U4.01/09 A: Assistance to ministries and organizations responsible for radioactive waste management in Ukraine

The overall objective of this project is to increase the efficiency and sustainability of the system for management of all types RAW in Ukraine by improving the institutional and organizational structures and interactions among the central executive bodies and other relevant institutions, enterprises and organisations.

Specific objectives

1. Support in the establishment of the national RAW management organisation.
2. Support in the institutional and organizational development of the central executive bodies and other administrative agencies responsible for the RAW management in Ukraine by making recommendations with regard to their future development and the allocation of duties and powers.
3. Improvement of the training and development system for the staff of the central executive bodies, RAW management enterprises and organisations.
4. Implementation of a modern safety assessment methodology for the RAW management facilities in Ukraine.

Utilization of nuclear energy results in production of spent nuclear fuel and other types of radioactive waste (RAW). In Ukraine, the nuclear power plants (NPP) have generated about 33 000 m3 of various RAW, stored at the NPP sites. Over 2.6 mil m3 of RAW had been generated in the Chornobyl exclusion zone. A substantial fraction of this waste still needs to be properly processed and disposed. Additionally, a considerable amount of RAW from the non-nuclear sector is stored at various sites of the RADON State Enterprise, awaiting a final disposal.
The current RAW management system in Ukraine involves the following major entities:
• The State Agency for the Management of the Exclusion Zone (SAMEZ) responsible for treating RAW resulting from the Chornobyl NPP units, as well as for RADON facilities.
• The Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry (MECI) responsible for waste generated at operating NPPs.
• The State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate (SNRIU) establishes criteria, requirements and conditions of nuclear safety in RAW management.
• The Ministry of Health is involved in establishing radiation safety regulations and supervisory activities for RAW management facilities.
The existing structure and distribution of responsibilities among these bodies, as well as lack of coordination among them have adversely affected the efforts to increase nuclear safety in the RAW management over the past years.
The TACIS project U4.03/04 had recommended creation of a national radioactive Waste Management Organization (WMO). It should have implemented the national RAW management policy, including establishment and administration of RAW treatment facilities. However, several years after completion of the U4.03/04 project, the WMO establishment was not completed and it was not clear how it should work.
Therefore, assistance in development of state agencies for the RAW management, establishment of the WMO and increasing its capabilities were important objectives of the current project.

The project was implemented by a consortium consisting of:
DBE TECHNOLOGY GmbH, Germany – as a consortium leader
SKB International AB, Sweden
ANDRA, France
COVRA, the Netherlands
ENRESA, Spain
The original project implementation period was 3 years from 1 July 2012 to 30 June 2015. Due to organizational difficulties of the Ukrainian partners, however, the project was extended by 9 months and finished on 31 March 2016.
The project implementation was divided in 7 tasks.
The Task 1 was dedicated to organizing a kick-off meeting. The meeting took place on 23 August 2012.
Within the Task 2, the consortium assessed the current institutional and organizational structures related to RAW management. The assessment focused mainly on providing guidance for next project tasks.
Within the Task 3, the consortium prepared a conceptual design and provided suggestions for improvement of the national system for the RAW management in Ukraine, including:
• The system of state regulation and supervision of the RAW management
• Roles, responsibilities and coordination of the individual governing bodies
• Key functions, organizational structure and staffing of the national Waste Management Organization (WMO)
• Financing the RAW management activities
• RAW accounting
• Professional training and education in RAW management
Within the Task 4, the consortium prepared technical specifications for development of a RAW information database. A Ukrainian company then developed the database and the beneficiary accepted it in April 2016. Furthermore, the consortium prepared technical specifications for a digital archive of RAW management documents. A Ukrainian company then again developed the archive application in April 2016.
In the Task 5, the consortium reviewed the current training system for the RAW management staff and prepared recommendations for improvement of training procedures and RAW staff development in Ukraine. The consortium also suggested training and qualification requirements for RAW management staff. The consortium then provided recommendations for selection and application of the most common project management (PM) software and provided a pilot training in the PM. Finally, three groups of Ukrainian RAW specialists could visit RAW management and training installations in EU countries (Sweden, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Czech Republic and Germany).
Within the Task 6, the consortium prepared methodologies for safety assessment of a RAW management facility in the pre-disposal and post-closure phases. The consortium then recommended computer codes to be used for these safety assessments, transferred the codes to the beneficiary and delivered a user training.
Within the Task 7, the consortium shared the project results in a final workshop held in Kiev on 3 March 2016.
The consortium has submitted technical task reports describing in details all the work done.