For almost two years, 25 experts have been working on proposals for solutions for the disposal of Norway's historic nuclear waste. Now the work of the expert is ready.
When Norway decommissions the country's historic nuclear reactors, one of the main challenges will be how to dispose of the radioactive waste. The most radioactive waste is the fuel that has been used in the reactors. In addition, there will be low- and medium-active waste, which must also be disposed of.
When NND chooses solutions for how to deal with radioactive waste, it is important to rely on international best practices. NND's expert group has extensive experience with, among other things, similar work in our neighbouring countries Finland and Sweden. Finland has already built landfill for firewood and is now awaiting operational approval for this. In Sweden, research has been conducted on fuel disposal for three decades and has chosen the concept of deep landfill.
The group of experts has been split in two, one of which has been working on deep boreholes for the disposal of the most radioactive waste. The second group has worked more broadly, assessing landfills for different types of radioactive waste, from low-level to the most radioactive waste. The design of the borehole has also been examined in terms of what shape it must have after different treatment methods for the waste. Group two has also assessed the mountain hall as it has been chosen for the radioactive waste in our Nordic neighbouring countries to the east.
The working groups have landed on two main options for the type of landfill they recommend Norway should proceed with. For the highly active waste, a deep geological landfill is recommended, which is built as a mountain hall at a depth of 4-500 meters in the bedrock. This is the same solution as in Finland and Sweden. They do not, however, discard a deep borehole as an option.
For the low- and intermediate-active waste, it is recommended that a medium-depth geological landfill be built such as a mountain hall or a silo 100 to 200 meters deep. This is a solution that already exists in countries such as Slovenia, Korea and Finland.
“The final reports are a very good basis for the further process,” NND's Marit Stokkeland Asklien and Peter Bennett explain. Who led the investigation.
-Now the work will be used in a Concept Selection Study, the two say, before the government will process the result of this
A concept selection study (KVU) is an academic investigation of alternative ways to solve a need. KVU is a government strategic study that is being conducted for state investment projects with an estimated total cost of more than NOK 1 billion. “The work will take time,” Bennett says.
“It is necessary to carry out safety assessments, further development of the concepts and carry out basic investigations, find suitable sites, obtain relevant approvals and a number of other steps,” explains Asklien.
Efforts to decommission the Norwegian historic nuclear reactors are estimated to take decades. Until a landfill is built and completed, NND must first build storage for the radioactive waste.
Here you can read the two main reports of the work on landfill alternatives:
Final Report Options for Deposition of Spent Fuels/HLW in Deep Boreholes
Final report for landfills for all the radioactive waste NND is in charge of
