School for drafting regulations Nuclear Safety Decommissioning Vienna, 2-7 December 2012 Tea Bilic Zabric.

School for drafting regulations Nuclear Safety

Decommissioning

Vienna, 2-7 December 2012

Tea Bilic Zabric

Introduction

The term ‘decommissioning’ refers to the administrative and technical actions taken to allow the removal of some or all of the regulatory requirements from a facility (except for a repository, for which the term ‘closed’ is used).

The management and disposition of new and spent nuclear fuel are not normally considered as a part of decommissioning activities, but are addressed as part of operations.

Introduction

Costs for decommissioning represent a significant part of the total costs of a nuclear power programme, and funding should be planned for this purpose from the beginning of operation of a plant.

The government should enact legislation that requires financial provision for the funding of long term radioactive waste management, spent fuel management and decommissioning.

Introduction

The government should consider the various possible sources and mechanisms of funding the decommissioning.

Funding should be well secured to avoid its depletion for other purposes or through monetary inflation. In very first phase , basic decisions should be made on establishing such funds, on the principal mechanism for the collection of funds and on the organization responsible for managing the funds.

Provision for decommissioning

Provision for a nuclear power plant's «decommissioning» shall be made already during the plant's design phase. One criterion when deciding the plant's materials and structural solutions shall be that the volumes of decommissioned waste are to be limited. It shall be possible to decommission the plant and remove radioactive structures and components in such a way that the radiation exposure of workers and the environment remains low.

Regulatory body role

Establishing criteria for determining when a facility or part of a facility is permanently shut down, based on termination of the authorized activities;

Establishing safety and environmental criteria for the decommissioning of facilities, including criteria for clearance of material during decommissioning and conditions on the end state of decommissioning and on the removal of controls;

Regulatory body role

Establishing requirements for decommissioning planning;

Reviewing the initial decommissioning plan and reviewing and approving the final decommissioning plan before allowing decommissioning activities to be commenced;

Implementing inspection and review of decommissioning activities and taking enforcement actions in case of non-compliance with safety requirements;

Regulatory body role

Establishing policies and requirements for the collection and retention of records and reports relevant to decommissioning;

Evaluating the end state of a decommissioned facility and deciding whether the conditions have been met to allow the termination of the practice and/or release from regulatory controls or whether further activities or controls are needed;

Regulatory body role

Establishing policies and requirements for the collection and retention of records and reports relevant to decommissioning;

Evaluating the end state of a decommissioned facility and deciding whether the conditions have been met to allow the termination of the practice and/or release from regulatory controls or whether further activities or controls are needed;

Permit for commencement of decommissioning

• a safety analysis report for decommissioning;

• management system documentation;• decommissioning programme;• radioactive-waste or spent-fuel

management programme;• programmes of SSC maintenance, testing

and inspection• results of radioactivity monitoring

following the termination of operation

Permit for commencement of decommissioning

• design for decommissioning drawn up based on the programme of decommissioning;

• information concerning the issuing of the construction permit for removal of the radiation or nuclear facility;

• list of written procedures covering the commencement of decommissioning;

Permit for commencement of decommissioning

• evidence demonstrating that any contractors will comply with radiation or nuclear safety standards equivalent to facility operator;

• physical-protection plan confidential document in accordance with the regulations governing data confidentiality.

Permit for completion of decommissioning

• safety analysis report on the completion of decommissioning of facility;

• report on the final inspection of the radiological condition of the facility site demonstrating that radioactivity levels, including dose rates and contamination of soil with alpha, beta and gamma emitters, are below the statutory limits;

• certificates of disposal, treatment or reuse of all the radioactive substances generated during decommissioning;

Permit for completion of decommissioning

• results of radioactivity monitoring during decommissioning;

• type and method of archiving of documentation on all past activities related to the facility at the site

Safety analysis report for decommissioning

• facility description;• decommissioning objectives;• clearance criteria;• decommissioning activities;• description of SSCs, buildings or areas not

cleared;• final radiological condition;• release from regulatory control;

Safety analysis report for decommissioning

• wastes;• personnel doses;• description of events in the course of

decommissioning;• description of lessons learned in the

course of decommissioning.

Decommissioning programme

• decommissioning programme shall be based on safety analyses, assessment of the radiological condition of the facility and latest facility data.

• development of a decommissioning programme shall follow the graded-approach principle: the strategy of decommissioning and corresponding plans shall be aligned with the complexity of the facility, type of radioactive substances contained

Decommissioning programme

• decommissioning programme shall set out written procedures for all decommissioning works

• decommissioning programme shall be regularly reviewed and updated, at a minimum within the periodic safety review of the facility, so as to reflect any changes in the strategy of decommissioning, developments in technology, amendments in legislative provisions and modifications to the facility that may have impacts

Decommissioning programme

• decommissioning programme shall minimise the dependence of the radiation or nuclear safety of the facility, following its transition to the safe enclosure mode on active systems

• decommissioning programme shall also provide for a programme of monitoring and surveillance, to be made prior to the transition of the facility to the safe enclosure mode

Decommissioning programme

Content• description of the facility;• decommissioning strategy;• project management;• decommissioning activities;• inspections and maintenance;• waste management;• costs;• safety assessment;

Decommissioning programme

Content• environmental assessment;• occupational safety;• quality assurance;• emergency plan;• physical security and safeguards of

nuclear and radioactive substances;• final radiation survey.