Appendix CRF - Part 3 - Northamptonshire County Council

adioactive material. Material designated in national law or by a regulatory body as being
subject to regulatory control because of its radioactivity.
radioactive waste. See waste, radioactive. Low activity solid radioactive wastes are taken to
include all wastes with an activity level lying below the defined Low Level Waste (LLW) category
upper limit, but above either the levels specified for exclusion from the provisions of the
Radioactive Substances Act 1993 (RSA93) or for exemption from specific regulatory action under
the Act as a result of the Substances of Low Activity (SoLA) Exemption Order. This range
includes, at the lower end, an officially recognised waste category termed Very Low Level Waste
(VLLW).
Low Level Waste (LLW) is a waste containing radioactive materials other than those suitable for
disposal with ordinary refuse, but not exceeding 4GBq/te (gigabecquerels/tonne) of alpha or 12
GBq/te of beta/gamma activity; i.e., wastes that can normally be accepted for authorised disposal
at Drigg, Dounreay or other engineered landfill sites.
Very Low Level Waste (VLLW) is a waste that can be disposed of with ordinary refuse, each 0.1
cubic metre (m3) of material containing less than 400kBq (kilobecquerels) of beta/gamma activity
or single items containing less than 40kBq. In the application of the VLLW upper threshold, there
are separate, complementary, restrictions on the permissible content of carbon-14 and tritium;
these are a factor of ten greater. VLLW disposal was originally intended for small volumes and is
also known as “dustbin” disposal.
In practice, there are other streams of low activity solid radioactive waste that are disposed of to
routes other than Drigg and dustbin disposal. These waste streams are associated with landfill
disposal, in-situ burial on licensed nuclear sites, and incineration. The waste streams deemed
suitable for landfill or in-situ burial are generally characterised by radioactivity levels well below
the defined LLW upper activity threshold, and by the fact that they may arise in large volumes.
Incineration is essentially treatment of LLW and VLLW prior to landfill disposal of the secondary
incineration products (hearth ash and gas cleaning residues) as VLLW dustbin disposal or
exempt wastes.
Landfill disposal processes for LLW were developed for those wastes arising principally in the
non-nuclear sector which were above the limits for dustbin disposal and unsuitable for
incineration. The activity limit is typically above VLLW, but well below the LLW upper bound. The
development of this route depended on the availability of suitable landfill sites with good
containment characteristics that had been subject to an environmental assessment satisfying the
regulators that public safety was assured, and to an ongoing leachate monitoring programme
carried out by the regulators. Disposal of LLW is subject to issue of an authorization under
RSA93 by the regulators.
radioactive waste management. See waste management, radioactive.
radioactivity. The phenomenon whereby atoms undergo spontaneous random disintegration,
usually accompanied by the emission of radiation.
radiological survey. See survey, radiological.
radionuclide. A nucleus (of an atom) that possesses properties of spontaneous disintegration
(radioactivity). Nuclei are distinguished by their mass and atomic number.
records. A set of documents, such as instrument charts, certificates, log books, computer
printouts and magnetic tapes for each nuclear facility, organized in such a way that it provides
past and present representations of facility operations and activities including all phases from
design through closure and decommissioning (if the facility has been decommissioned). Records
are an essential part of quality assurance.
Application for disposal of LLW including HV-VLLW under RSA 1993,
for the East Northants Resource Management Facility:
Supporting Information
July 2009
132
WS010001/ENRMF/CONSAPPCRF 451