Kingdom of Belgium, Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management, Second Review Meeting (May 2006), Answers to the Questions of Contracting Parties on the National Report submitted by Belgium

News item from NEI summarizing siting process for nuclear waste repositories in Sweden, Finland and France.

Proposals to site, construct and operate a radioactive waste disposal facility in Sweden will be supported by performance assessments (PAs). Such PAs will require a range of expert judgements to be made. As part of SKI’s preparation for reviewing SKB’s Pas and for conducting independent PAs, SKI has identified a need for further research on the treatment of expert judgement in PA.

The foundation for work related to nuclear waste management is laid by laws and outlines e.g. the responsibilities of the reactor owners and the state, as represented by the authorities. The Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Company (SKB), as well as Posiva Oy in Finland, were set up by the reactor owners in the respective countries in response to the responsibilities of planning, conducting research and to implement the physical structures leading to a safe management of nuclear wastes.

This report was prepared in the context of Work Package 3 of the InSOTEC project. The overall objective of this work package (WP) is to take a closer look at arenas where socio-technical combinations on radioactive waste management (RWM) are formed. The attempt is to illustrate the interconnections between the sources of different types of information and knowledge development with the various stakeholders having access to that information.

The objective of the RISCOM II project is to share the knowledge of the context of radioactive waste management in various European countries and to see to what extent it is possible to apply more widely the RISCOM Model (Andersson et al., 1998) in order to improve the acceptability of radioactive waste management. Thus, the project aims to promote the development of processes involving transparency, as well as means involving greater participation of the public.

Worldwide activities related to the storage of spent (irradiated) nuclear power reactor fuel and highly-radioactive, long-lived wastes are summarized, with a review of the storage programs and plans of 26 nations. The focus of the report is on the application of dry storage techniques to spent fuel, although dry storage of long-lived wastes is also reviewed.

During the 1990s, nuclear waste programmes in nearly every concerned country met many difficulties. Nuclear waste management was seen as a technical issue, and the local communities were only involved in the last stage of the decision-making process when almost all components of the decision were already fixed. The management of high level radioactive waste is now recognised as a complex decision-making process entailing technical, ethical, social, political and economic dimensions where no solution can be reached solely on the basis of technical considerations.

This report aims to clarify the dynamics of socio-technical challenges in the implementation of geological disposal (GD) for High Level Waste (HLW) and Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF). Drawing on the 14 country reports produced within InSOTEC’s WP1 the synthesis focuses on socio-technical challenges that appear across national contexts. The synthesis report elucidates issues made visible through bringing together the analyses of different national contexts.

These proposed guidelines are recommendations that have emerged from the European Union Research Project ARGONA (Arenas for Risk Governance), Contract no.: FP6-036413

During the next few years, SKB will add the results of county studies and additional feasibility studies to the background data for siting of the deep repository. We plan to be able to choose at least two sites for site investigations in 2001. The investigations, which will include test drillings, should be able to be started in 2002. An important milestone will thereby be passed in the siting work.<br/><br/>The technology for deep disposal will be tested on full scale at our laboratories in Oskarshamn.

The goal of radioactive waste management in Sweden is to dispose of all radioactive waste products generated at the Swedish nuclear power plants in a safe manner. Furthermore, all other radioactive waste that arises in Sweden shall be safely disposed of. The Act on Nuclear Activities /1-1/ requires that the owners of the Swedish nuclear power plants adopt the measures that are needed to achieve this goal. The owners of the Swedish nuclear power plants have commissioned the Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Company (SKB) to implement the measures that are needed.

In RD&D-Programme 92, SKB presented a partially new strategy for its activities. The new strategy entailed a focusing and concentration on the implementation of deep disposal of a limited quantity (about 800 tonnes) of encapsulated spent nuclear fuel during the coming 20-year period. Following this initial deposition, the results of the work will be evaluated, and only then will a decision be taken as to how and when regular deposition of the main body of the fuel and other long-lived nuclear waste will take place.

SKB has selected Forsmark as the site for the final repository for spent nuclear fuel. The site selection<br/>is the end result of an extensive siting process that began in the early 1990s. The strategy and<br/>plan for the work was based on experience from investigations and development work over a period<br/>of more than ten years prior to then.<br/>This document describes the siting work and SKB’s choice of site for the final repository.

The preceding RD&D-Programme from 1998 was supplemented in December 2000 by an integrated account of method, site selection and programme prior to the site<br/>investigation phase. Since the latter account lies close in time, SKB has chosen to<br/>concentrate RD&D-Programme 2001 on research and technology development. Viewpoints<br/>offered on previous RD&D-programmes and comments from the review of the<br/>SR 97 safety assessment comprise important input for RD&D-Programme 2001.

In order to dispose of the spent nuclear fuel in a safe manner, SKB plans to site<br/>a deep repository and an encapsulation plant with associated canister fabrication<br/>and transportation system. After an integrated evaluation of feasibility studies<br/>and other material, SKB will proceed with investigations of the rock and studies<br/>regarding establishment of the deep disposal system in the municipality of<br/>Oskarshamn or in Northern Uppland.

For those parts of the waste system that have already been taken into operation - transportation and handling systems, central interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel (CLAB) and final repository for reactor waste (SFR)- the research and development stage has already largely been passed. The programme presented here therefore pertains primarily to the treatment and final disposal of spent fuel and the decommissioning of nuclear power plants.

Many nations and international agencies are working to develop improved technology and industrial capability for nuclear fuel cycle and waste management operations. The effort in some countries is limited to research in university laboratories on treating low-level waste from reactor plant operations.

The Act on Nuclear Activities (SFS 1984:3) obligates the owners of the Swedish nuclear power plants to<br/>jointly prepare a comprehensive programme for the research and development work and other measures<br/>required for the safe management and disposal of the waste from nuclear power.<br/>For those parts of the waste system that have already been taken into operation or are under construction - transportation and handling systems, central interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel (CLAB) and final repository for reactor waste (SFR) - the research and development st

Public hearings were held in the Swedish municipalities of Östhammar, Tierp and Älvkarleby, Hultsfred and Oskarshamn and in Nyköping in February of 2001. The municipalities had taken part in feasibility studies, conducted by the Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Co. (SKB), in the previous years. The hearings were organised by the Swedish regulatory authorities, i.e. the Swedish Nuclear Power Inspectorate (SKI) and the Swedish Radiation Protection Authority (SSI) and aimed at complementing the authorities’ reviews of SKB’s work and plans.

The scientific investigations within SKB &#39;s research programme are a part of the work<br/>of designing a deep repository and identifying and investigating a suitable site.<br/>A balanced appraisal of the facts, requirements and assessments presented in connection<br/>with the preparation of R&D-Programme 86 11/led to the proposal to construct<br/>an underground research laboratory.