Commission calls for tighter monitoring of German waste

Guidelines on the processing and storage of low- and intermediate-level waste (LLW/ILW) in Germany are being implemented inconsistently, the independent commission which drew up the guidelines has told the country's environment ministry.

The Nuclear Waste Management Commission (Entsorgungskommission, ESK), which advises the federal environment ministry (BMU) on issues related to radioactive waste management, issued guidelines of the interim storage of LLW/ILW in June 2013. The commission submitted a report to the ministry on the implementation of those guideline on 7 May.

The ESK said that "systematic and consistent monitoring concepts are missing in order to detect early signs of corrosion" on drums of such waste.

ESK chairman Michael Sailer said, "In the interim storage of low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste at nuclear power plants as well as at other locations, far too little attention has been paid to the problem of corrosion. ESK-prescribed guidelines calling for regular visual inspections of the waste packages are often not being carried out to the extent necessary."

The commission sent a questionnaire on implementation of its guidelines to all facilities in Germany where LLW/ILW is processed or stored.

The ESK said the results indicate the guidelines are being implemented "to very different degrees". The commission said that in some cases there are "no systematic and consistent control and inspection programs, particularly in storage and storage facilities, which are operated at a nuclear facility."

"From the perspective of the Nuclear Waste Management Commission, such concepts are necessary in order to identify possible faulty findings at an early stage," ESK said.

The commission said it has made of number of recommendations to ensure that its guidelines are better implemented. These include the rapid conditioning of waste, regular checks and inspections of the waste packages, as well as a "speedy installation and commissioning of the Konrad repository."

The BMU said it had noted the commission's recommendations and will discuss them with the relevant licensing and supervisory authorities.

In a 15 May statement, Environment minister Jochen Flasbarth said, "even with the interim storage of low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste the highest safety and care standards must be respected. It is unacceptable that the relevant guidelines of the Nuclear Waste Management Commission are not consistently implemented by all parties."

He added that the ministry would not accept any negligence in the storage of LLW/ILW. "Once again, however, it is clear that for the safe disposal of low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste Konrad must be built and put in operation as soon as possible," Flasbarth said.

The former iron ore mine Konrad in Salzgitter has been under development as a repository since 1975, and was licensed in 2002 for LLW/ILW disposal, but legal challenges were mounted. These were dismissed in March 2006 and again in April 2007. A construction licence was issued in January 2008. Konrad will initially take some 300,000 cubic metres of wastes - 95% of the country's waste volume, with 1% of the radioactivity. Plans call for it to eventually accommodate 650,000 cubic metres of wastes. It is not expected to be operational until the early 2020s.

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News