R4.13/95 - improvement safety waste

• To improve the overall safety of the management of the radioactive waste and spent fuel in North West Russia;
• To set up a Regional Steering Committee for the management of radioactive waste arising in the Murmansk and Archangelsk regions of Russia;
• To develop one common waste management policy for these regions;
• To set up a special organisation which will be responsible for the construction and operation of a regional repository for radioactive waste.

Planned outputs:

• Local subcontract with the Mining Institute of the Kola Science Centre;
• Detailed work plan and time schedule;
• Survey of EU waste management structures: proposal for responsibility, mission and structure of the Regional Steering Committee for the management of the radioactive waste;
• Proposal for a common radioactive waste management policy;
• Guideline for safe waste storage;
• Guideline for safe storage of spent fuel;
• Set of acceptance criteria for repository site selection;
• Guidelines for the transport of radioactive waste to the repository;
• List of remaining waste management issues;
• Survey of applicable EU organisational structures to construct and operate the future repository;
• Final report.

Project activities in tasks:

• Task 1: Detailed organisation.
• Task 2: Set up of a Regional Steering Committee for the management of radioactive waste.
• Task 3: Development of one common waste management policy for North West Russia.
• Task 4: Development of guidelines for the storage of radioactive waste.
• Task 5: Development of guidelines for the storage of spent fuel.
• Task 6: Selection of the site for a repository for radioactive waste.
• Task 7: Development of guidelines for transport of radioactive waste to the repository.
• Task 8: Identification of Radioactive waste management issues to be improved.
• Task 9: Set up of an organisation to construct and operate the repository.
• Task 10: Reporting, in particular issue of the Final Report.

All planned outputs have been achieved.

Under these circumstances, characterised by major reorganisations and redefinition of responsibilities and by severe economic/financial constraints, the overall results of the project can be considered as adequate for the purpose.

All planned task reports and documents were issued. The overall results of the project were presented by the contractor and subcontractors (EU and local) and widely discussed at the fifth Steering Committee meeting (Archangelsk, September 2000) with the active participation and intervention of representatives of the project partner, regional Administrations, of local organisations and of RW producers.

The project results have been evaluated as good by all participants. Guidelines and other reports produced by the project are essentially documents for decision-makers. They provide guidance for the radioactive waste management and for the spent fuel storage on the basis of a synergetic linkage between EU countries consolidated experience and best Russian working experience, as adapted to the specific situation of the North West region of Russia.

The project outputs/task reports can be summarised as follows:

• Task 2 Set up of a Regional Steering Committee: completed (October 1998).
• Task 3 Development of the common waste management policy for North-West Russia: completed (September 2000).
• Task 4 Development of guidelines for storage of radioactive waste: completed (September 1999).
• Task 5 Development of guidelines for the storage of spent fuel: completed (October 1999).
• Task 6 Selection of the site for a repository for radioactive waste: completed (March 2000).
• Task 7 Development of guidelines for transport of radioactive waste to the repository: completed (August 2000).
• Task 8 Identification of radioactive waste management issues to be improved: completed (September 2000).
• Task 9 Set up of an organisation to construct and operate the repository: completed (September 2000).