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LA LLW Capacity Assessment – March 2013 - Low Level Waste ...

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<strong>LLW</strong> Repository LtdNational <strong>Waste</strong> ProgrammeNWP/REP/012Issue 3 – <strong>March</strong> <strong>2013</strong>Page 3 of 24Executive SummaryThe United Kingdom (UK) Nuclear Industry <strong>Low</strong> <strong>Level</strong> <strong>Waste</strong> (<strong>LLW</strong>) Strategy 1 , published in 2010,set out three themes which guided the development of the strategy: The application of the waste hierarchy; Best use of existing <strong>LLW</strong> management assets; The need for new fit-for-purpose waste management routes.The application of these themes within the Strategy then translated into the need to preservecapacity at the national <strong>Low</strong> <strong>Level</strong> <strong>Waste</strong> Repository (<strong>LLW</strong>R) to ensure its longevity, noting thatthis would likely require the use of alternative disposal routes. Alternative routes could range fromnew on-site disposal facilities to suitable commercial facilities.In 2011 <strong>LLW</strong>R Ltd published an analysis of the 2010 UK Radioactive <strong>Waste</strong> Inventory (UKRWI)data 2 to establish the volumes of <strong>Low</strong> Activity <strong>Low</strong> <strong>Level</strong> <strong>Waste</strong> (<strong>LA</strong>-<strong>LLW</strong>) material that may besuitable for management through the application of the waste hierarchy via options such as metalrecycling and incineration, and through controlled burial in permitted near surface disposalfacilities. Within the report, the term <strong>LA</strong>-<strong>LLW</strong> refers to those wastes with a total radioactivity of lessthan 200Bq/g (Becquerels per gram) arising from within the nuclear industry (Naturally OccurringRadioactive Materials (NORM) and exempt wastes are excluded). This category includes wastesdefined as high or low volume Very <strong>Low</strong> <strong>Level</strong> <strong>Waste</strong> (V<strong>LLW</strong>) which have total activities of lessthan 4Bq/g.This paper builds on that analysis, focussing specifically on consideration of those <strong>LA</strong>-<strong>LLW</strong>volumes suitable for disposal at near surface waste disposal sites, in comparison to the capacityavailable at existing sites within the UK over the period 2012 – 2030. The report seeks to establishwhether there is adequate capacity available in existing sites and where constraints may arise overthe period. It considers both a national and a regional picture of arisings and capacity. The analysishas focussed on short to medium term arisings up to 2030; however it should be noted thatsignificant volumes of V<strong>LLW</strong>/<strong>LA</strong>-<strong>LLW</strong> arise after this date up to 2120, which is the current end datefor the UK Radioactive <strong>Waste</strong> Inventory (UKRWI).For the purposes of the analysis, a comparison is made between the predicted arisings and theavailable capacity at near surface waste sites. It should, however, be emphasised that the actualwaste route will be decided by waste producers through their Best Available Technique (BAT)/Best Practicable Environmental Option (BPEO) processes to determine the best option. Thismeans that, although the waste volumes will arise, they may not be disposed of to these sites.Since these determinations for future waste arisings have not yet been made, from a capacityanalysis perspective this paper assumes that they will use these routes.The paper uses three sources of inventory data: the 2010 UKRWI, for the period 2012 – 2030; the<strong>March</strong> 2012 Joint <strong>Waste</strong> Management Plans (JWMPs) produced by NDA Site Licence Companies(SLCs), which predict waste arisings for a 5-year period commencing April 2012; and the 2012NDA <strong>Waste</strong> Inventory Form (WIF), the annual waste inventory submission by NDA estate SLCs,for the period 2012 - 2030.Old Shore Road, Drigg, Holmrook,1 Cumbria, United Kingdom, CA19 1XHA company Nuclear owned Decommissioning by UK Nuclear <strong>Waste</strong> Authority Management (NDA), 2010, Ltd UK Strategy for the Management of Solid <strong>Low</strong> <strong>Level</strong> Company Radioactive Registration <strong>Waste</strong> No. from 05608448 theNuclear Industry2 <strong>Low</strong> <strong>Level</strong> <strong>Waste</strong> Repository (<strong>LLW</strong>R), 2011. UK Management of Solid <strong>Low</strong> <strong>Level</strong> Radioactive <strong>Waste</strong> from the Nuclear Industry:Analysis of Near-term <strong>Low</strong> Activity <strong>Low</strong> <strong>Level</strong> <strong>Waste</strong> Arisings within the UK Radioactive <strong>Waste</strong> Inventory 2010.NOT PROTECTIVELY MARKED

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