Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology
Chairman's Summing Up of the Seventh CEG Meeting's Major Decisions and Recommendations
(Murmansk, 17 - 19 November 1998)The 7th CEG meeting took place in Murmansk, 17-19 November 1998 and was attended by 63 participants from 9 countries, 4 international organizations and the EU.
The meeting considered four major topical issues, namely:
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Overview of Waste Management Developments in the RF and Implementation of the
RF Waste Management Programme
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Concept of a Plan of Actions for International Co-operation in Radwaste and
Spent Fuel Management in the Russian Federation and Measures to Implementation
of the Plan by Donor Organizations
- CEG Secretariat’s reports, organizational and financial matters.
Overview of Waste Management Developments in the RF and Implementation of the RF Waste Management Programme
The CEG
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noting with appreciation a comprehensive overview of the status of
implementation of the RF Waste Management programme and some positive results
achieved in implementation of certain important projects,
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realizing that difficult economical situation in the RF further delays timely
realization of its WM and SNF management programme,
- underlined ever increasing importance of international co-operation in solving RF’s most important priority projects of high safety and ecological significance.
Concept of a Plan of Actions for International Co-operation in Radwaste and Spent Fuel Management in the Russian Federation and Measures to Implementation of the Plan by Donor Organizations
The CEG took note on the presented by the RF member brief overview of two documents, important for understanding the RF’s overall WM & SF strategy and particularly their long-term priorities in the North of Russia: "Priority projects in the field of WM&SNF management and ecological rehabilitation of radiation-hazardous facilities in the Russian Federation" and "Programme of priority works for the provision of the utilization of atomic submarines (AS) decommissioned from the Russian Navy (VMF) and the environmental rehabilitation of radiation-hazardous objects in the North of Russia (1998-2005)".
The CEG considered measures to be undertaken for Implementation of the Highest Priority Projects by donor organizations and agreed that these measures would include, inter alia:
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Evaluation of plan priorities for mitigation of Environmental Risk
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Identification of barriers which could frustrate their implementation
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Preparation of funding justifications for decision-makers of donor parties
- Evaluation of supporting infrastructure for managing the implementation of the projects
The CEG agreed that an Ad Hoc Working Group (WG) will be established in order to
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make an analysis of those RF documents, that constitute an overall strategy for
waste management and spent fuel disposition in the North-West of RF. If the
strategy is not yet compiled in such a way that it is useful for donors to
define which projects are of interest and to make decisions on which projects
to contribute to, a joint effort with RF experts will be undertaken to develop
such a strategy document and
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to prepare suggestions on practical realization of measures necessary for
implementation of such projects, for consideration at its next meeting.
The WM Strategy WG will consist of experts from EU, France, Germany, RF, Sweden and USA and will be chaired by its EU member. It is expected that the Group will work both by correspondence and, if necessary, by holding one or two meetings.
The CEG discussed and approved a List of Highest Priority Tasks (attached), as the CEG recommendations to its member countries / international organizations, as well as for possible consideration at the next meeting of the Euro-Barents Arctic Council and the Summit meetings next summer.
CEG Secretariat’s reports, organisational and financial matters
The CEG
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considered prepared by the Ad Hoc Group recommendations for improving the CEG
Information Exchange Mechanism on Preparation and Realisation of Co-operation
Projects, thus advancing the effectiveness of the CEG operation and decided
that creation of any new administrative structure is premature at this stage;
it also believes that its suggestion on creation of a small Working Group to analyse overall strategy plan for WM&SF management in the North-West of the RF could be covered by the just established "WM strategy" WG;
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appreciated the development by the CEG Secretariat a CEG World Wide Web site
(as requested at the previous meeting), approved its structure and content and
authorized its operation;
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approved the presented provisional Financial Report, having repeated its
expectation that the remaining two not yet contributing CEG members will
consider voluntary joining the others in financing the CEG Secretariat’s
operation;
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noted with satisfaction the confirmation made by the Norway’s CEG member to
host the 8th CEG meeting and agreed to hold it in June 1999 (date and place to
be clarified);
- accepted with gratitude the invitation made by Germany’s CEG member to host the 9th CEG meeting and agreed to hold it in November 1999 (date and place to be clarified).
List of Highest Priority Tasks
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Development, fabrication and delivery of metal-concrete containers for storage
and transportation of solid spent nuclear fuel (SNF) and containers for storage
of radioactive waste (RAW).
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Interim storage for spent nuclear fuel of nuclear propulsion reactors at PO
Mayak.
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Securing the removal of SNF, liquid and solid RAW from floating and on-shore
storages (Andreeva Guba, Sysoeva Guba, Gremikha site).
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Reconstruction of tankers available in the Northern and Pacific fleet for their
use as containers-carriers with submarine SNF and containers with RAW from
isolated sites to points with railroad connections.
- Decommissioning of "Lepse" vessel and other floating vessels – storages of SNF and RAW.
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Creation of unloading complexes and RAW containers-collector sites at the
submarine decommissioning plants to accelerate the discharging of spent nuclear
fuel from decommissioned (but still floating) submarines.
- International safety assessment and, if positive, construction of a radioactive waste final repository at Novaya Zemlya.