The 12th International Conference on Environmental ... - Events

Session 57-58 Abstracts
4) DECOMMISSIONING OF HIGH HAZARD LEGACY FACILITIES: COMPARISON
OF APPROACHES IN THE NUCLEAR AND CHEMICAL SECTORS – 16084
Trevor Jones, Nuvia Limited (UK); Des Kelly, E4 Industry (UK)
5) CHALLENGES DURING THE DECOMMISSIONING OF THE WAK SITE - DISMANTLING
OF HIGHLY CONTAMINATED HLLW-STORAGE TANKS - 16054
Joachim Dux, Oliver Fath, Belgium)WAK Rückbau- und Entsorgungs-GmbH (Germany)
he German pilot reprocessing plant WAK was shut down in 1990 after reprocessing about 200 Mg of nuclear fuels and is decided
to be dismantled completely to the green field until year 2023. During the years 1994 until 2008 approximately 2.000 Mg of
partly highly contaminated process equipment and 1.500 Mg of concrete structures corresponding to 99% of the radioactive inventory
of 5E14 Bq of the WAK reprocessing building have already been dismantled.
A major prerequisite for the complete dismantling of the WAK is the management of the 60 m³ high-level liquid waste (HLLW)
with a total β/γ -activity of 8.0E17 Bq resulting from reprocessing. For this purpose the Karlsruhe Vitrification Plant (VEK) was
constructed in the years between 2000 and 2005 and inactively tested in 2007. <strong>The</strong> subsequent nuclear test operation and routine
hot operation of the VEK plant are planned to start mid-2009.
In parallel to vitrification operation, dismantling of the four HLLW tanks in the storage buildings will be prepared for remote
dismantling.
6) URANIUM WORKSHOPS DECOMMISSIONING - 16219
Pierre Lisbonne, CEA (France)
CEA started the Enriched Uranium Treatment Workshops in 1965. <strong>The</strong>y were aimed to design and test uranium treatment
processes, and later devoted to fuel production. In the 90’, CEA decided to refocus on R and D and to transfer its production activity
to industry, hence the Enriched Uranium Workshops were shut down in July 1995.
<strong>The</strong> Post Operation Clean Out is described, and the 4 phases of dismantling equipment, infrastructures, building clean-up and
final controls are explained, as well as remediation of the outside area. Delicensing of the BNF 52 is expected in 2013.
7) FEASIBILITY STUDY INTO THE APPLICATION OF AGGRESSIVE DECONTAMINATION
TECHNIQUES IN SUPPORT OF REPROCESSING PLANT DECOMMISSIONING – 16079
Heather Moore, Sellafield Limited (UK); Stephen Hepworth, Sellafield Ltd (UK)
8) DECOMMISSIONING OF AECL WHITESHELL LABORATORIES - 16311
Grant Koroll, Randall Swartz, Jeffrey Harding, AECL (Canada); Michael Rhodes, McAlpine Enterprises (Canada);
Randall Ridgway, Dennis Bilinsky, AECL, Pinawa (Canada)
Whiteshell Laboratories (WL) is a Nuclear Research and Test Establishment near Winnipeg, Canada, operated by AECL since
the early 1960s and now under decommissioning. WL occupies approximately 4400 hectares of land and employed more than 1000
staff up to the late-1990s, when the closure decision was made. Nuclear operations carried out at WL included a research reactor,
hot cell facilities, high level nuclear fuel waste management research, reactor safety research, nuclear materials research, accelerator
technology, biophysics, and industrial radiation applications.
In preparation for decommissioning, a comprehensive environmental assessment was successfully completed and the Canadian
Nuclear Safety Commission issued a six-year decommissioning licence for WL starting in 2003 - the first decommissioning
license issued for a Nuclear Research and Test Establishment in Canada. This paper describes the progress in this first six year
licence period.
SESSION 58 - D&D MANAGEMENT APPROACHES AND PLANNING TOOLS
1) NEC3 - MANAGING CHANGE – 16380
Nick Sunderland, Hill <strong>International</strong>(UK)
<strong>The</strong> Office of Government Commerce (OGC) has endorsed the use of NEC for all public sector contracts. <strong>The</strong> reason being is
that it stimulates effective project management and enables the parties to manage risk and change more efficiently, which in turn
serves to mitigate the cost and time effects of any risk event should it arise under the contract. In essence it facilitates a more collaborative
working culture between the parties.
<strong>The</strong> NEC3 contract is gaining in popularity and has been adopted for use in the decommissioning of nuclear power stations
and the London Olympics, it also recently received support in the Tenth Special Report on Construction Matters by the House of
Commons. It has strict time limits for the notification of compensation events as set out in the core clause 61.3 whereby the Contractor’s
contract administration team needs to notify the project manager within an eight week period of becoming aware of the
event. <strong>The</strong> contract also provides for an early warning procedure whereby the Contractor and the project manager will cooperate
and proactively discuss how issues can be overcome in a collaborative manner.
This NEC3 contract requires both the Contractor and the Employer to act positively and is welcomed as a possible solution to
the entrenched disputes which have regularly occurred on major energy projects and if properly administered will hopefully result
in an earlier and less fraught final account settlement process for both parties.
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