Pre-disposal management of RW – Legacy Waste Characterization for streamlined disposability

Nuclear activities performed in the past not only in the power generation field but also in medicine, research and industry have generated significant quantities of radioactive waste which have been treated and conditioned according to the rules in force at the time or simply stored pending a suitable management solution.

These waste (conventionally called ‘Legacy Waste’ or ‘Historic Waste’ in some countries) are often lacking sufficient physico-chemical-radiological characterization data for envisaging possible re-treatment/re-conditioning processes in line with current regulatory requirements and/or checking compliance with Waste Acceptance Criteria (WAC) of storage/disposal facilities.

Expected impacts of the project outcomes:

  • better knowledge of the current situation of the main Legacy Waste streams in the interested countries and sharing of the relevant common issues
  • streamlined path for possible future management and acceptance of the Legacy Waste packages for storage or disposal into national/multi-national facilities

Early indications to producers for treatment and conditioning of waste generated in countries without a well-established disposal route and relevant WACs.

The activities of the project are arranged in the following Tasks:

  • Task 1: Survey of existing main Legacy Waste streams

Report on main Legacy Waste streams in the interested countries

Legacy waste inventory comparison tables

  • Task 2: Minimum set of WACs for near-surface disposal of VLLW-LLW

Minimum set of WACs for near surface disposal of VLLW-LLW

  • Task 3: Main properties of ILW packages potentially suitable for geologic disposal
  • Task 4: Characterization of main Legacy Waste streams

Characterization techniques of radioactive legacy waste

Summary report of the LWC-project: Technical Note ERDO – LWC project Final Report