RD&D-Programme 2004 - SKB

2.2 LILW programme
Parts of the system for management of low- and intermediate-level waste have been in operation
since the 1980s. This includes, for example, final disposal of various types of short-lived
low- and intermediate-level waste (LILW) in SFR at Forsmark. Experience from these activities
provides a good knowledge base for the remaining steps.
SKB will have an important role in the decommissioning of the Swedish nuclear power plants.
The power utilities bear primary responsibility for the actual decommissioning of the plants,
while SKB will dispose of the waste. By this time we must have modified the transportation
system and expanded SFR. As a final step, a final repository for long-lived waste is also needed.
2.2.1 Current situation
The current situation in the LILW programme can be summarized in the following points:
• Short-lived LILW is disposed of in SFR.
• Long-lived LILW is interim-stored today in Clab, at the nuclear power plants and at
Studsvik. The volume of this waste is small so far but will increase, especially when the
nuclear power plants are decommissioned.
• So far there have not yet been any large-scale decommissioning projects in Sweden. But
there is a lot to be learned from rebuilds of nuclear power plants. As of the closure of
Barsebäck 1, however, planning for a future decommissioning has assumed more concrete
forms.
• Since the middle of the 1980s, SKB has been following what has been happening internationally
in the decommissioning field as regards technological development and research.
2.2.2 Planning
Prior to the decommissioning of the nuclear power plants, additional disposal chambers are
needed for short-lived LILW. The waste types that will arise then are similar to those that arise
in connection with operation and maintenance of the nuclear power plants and are disposed of
in SFR. An expansion of this facility to accommodate short-lived decommissioning waste was
foreseen in conjunction with planning and licensing and is still judged to be the best solution for
this waste. An expansion of SFR to accommodate decommissioning waste does not need to be
finished before decommissioning of the nuclear power plants has begun. If the nuclear power
plants are operated for 40 years, the first of these chambers will not have to be put into use
before 2020 at the earliest.
Operation and decommissioning of the nuclear power plants give rise to small quantities of
other long-lived waste, for example core components. These are interim-stored today in Clab.
To relieve the load on Clab (and to avoid a further expansion), SKB plans to interim-store core
components under dry conditions. Special packages and transport casks need to be developed
for this purpose.
Immobilization of the waste for final disposal takes no more than ten years. This work cannot be
begun too early if it is to be effective. Waiting as many years as possible also simplifies the final
treatment work by allowing the radioactivity, consisting largely of cobalt-60, to decay. Another
advantage is that a certain degree of freedom is retained when it comes to the design of the
waste containers. If interim storage of the fuel is prolonged until around 2050, the final repository
for other long-lived waste (such as core components) will not have to be put into operation
until around 2045 at the earliest.
Siting of a repository for other long-lived waste will therefore not be necessary until around
2035. Rock vaults for this type of waste can then be located either at SFR, the deep repository
for spent nuclear fuel or another site.
The planning is presented in greater detail in Appendix A. Work during the coming RD&D
period is described in Chapters 24 and 26.
34 RD&D-Programme 2004