The National RW Repository in Bátaapáti

1. The National RW Repository in Bátaapáti

2. RADIOACTIVE WASTEMANAGEMENT IN HUNGARY István Lázár HUNGARIAN ATOMIC ENERGY AUTHORITY Technical Meeting on the Disposal of Intermediate Level Waste 9-13 September 2013, Vienna, Austria

3. Outline • Legal framework • Classification of waste • National programme and practice • Disposal facilities in operation / under development

4. Legal framework (1) • The fundamental law is the Act of 1996 on Atomic Energy declaring that the control and supervision of the safe use of nuclear energy are Government’s tasks. These tasks are fulfilled through the Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority (HAEA) and the responsible ministers. • A divided regulatory system is set up the Act and its executive orders • regulatory & licensing authority for nuclear facilities: HAEA • regulatory & licensing authority for RW management facilities: regionally competent radiation health centres following the professional direction of the Office of the National Chief Medical Officer (National Public Health and Medical Officer Services) under the minister responsible for health

5. Legal framework (2) • RWM policy: • Government takes the responsibility for RW disposal, SF storage, closure of the fuel cycle and decommissioning; • Central Nuclear Financial Fund (CNFF); • exclusively earmarked for RWM (RW disposal, SF storage, closure of fuel cycle and decommissioning) • annual payment from NPP, indirectly from nuclear energy users • a central WMO, the Public Limited Company for RWM (PURAM); • The Act on Atomic Energy pays particular attention to providing information to the local people, lays down the possibility of establishing associations from the municipalities around repositories, investigation areas • Information and Control Associations’ of local municipalities havefinancial support from CNFF

6. Legal framework (3) 6 The main tasks of 2012-2013 was preparing the transposition of the Council Directive 2011/70/Euratom into the Hungarian legal framework: The deadline of the transposition was August of 2013. • to amend the Act CXVI of 1996 on atomic energy; • to harmonize the executive orders of the Act; • Gov. Decree 240/1997 Establishment of the PURAM Ltd. Brand new amendment of the Act and the executive orders (publication 21. Jun.2013.) • New – integrated – regulatory system from Jul. 2014.

7. Classification of waste 1 – HLW, SL, LL The Decree of the Minister of Health 47/2003 – Licensing procedure of RW storage & disposal facility – regulates the classification of RW: High-level waste (HLW): whose heat production shall considered during the design and operation of storage and disposal. Short lived (SL):that LLW/ILW in which the half-life of the radionuclides is 30 years or less, and it contains long-lived alpha emitter radionuclides only in limited concentration. Long lived waste (LL): that LLW/ILW in which the half-life of the radionuclides and/or the concentration of the alpha emitter radionuclides exceed the limits concerning SL RW.

8. Classification of waste 2 – LLW/ILW „in which the heat production during the disposal could be neglected” The classification of the RW into low and intermediate level classes shall be performed based on the activity-concentration and exemption activity-concentration (EAC) of the given radioisotope: For more than one radioisotopes: ACiis the activity-concentration of the ith radioisotope existing in the RW. EAC levels are regulated by the Decree of the Minister of Public Welfare 23/1997. in accordance with the regulations of the EU.

9. Classification of waste 3 - in practice The SL low and the intermediate level waste aremanaged together in Hungary (site specific waste acceptance criteria). LLW/ILW HLW & LL

10. Ukrain Slovakia Austria Püspökszilágy BUDAPEST Romania Paks Mecsek Hills Bátaapáti Serbia Croatia National programme and practice (1) Slovenia PÉCS Püspökszilágy: Radioactive Waste Treatment and Disposal Facility (RWTDF) Paks: Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) Bátaapáti: National Radioactive Waste Repository (NRWD) Mecsek region: area of investigations for a future HLW/SF geological repository

11. National programme and practice (2) • Hungary’s largest waste producer, the Paks NPP • Operational and decommissioning waste

12. National programme and practice (3) • Decommissioning waste from non-NPP facilities: • Budapest Research Reactor • Training Reactor at Budapest University of Technology and Economics

13. National programme and practice (4) Application waste (institutional waste)

14. Overview and End Points Interim storage of SNF Final disposal of institutional SL-LLW/ILW Interim storage of long-lived waste Final disposal of SNF Final disposal of operational and decommissioning HLW Final disposal of operational and decommissioning SL-LLW/ILW Final disposal of SNF Final disposal of long-lived waste

15. Site 1 Püspökszilágy Repository 1 • Radioactive Waste Treatment and Disposal Facility was commissioned in 1976, is a typical near-surface facility with concrete vaults for institutional LLW/ILW waste, disposal capacity (5040 m3), practically full.

16. Site 1 Püspökszilágy Repository 2 • Comprehensive safety assessments 1990- 2000 RISK: after the closure in case of hum intrusion • safety enhancement programme in progress • retrieval of some long-lived sealed sources • compaction of waste to gain further capacity • DEMO phase (opening 4 disposal vaults) was completed in 2008, evaluation in 2009 • more favourable waste inventory (”critical items” segregated), more robust packaging • Preparations to continue the safety enhancement programme in 2013, and a physical protection programme with US - DOE

17. Site 2 NRWR in Bátaapáti 1 • Host rock: granite, • Disposal depth: ~200-250 m • Access: with two inclined tunnels • For SL-LLW/ILW NPP origin

18. Site 2 NRWR in Bátaapáti 2 Local referendum in Bátaapáti • 75 % participation • 91 % support On the 10th of July 2005 (They need the nuclear garbage)

19. Site 2 NRWR in Bátaapáti 3 On the 21st of November 2005 Parliament’s preliminary approval in principle to initiate activities of preparing for the establishment of a repository for LLW/ILW. • 338yes,4 no, 8 abstention

20. Site 2 NRWR in Bátaapáti 4 • 2007: Environmental licence • June 2008: Construction licence for the surface facilities and 4 disposal chambers • October 2008: Commissioning licence for the surface part (storage) • 2011: Excavation of ”connecting tunnels” and the first 2 chambers • September 2012: Operation licence for the underground part (disposal) • By the end of 2012: the first disposal chamber in operation (5th of December: „opening ceremony”, and the first waste-package disposal)

21. Excavation of the one-exit disposal chambers from the connecting tunnel in a systematic arrangement, parallel to each other, and arranged in tunnel-fields access tunnels ”small loop” disposal galleries ”big loop” connecting tunnels Further galleries to be constructed in parallel with the operation of the repository

22. repository for LLW/ILW in operation in EU

23. Site 2 NRWR in Bátaapáti 5 Ongoing R&D: Modification in the Disposal Concept

24. Site 2 NRWR in Bátaapáti 6 More Effective Use of Galleries In the case of disposing reinforced concrete containers In the case of disposing carbon steel containers in vaults Active material content in the disposal gallery Inactive material content in the disposal gallery

25. Optimized Disposal Strategy WAC Optimized disposal concept Not disposing, waiting for VLLW category

26. Present state in 3D

27. Timescales of the facilities PaksNPP Shut down Safe enclosure period (20ys) Preparation Operation Dismantling ISFSF Extension Survaillance and maintanance Removal of SNF Dismantling Operation Operation RWTDF Closure Renewal Extension Survaillance and maintanance NRWR Operation Closure Operation Site selection URL constr. DGR constr. DGR Closure DGR operation URL operation Monitoring 2011 2013 2030 2038 2055 2064 2084