Waste Technology Section

Near Surface Waste Disposal

Radioactive waste management policies and strategies: Every country should have some form of policy and strategy for managing its spent fuel and radioactive waste. Such policies and strategies set out the nationally agreed position and plans in the area and are visible evidence of the concern and intent of the government and the relevant national organizations to ensure that spent fuel and radioactive waste are properly taken care of. A document has been developed advising on the main elements of national policy and strategy and procedure for their formulation and implementation (NES NW-G-1.1). The document is intended as an aid, resource and reference for those engaged in the development or updating of national policies and strategies for radioactive waste management.

Non-technical issues: When developing and operating disposal facilities a number of factors are considered, which do not belong to pure technological background. The examples are: managerial principles, social impacts, public involvement practices and economical factors. These aspects need to be adequately communicated also to interested general and professional non-nuclear public. The applied international practices in searching and promulgating technically/economically optimal and, at the same time, socially acceptable solutions of a disposal system were presented at an IAEA workshop, the proceedings of which will be published in 2006. Managerial principles are addressed in a series of IAEA safety standards documents in preparation. Implementation of these principles to the development of near surface disposal facilities is the main objective of a TECDOC 1553 published in 2007.