Slides - Performance Assessment (Probabilistic Risk Assessment) as a Tool in Focusing Scientific Evaluation of the WIPP Site
Presented to the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future Subcommittee on Disposal
Presented to the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future Subcommittee on Disposal
Summary of comments for the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future
This paper describes the evolution of the process for assessing the hazards of a geologic disposal system for radioactive waste and, similarly, nuclear power reactors, and the relationship of this process with other assessments of risk, particularly assessments of hazards from manufactured carcinogenic chemicals during use and disposal. This perspective reviews the common history of scientific concepts for risk assessment developed to the 1950s.
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 concept of Geosphere Perfonnance Indices (GPis) is proposed. The "performance"<br/>refers to the geosphere's capacity to retain/contain radionuclides in the event of their accidental<br/>release at some point in time. The GPis are based on the Lagrangian stochastic-analytical<br/>framework for transport in the subsurface and are believed to render useful tools in performance<br/>assessment studies in general and in the site selection process in particular.