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Title: International Approaches for Nuclear Waste Disposal in Geological Formations: Report on Fifth Worldwide Review

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/1350693· OSTI ID:1350693
 [1];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [2]
  1. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
  2. Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

The goal of the Fifth Worldwide Review is to document evolution in the state-of-the-art of approaches for nuclear waste disposal in geological formations since the Fourth Worldwide Review that was released in 2006. The last ten years since the previous Worldwide Review has seen major developments in a number of nations throughout the world pursuing geological disposal programs, both in preparing and reviewing safety cases for the operational and long-term safety of proposed and operating repositories. The countries that are approaching implementation of geological disposal will increasingly focus on the feasibility of safely constructing and operating their repositories in short- and long terms on the basis existing regulations. The WWR-5 will also address a number of specific technical issues in safety case development along with the interplay among stakeholder concerns, technical feasibility, engineering design issues, and operational and post-closure safety. Preparation and publication of the Fifth Worldwide Review on nuclear waste disposal facilitates assessing the lessons learned and developing future cooperation between the countries. The Report provides scientific and technical experiences on preparing for and developing scientific and technical bases for nuclear waste disposal in deep geologic repositories in terms of requirements, societal expectations and the adequacy of cases for long-term repository safety. The Chapters include potential issues that may arise as repository programs mature, and identify techniques that demonstrate the safety cases and aid in promoting and gaining societal confidence. The report will also be used to exchange experience with other fields of industry and technology, in which concepts similar to the design and safety cases are applied, as well to facilitate the public perception and understanding of the safety of the disposal approaches relative to risks that may increase over long times frames in the absence of a successful implementation of final dispositioning.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
AC02-05CH11231; AC04-94AL85000
OSTI ID:
1350693
Report Number(s):
LBNL-1006121; ir:1006121
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English