othman . 207 Statement K.-L. Sjöblom . 208 Statement R.L. Zelmer . 210 Discussion: Clearance and VLLW disposal: Competing or complementary approaches? . 211 LOW ACTIVITY RADIOACTIVE WASTE FROM DECOMMISSIONING (SESSION 3) Overview of decommissioning waste T. Eng, C. Pescatore . 223 Building confidence in decommissioning in France: A national system for managing the associated radioactive waste J. Avérous, E. Chapalain . 235 The management of low level radioactive waste arising from the operation and decommissioning of the nuclear fuel production facilities at NECSA — a South African experience P. Bredell . 245 Present status and plans for disposal of decommissioning