The amount of nuclear waste is growing worldwide. But even 70 years after the beginning of the nuclear age, no country in the world has found a real solution for the radiating legacy of nuclear power.
The final disposal of nuclear waste poses major challenges to governments worldwide. No country has a final disposal site for nuclear waste in operation yet; Finland is the only country that is currently constructing a permanent repository. Most countries have yet develop and implement a functioning waste management strategy for all kinds of nuclear waste. Governments differ widely on their nuclear waste approaches: in trying to find a final repository, how to classify nuclear waste, which safety standards to require from operators, and how to secure funding for the ever-growing costs to pay for all of this.
With reactors across the world approaching the end of their lives, decommissioning and dismantling of nuclear power plants will become increasingly important. This process will produce even more radioactive waste. In absence of final disposal sites, most of the high-level waste and spent nuclear fuel must be stored for many decades, challenging the safety requirements for storage facilities and causing much higher costs than previously estimated.
Overall, there is a lack of understanding about how countries around the world are trying to address the complex challenges that nuclear waste poses. The World Nuclear Waste Report aims to change that. This first edition focuses on Europe and presents the latest facts and figures on nuclear waste and its challenges.
www.WorldNuclearWasteReport.org
In 2020 the report will be published in French and Czech. The report is licensed under a Creative Commons License (CC-BY-NC-ND 3.0). Texts and figures can be used with indication of the sources.
Product details
Table of contents
Title page
Partners & Sponsors
Foreword
Acknowledgments
Key Insights
Executive summary
1. INTRODUCTION
2. ORIGINS AND CLASSIFICATION
2.1 Types of waste: the nuclear fuel chain
Uranium mining, milling, processing and fuel fabrication
Nuclear fission (fuel irradiation)
Management of spent fuel
Reactor (and fuel chain facility) decommissioning
2.2 Waste quantities and activity
2.3 Classification systems and categories
2.3.1 The IAEA classification
2.3.2 The EU classification
2.3.3 Examples of national classifications
2.4 Summary
3. QUANTITIES OF WASTE
3.1 Reporting obligations
3.2 Waste quantities along the supply chain
Uranium mining and fuel fabrication
Operational waste
Spent nuclear fuel
Decommissioning waste
Estimated waste quantities along the supply chain
3.3 Reported waste quantities under the Joint Convention
Uranium mining and fuel fabrication
Low- and intermediate-level waste
Spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste
3.4 Summary
4. RISKS FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND HUMAN HEALTH
4.1 Radiation risks of nuclear waste
4.2 Risks from uranium mining, mine tailings, enrichment, and fuel fabrication
Health risks from exposures to uranium
Uranium mining
Uranium mine tailings
4.3 Risks from operation
Risks from gases, liquids and solid waste
Risks to nuclear workers
4.4 Risks from spent nuclear fuel
Risks of spent fuel in pools
4.5 Risks from the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel
Fissile materials
Mixed oxide fuel (MOX)
4.6 Decommissioning risks
Continued radionuclide emissions from decommissioned reactors
Decommissioning vs operational exposures
4.7 Summary
5. WASTE MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS
5.1 Historical background
5.2 The context of nuclear waste management
5.3 Management concepts for nuclear waste
Disposal concepts
Host rocks
LILW-repositories
HLW-repositories
Deep borehole disposal
5.4 Interim strategies: storage
Interim storage
Extended storage
5.5 Summary
6. COSTS AND FINANCING
6.1 The nature of the funding systems for decommissioning, storage, and disposal
Basic liability for decommissioning and waste management
Overview and nature of the funds
Accumulation of the funds
6.2 Cost estimations and experiences
Cost estimation methodologies
Decommissioning costs
Disposal costs
6.3 Financing schemes
Financing schemes for decommissioning
Financing schemes for interim storage
Financing schemes for disposal
Integrated financing schemes
6.4 Summary
7. COUNTRY STUDIES
7.1 Czech Republic
Overview
Waste classification system
Quantities of waste
Waste management policies and facilities
Costs and financing
Summary
7.2 France
Overview
Waste classification system
Quantities of waste
Waste management policies and facilities
Costs and financing
Summary
7.3 Germany
Overview
Waste classification system
Quantities of waste
Waste management policies and facilities
Costs and financing
Summary
7.4 Hungary
Overview
Waste classification system
Quantities of waste
Waste management policies and facilities
Costs and financing
Summary
7.5 Sweden
Overview
Waste classification system
Quantities of waste
Waste management policies and facilities
Costs and financing
Summary
7.6 Switzerland
Overview
Waste classification system
Quantities of waste
Waste management policies and facilities
Costs and financing
Summary
7.7 The United Kingdom
Overview
Waste classification system
Quantities of waste
Waste management policies and facilities
Costs and financing
Summary
7.8 The United States of America
Overview
Waste classification system
Quantities of waste
Waste management policies and facilities
Costs and financing
Summary
8. TABLE OF ABBREVIATIONS
9. CONTRIBUTORS
Imprint