Radioactive Waste Storage Facility Research Articles

Cancer Incidence in a Population Living Near Radioactive Waste Storage of Uranium Mining in Stepnogorsk Area, Northern Kazakhstan.

This study evaluates the impact of radioactive uranium waste storage facilities on cancer occurrence in nearby areas. Current research evaluates the effect of radioactive uranium waste storage facilities on cancer epidemiology in nearby areas. The critical area had Aqsu, Kvartsitka, Zavodskoy and Stepnogorsk cities, which are located at a less than 5 km distance to the south of the Hydrometallurgical Plant tailings dump while the control group had Akkol region in 90 km from the source. The majority of population had lived in this territory more than the 30 years. Data were obtained from the Electronic Register of Cancer Patients of the Republic of Kazakhstan from 2001-2015, and 2,271 incident cases of cancer were registered. The most frequent malignancies were observed in the digestive organs (646 cases, 28%) and respiratory and intrathoracic organs (376 cases, 17%). The proportion of digestive organ cancers was higher in the critical group (560 cases out of 1913, 29%) than in the control group (86 cases out of 358, 24%). Additionally, respiratory organ cancers were more common in men, but the cancer incidence rate ratio was higher in the critical area. Notably, the study found that the cancer incidence rate ratios decreased over time, specifically for digestive, respiratory and female genital organs and breast cancer. In conclusion, while our study highlights significant differences in cancer incidence rates and frequencies between the critical and control groups, further analytical research, incorporating age-adjustment, is needed to provide a more conclusive evaluation of the potential impact of residence in proximity to the uranium mining waste storage on cancer occurrence in the study area.

MONITORING OF GROUNDWATER CONTAMINATION WITH TRITIUM AFTER A RADIATION ACCIDENT AT A RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL SITE

The article analyses the data of long-term monitoring of the level of tritium contamination of groundwater in the area of the radioactive waste disposal site. Tritium is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen, a soft beta emitter. The impressive effect of tritium is due to the biological significance of the molecules into which it incorporates. Radioactive waste storage facilities store a lot of tritium-rich radioactive waste of various origins, a potential tritium source entering the natural environment. Any tritium released appears as tritium water (water that contains tritium in its molecules). Nowadays, the problem of tritium contamination of water ecosystems in the radioactive waste storage facilities’ areas can be considered one of the main issues in radioecology. The study aims to assess the level of safety of underground water in the radioactive waste disposal site area by the level of tritium content based on long-term monitoring data. The object of the study was the content of tritium in the underground water of the first aquifer in the territory of the radioactive waste disposal site (strict regime zone, sanitary and protective zone, and in underground waters of wells outside and in surface water bodies of the natural environment). We tested the tritium activity in water samples using the Triathler 425-034 liquid scintillation radiometer. In 1997, a radiation accident occurred at the radioactive waste disposal site. It led to the penetration of tritium into the first aquifer. Work has been underway to eliminate the accident. Modernisation of the system of wells for monitoring the underground water tritium contamination level also took place. As a result of the performed works, the radiation situation in the accident area has stabilised, and contamination of the aquifer due to the inflow of surface contaminated water from radioactive waste storage facilities has completely stopped. The results of long-term monitoring of tritium content in water of boreholes and wells and natural objects (reservoirs) located outside the sanitary protection zone of the enterprise showed that 27 years after the radiation accident, the radiation situation in the studied area is stable. The total activity of tritium in the aquifer of the monitoring wells is decreasing and has now reached the regulatory level in all but three wells. The concentration of tritium in underground waters (wells) and surface waters (reservoirs) outside the sanitary and protective zone has never exceeded the environmentally safe level during the monitoring period. At present, 89% of the studied monitoring sites (boreholes, natural reservoirs, wells) have tritium content that is within the environmentally safe range. Keywords: radioactive waste disposal site, radiation accident, tritium, aquifers, monitoring, environmental safety.

Екологічні аспекти відновлення довкілля: комплексний спосіб дезактивації радіоактивно забруднених ґрунтів

The purpose of the research: development and development of a new effective method of decontamination of radiation-contaminated soils to reduce the negative impact of radionuclides on the environment and human health. Research materials and methods: The research object is sandy soil contaminated with radiocesium. Research methods are applied - X-ray diffractometry, dispersion analysis, gamma spectrometry. Results: a complex method for cleaning of radioactively contaminated soil is proposed, which combines plasma-chemical treatment of the «soil – water» suspension with subsequent separation of the cleaned soil and coagulation-sorption cleaning of the formed supernatant. The supernatant contains a dispersion in the aqueous phase of micro- and nanoparticles that contain radioactive substances. The principle of heterocoagulation was used for the deposition of the solid phase, which reduces the migration of radioactive particles into the dispersion medium, using a positively charged colloid of iron hydroxide (III) as a coagulant. For deactivation of the liquid phase of the supernatant, a complex sorbent based on iron hydroxide micro- and nanoparticles modified with nickel-potassium ferrocyanides and highly dispersed layered aluminosilicates was used. At the same time, the degree of decontamination of the soil is 91.6%, and that of the supernatant is ≈98%. This method allows to get purified soil that can be used in soil reclamation processes, as well as purified water. Multiple use of process water is envisaged, which prevents additional contamination of the environment with radioactive substances. Radioactive sludge is suitable for compaction and further storage in radioactive waste storage facilities. Conclusions: Based on the results of this study, a new effective method of soil decontamination was developed and worked out, which is an effective and promising approach in combating the consequences of accidents at nuclear power plants and other sources of radiation pollution. It allows to effectively remove radioactive substances from soil and water, reducing the negative impact on the environment and human health. The main advantages of the method are its high efficiency, the possibility of reusing process water, as well as reducing the amount of radioactive waste that requires further treatment and storage. The proposed approach is an important step in preserving ecosystems and ensuring the safety of life and health of the population.

Impact of differences between the Nuclear Law Act and the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage on the Terms and Conditions of Nuclear Civil Liability Insurance

The focus of this article is that Polish legal provisions on civil liability for nuclear damage do not reflect the provisions of the Vienna Convention in all aspects. However, due to some limitations hereof, the considerations presented deal only with some selected issues that may affect the availability of nuclear third party liability insurance, and will be divided into two parts.The aim of the first part is to consider the major differences between the provisions of the Nuclear Law Act and the Vienna Convention, which include, among others, different deadlines for seeking compensation for nuclear personal injury and/or methods for satisfying such claims. Since both issues refer to personal injury, the notion of the latter is analysed, bearing in mind that certain discrepancies between the Polish Act and the Vienna Convention can also be noted.The second part discusses terms and conditions of third party nuclear liability insurance, entities specializing in offering such insurance, including nuclear pools and nuclear mutual insurance companies, as well as obstacles that may prevent third party nuclear liability insurance from being offered on the Polish market as compulsory insurance.This article covers only the rules relating to civil liability for nuclear personal injury resulting from the operation of a nuclear power plant, with those rules being considered primarily from the perspective of the insurance practice. The principles of civil liability for the transport of nuclear material from nuclear facilities, the operation of research reactors or of radioactive waste storage facilities have not been taken into account, as both insurers’ approach and terms and conditions of insurance covering said activities may vary slightly when compared with nuclear power plants.

INFLUENCE OF рН AND Ca<sup>2+</sup> IONS ON CHEMICAL COMPOSITION AND SORPTION OF <sup>137</sup>Cs BY CHERKASY BENTONITES (UKRAINE)

The safety of near-surface and deep radioactive waste storage facilities is based on a system of engineered and natural barriers. Significant degradation of the engineered barrier system composed of cemented waste matrixes covered by cement mixture, concrete compartments, and structures at the basement of the storage facility may cause radionuclide transfer from the facility to groundwater. Mixing of the cement and concrete with water leads to the formation of several various hydration products with subsequent leaching of Ca2+ ions and formation of hydroxyl ions (OH-), which affects the alkalinity of the water environment and the sorption properties of bentonite, as a component of the engineered barrier at the basement of near-surface facilities. The article presents the results of an experimental study of the influence of Ca2+ ion concentration and pH of the model solution (similar to groundwater composition at Vector Site in Chornobyl Exclusion Zone) on the elemental composition and sorption properties of natural (NB) and Na-modified (PBA-20) bentonites from the Cherkasy deposit concerning 137Cs at the Solid : Solution ratio of 1 : 100. Geochemical modeling suggests that addition of CaCl2 to test solution and resulting alkaline pH leads to precipitation of solids, mainly oxides, hydroxides, Fe oxyhydroxides (hematite, goethite, limonite), and Ca carbonates (calcite, aragonite, dolomite). Their role in Cs adsorption was evaluated. The concentration of structural elements (Si, Al) in bentonites practically does not change with Ca2+ ion concentration increase in the model solution, demonstrating the bentonite structure’s stability under these conditions. At the same time, an increase in the Ca concentration and a decrease in the Na concentration was found in the ion exchange complex of the bentonites if compared to the initial natural bentonite. This results in the transformation of Na-modified bentonite from Na, Ca-form to Ca, Na-form. The total sorption capacity of NB and PBA-20 bentonite concerning Cs+ ions at increased concentrations of Ca2+ ions and pH of the solution slightly decreases, though retaining high values of the degree of absorption (> 90 %). The total adsorption of Cs+ ions on NB and PBA-20 bentonites from model groundwater with the addition of CaCl2 from 16 to 960 mg/dm3 and increase of рН from 7.4 to 11.8 decreases with the increase in ionic strength, in particular, due to competition with Са2+ and Na+ ions. NB and PBA-20 bentonites of the Cherkasy deposit remain a reliable component of the liner at the repository basement owing to their main functional property – high absorption capacity for 137Cs, which is an important dose-forming radionuclide of short-lived low- and medium-level waste.

Examining the Contributions of Various Source Layers and Transport Pathways to Dose Rates Exterior to a Low- and Intermediate-Level Radioactive Waste Storage Facility Using ADVANTG/MCNP

An in-depth shielding analysis of a large indoor facility designed for storing low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste generated from nuclear power plant decommissioning was performed. The facility has a storage capacity of 1260 box-type containers, which are stacked in five layers. The characteristics of the radiation field around the facility were investigated comprehensively through efficient ADVANTG/MCNP simulations. The contribution of each source layer to the dose rates exterior to the facility was determined. Furthermore, dose components from various transport pathways (e.g., direct, streaming, and skyshine) were isolated using algebraic manipulation of the outputs obtained from additional simulations. The combined results provided valuable information for shielding optimization during the design phase and could facilitate the future operation of the storage facility.

Transformation of the Geological Environment under the Influence of Liquid Radioactive Waste (Russian Experience in Studying Historical Nuclear Disposal)

Due to various historical events, in the Russian Federation, in addition to the radioactive waste storage facilities used in world practice, there are various nuclear and radiation hazardous facilities that require special procedures for monitoring and decommissioning. One of these facilities is the disposal site for LRW on the territory of the JSC Siberian Chemical Plant, where specially prepared waste is injected into sand reservoirs lying at depths of 300–350 m between clayey strata. This study examines in detail the features of the lithological and mineral composition of reservoir sands and aquitards. The processes of environmental transformation in reservoir sands, which lead to changes in the composition and structure of rocks, were characterized. These processes manifest themselves in the form of the development of leaching zones and their “healing” with newly formed smectite, the destruction of terrigenous grains, including the development of cracks, and the growth of newly formed smectite in the pore space of reservoirs. The forms of occurrence and localization of authigenic smectite formed as a result of technogenic impact are described. It has been shown that, despite the obvious impact of highly reactive solutions accompanying liquid radioactive waste, the insulating properties of the geological environment are maintained and even improved to some extent.

FE modeling of the reconstructed Bituminated radioactive waste storage of Ignalina NPP

Decommissioning of nuclear facilities is a complex of various activities strongly related to safety. In 2004 and 2005, both reactors of Ignalina NPP were closed. One of the tasks that must be solved is what to do with the radioactive waste storage facility (Ignalina AE Building 158). Possible solutions: – complete destruction of the radioactive waste storage with the need to empty the canyons and store the waste in a special place or, as an alternative, turning the storage into a repository. Converting storage to repository also has many different options. The installation of protective barriers of different thicknesses or even the construction of a sarcophagus is possible. The cheapest way to form a protective barrier on an existing building structure. The problem is the relatively high weight of the barrier structure, which must be supported by the existing building structure.The article presents an analysis of the durability of the structures of the radioactive waste storage, assessing the influence of the self-weight of the building's reinforced concrete structural elements and the mass of the bituminous radioactive waste stored in the canyons, as well as the effect of additional loads acting on the floor and roof of the first floor during the planned conversion of the storage facility into the repository. Numerical simulation was performed using ANSYS computer code and the results were compared with the relevant standards and norms in order to assess the building's ability to undergo such transformations.Spatial volumetric geometric and calculation models of the construction structures of the 158 building were created. These models have been modified after considering future changes during the transformation of the building into a repository. Perform calculations of the state of stresses and strains of the landfill under the load of the self-weight of the structural elements and the hydrostatic pressure of the bituminous waste. On the basis of the results of the calculations, conclusions were formulated about the level of load on the construction structures of the building and the margin under the current operating loads.The developed numerical models can be easily extended to evaluate the effects of new building elements and additional loads on structures (specifically walls and ceilings) after the transformation of a waste storage into a repository.The article presents not only the idea of reorganizing the waste storage structure to repository but also the methodology of modelling such a structure by assessing the age of the building's soil and additional loads. This methodology can be useful and applied to the closure of other nuclear power plants when it is necessary to turn the radioactive waste storage into a repository.

Dose estimates and their uncertainties for use in epidemiological studies of radiation-exposed populations in the Russian Southern Urals.

Many residents of the Russian Southern Urals were exposed to radioactive environmental pollution created by the operations of the Mayak Production Association in the mid- 20th century. There were two major releases: the discharge of about 1x1017 Bq of liquid waste into the Techa River between 1949 and 1959; and the atmospheric release of 7.4 * 1016 Bq as a result an explosion in the radioactive waste-storage facility in 1957. The releases into the Techa River resulted in the exposure of more than 30,000 people who lived in riverside villages between 1950 and 1961. The 1957 accident contaminated a larger area with the highest exposure levels in an area that is called the East Urals Radioactive Trace (EURT). Current epidemiologic studies of the exposed populations are based on dose estimates obtained using a Monte-Carlo dosimetry system (TRDS-2016MC) that provides multiple realizations of the annual doses for each cohort member. These dose realizations provide a central estimate of the individual dose and information on the uncertainty of these dose estimates. In addition, the correlation of individual annual doses over realizations provides important information on shared uncertainties that can be used to assess the impact of shared dose uncertainties on risk estimate uncertainty.This paper considers dose uncertainties in the TRDS-2016MC. Individual doses from external and internal radiation sources were reconstructed for 48,036 people based on environmental contamination patterns, residential histories, individual 90Sr body-burden measurements and dietary intakes. Dietary intake of 90Sr resulted in doses accumulated in active bone marrow (or simply, marrow) that were an order of magnitude greater than those in soft tissues. About 84% of the marrow dose and 50% of the stomach dose was associated with internal exposures. The lognormal distribution is well-fitted to the individual dose realizations, which, therefore, could be expressed and easily operated in terms of geometric mean (GM) and geometric standard deviation (GSD). Cohort average GM for marrow and stomach cumulative doses are 0.21 and 0.03 Gy, respectively. Cohort average dose uncertainties in terms of GSD are as follows: for marrow it is 2.93 (90%CI: 2.02-4.34); for stomach and the other non-calcified tissues it is 2.32 (90% CI: 1.78-2.9).

Indoor Radon Survey in Aksu School and Kindergarten Located near Radioactive Waste Storage Facilities and Gold Mines in Northern Kazakhstan (Akmola Region)

Northern Kazakhstan is considered a field of uranium, gold mining, copper–molybdenum ore, and other metals. The aims of the current work were to monitor the indoor radon levels in a school and a kindergarten and to determine the levels of teacher and student exposure to radon. High radon concentrations were detected in the school on the first floor at ca. 9600 Bq/m3, on the second floor at ca. 6800 Bq/m3, on the third floor at ca. 4900 Bq/m3, and in the kindergarten, the concentration was ca. 9500 Bq/m3. The annual effective dose of the students and teachers of the school and kindergarten varied from 4 mSv/y to 9 mSv/y, which is an order of magnitude higher than the upper annual dose limit. The excess lifetime cancer risk was 14–20% for students, 31.1% for school and kindergarten staff, and 34.9% for kindergarten children. The indoor radon concentrations varied with weather conditions, and it was evident that ventilation had a significant effect on the reduction in the concentration. At these premises, positive correlations between the radon concentrations, outside temperature, and relative humidity were obtained, showing that the concentration of radon is influenced by meteorological parameters. This study will help to identify buildings where continuous monitoring is needed in order to reduce indoor radon levels.

SAFETY IMPROVEMENT OF THE RADIOACTIVE WASTE STORAGE FACILITY IN ALBANIA.

The Albanian National Radioactive Waste Storage Facility (NRWSF) constructed in 1999 consists of an interim waste storage facility for very low level waste, low level waste, intermediate level waste and disused sealed radioactive sources (DSRS) coming from research institutions, agriculture and industrial activities and from applications in nuclear medicine in Albania. The safety assessment of this facility is performed considering its impact to workers, public and environment. In 2018, Albania started a new National project Alb 9010 titled 'Upgrading the Radioactive Waste Storage Building According to International Standards'. The two fundamental objectives are to ensure the protection of the public, workers and the environment and to ensure retrievability of waste packages for final disposal. The project focuses on ensuring the safety of the treatment, conditioning and storage of radioactive waste and DSRS. Under this project has been done the improvement of the safety of the RWSF and upgrading of the existing building infrastructure. In the end of the project the objective is to improve the safety of the personnel in the RWSF, protection of public and environment, Upgrade the Equipment's used in the RW Management Activities, Upgrade the existing Infrastructure of the RWSF Building and also ensure retrievability of waste packages for final disposal.

Обзор зарубежного опыта и результаты испытаний материалов на основе цемента для обеспечения долговременной безопасности хранилищ радиоактивных отходов

In-depth analysis of proposed materials should always precede the construction of purpose designed facilities. These studies primarily demonstrating their feasibility, performance, service life, when applied in aggressive environments, are basically seeking to validate the timeframes of their safe operation. This article analyses the studies that have been implemented at the Canadian Nuclear Research Center (Chalk River Laboratories), at a radioactive waste storage facility at the Dukovany NPP site in the Czech Republic, at the El Cabril radioactive waste storage facility (E1 Carbil facility) in Spain, as well as the results obtained within the framework of the international CRP project.

Экспериментальные особенности определения коэффициента распределения радионуклидов на барьерных глинистых материалах

The paper discusses methodological approaches providing experimental evaluation of coefficients presenting radionuclide distribution on clay materials. Based on the implemented approach, sorption properties of samples differing in their composition may be compared under unified conditions (simulating actual conditions at radioactive waste storage facilities, if necessary).

Оценка мощности дозы гамма-излучения от контейнера с РАО

Assessment of personnel exposure from various operations performed inside radioactive waste (RW) storage facilities is seen as an essential task under the safety assessment of such storage facilities. However, radiation scattered from the structures inside the premises of RW storage facilities is often not taken into account in the assessment of personnel exposure doses. Characteristics of the radiation field from RW containers have been calculated under a few studies. For example, the radiation fields were calculated based on some engineering approaches and the Monte Carlo method using specialized software. This paper focuses on the Monte Carlo calculations of the gamma radiation dose rate from a volumetric cylindrical source located in a RW storage facility. The study evaluates the contributions of scattered radiation from the walls, floor and ceiling of a storage premise to the absorbed dose also considering the case of a flooded floor. The paper compares the calculated radiation dose rates with those evaluated by integrating the source volume for axisymmetric geometries with no account taken of scattered radiation. The calculations show that depending on the distance from the source if no scattered radiation from all the wall, floor and ceiling structures of a storage facility is accounted for, the dose rate may be underestimated by up to two times.

U(VI), Np(V), Eu(III) sorption on goethite: A wide-ranging multiradionuclide dataset and uncertainty-aware parametrization of surface complexation models

Obtaining reliable thermodynamic sorption data is essential for establishing databases that can be used for the numerical safety evaluations of radioactive waste storage and disposal facilities. For this purpose, new experimental data on the sorption of U(VI), Np(V), and Eu(III) onto synthesized goethite in a wide range of experimental conditions were collected. Thermodynamic surface complexation models based on different approaches were developed and parametrized to fit a large dataset, including experimental data from the current work as well as available literature data. The proposed heuristic optimization procedure allowed identifying and comparing different parametrization variants and their uncertainties for considered models. The developed models pass the test on additional Cd(II) and Zn(II) data, simultaneously providing a reliable description of the sorption process for five cations and could probably be extended using the obtained linear free energy relationship.

Attitudes of the population of the Northwest region towards radiation safety issues

The article presents the results of a sociological survey of the population of three regions of the Northwest region of the Russian Federation: the Leningrad, Murmansk, and Arkhangelsk regions. The survey was conducted in 2016-2018 and investigated the population’s knowledge about radiation and sources of knowledge in view of the further development of nuclear power, the construction of radioactive waste storage facilities, and the increasingly widespread use of ionizing radiation sources in medicine and industry. The aim of the study was to examine how the degree of trust in certain sources of information and preferred ways of obtaining information depends on the gender, age, and educational level of respondents. Generalization of such materials makes it possible to optimize means and ways of improving public knowledge on radiation safety issues so that the population could adequately (without panic) treat reports concerning the development of nuclear power, construction of radioactive waste storage facilities, and the increasing use of ionizing radiation sources in medicine and industry. The study revealed that, regardless of gender, age, and education, respondents in all three surveyed regions want to receive information about the radiation situation only in the event of an emergency. A high percentage of the population, especially in the Leningrad and Murmansk regions, unreasonably characterize the level of radioactive contamination of their places of residence as strong, dangerous, and extremely dangerous, which indicates a poor level of knowledge of radiation safety issues. Age and education have no practically significant influence on this assessment. The respondents consider TV and the Internet to be the most popular sources of information about the radiation situation. At the same time, it is logical that older people prefer to receive information through traditional mass media, while younger people prefer the Internet.

A pilot study on the effect of desferrioxamine B on uranium VI precipitation and dissolution in pH 11.5, 0.1\xa0M NaCl solutions

A pilot study investigating the possible role of desferrioxamine B (DFOB) to prevent UVI precipitation in alkaline NaCl solutions was carried out. Desferrioxamine B is a hydroxamate siderophore occurring naturally in the environment. The siderophore can possibly mobilize UVI from a wide range of sources such as mine tailings, contaminated land and radioactive waste storage and disposal facilities. The results from a series of batch experiments covering a wide range of naturally occurring concentrations over relevant time scales (3 days and 2 months) show that DFOB can quantitatively prevent UVI precipitation as ≥ 0.2 μm precipitates when 130 µM and 420 µM of the DFOB is present in solution. The impact is minimized as its concentration decrease to below 10 µM, suggesting these ligands will have a less mobilizing effect on uranium from a geological disposal facility if present in its VI oxidation state.

A proposed approach for the evaluation of consequences of a large aircraft crash accident at an RBMK type reactor site during decommissioning

Nuclear power plants with RBMK reactors were designed in late sixties - early seventies and were built entirely in the European part of the Russian Federation, the Lithuanian Republic and the Ukrainian Republic. The plants in the Lithuanian and the Ukrainian Republics are in various stages of decommissioning. As currently planned, the most of RBMK reactors still operating in the Russian Federation will end their operation in this decade.The reactor building, spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste storage facilities, built at the time of construction of RBMK plants are not specially designed to withstand the direct impact of an aircraft crash. There were no such regulatory requirements at the time the plants were designed and, no such requirements were introduced by regulatory bodies later on. But for now, in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on the United States, the event of an aircraft crash on a nuclear facility can no longer be considered as extremely unlikely.This paper considers the state of a nuclear power plant with the RBMK type reactor(s) during certain decommissioning and dismantling stages and discusses the approach for the evaluation of radiological consequences to the public in the event of a large aircraft crash on potentially hazardous objects of the plant. The damage to spent nuclear storage facilities, the reactor graphite stack and storage facilities for the combustible waste may cause a significant release of radionuclides to the environment. Key components of the approach include the evaluation of a structural damage to the facilities, the evaluation of a fire propagation and impact, the evaluation of a spent nuclear fuel cooling capability in storage pools, the evaluation of an airborne radionuclide release, the evaluation of a radionuclide dispersion in the environment and the evaluation of the public exposure. A set of widely used software and methods for the performance of the specific tasks is discussed. The paper also describes how the proposed approach was applied for the evaluation of radiological consequences from a Boeing 767-400 type aircraft crash at the Ignalina NPP site where a plant with two RBMK-1500 type reactors is decommissioned.The paper does not address modern radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel management and storage facilities that might be built at RBMK sites as well. As a rule, assessment and mitigation of an aircraft crash accident consequences is an integral part of design of these new facilities.

Оценка содержания изотопов плутония в почве в районе размещения хранилища радиоактивных отходов в городе Обнинске

One of the sources of radionuclides released into the environment are radioactive waste storage. The plutonium isotopes concentration in the soils of the territory adjacent to the former radioactive waste storage facility in Obninsk was estimated. The cause of pollution was the depressurization of one of the storage tanks and the release of radionuclides due to its overflow with surface and ground waters in the period from 1998 to 1999. Samples were analyzed by alpha spectrometry with preliminary radiochemical isolation with complete decomposition of soil samples. The Pu-239+240 content range in the surface soil layer was 3.7-9.6 Bq/kg, with an average value of 6.7 Bq/kg, which is an order of magnitude higher than the level of its global fallout. In some samples, significant amounts of Pu-238 are observed, the relative content of which is 10-50% of Pu-239+240, that exceeds the its relative content due to the global fallout which is 2-5%. The depth distribution of plutonium isotopes has been studied. It has been established those significant concentrations of plutonium are observed to the depth of 95 cm for this territory. There is no definite dependence of the distribution of plutonium isotopes along the vertical soil profile. The random distribution of plutonium to the soil depth indicates that the source of Pu-239+240 are groundwater. Elevated concentrations of plutonium isotopes in the soil surface of the territory under consideration, its significant concentrations at soil depth indicates that the contamination is a consequence of the leakage of plutonium isotopes from the radioactive waste storage facility in Obninsk. The same concentrations can be expected in the lowland of the adjacent territory.

Why are concerned parties legitimized superiorly in NIMBY problems: Effects of the maximin principle and moral foundations on the right to decide on a high-level radioactive waste storage facility

Why are concerned parties legitimized superiorly in NIMBY problems: Effects of the maximin principle and moral foundations on the right to decide on a high-level radioactive waste storage facility