Abstracts ASN Report 2019

Ҋ ŇŊł ņ łŃĸŅĴŇĸķ ĵŌ ŁķŅĴѓ ӄӇӌё ŇĻĸ ňĵĸ ŅĴķļłĴĶŇļʼnĸ waste repository (CSA) and BNI 66, the Manche radioactive waste repository (CSM). A periodic safety review report should be submitted to ASN ļŁ ӅӃӅӃׇĹłŅ ĴŁłŇĻĸŅ ĹĴĶļĿļŇŌё ŁĴŀĸĿŌ ŇĻĸ ļŁŇĸŅļŀ ņŇłŅĴĺĸ ņļĿłņ łĹ Saint-Laurent-des-Eaux (BNI 74). א ِ א ِ׏ ¨ƺȸǣȒƳǣƬ ɀƏǔƺɎɵ ȸƺɮǣƺɯɀ Ȓǔ ȸƏƳǣȒƏƬɎǣɮƺ ɯƏɀɎƺ ȅƏȇƏǕƺȅƺȇɎ ɀɖȵȵȒȸɎ ǔƏƬǣǼǣɎǣƺɀ Ļĸ ŃĸŅļłķļĶ ņĴĹĸŇŌ ŅĸʼnļĸŊņ łĹ ŇĻĸ łĿķĸņŇ ĹĴĶļĿļŇļĸņ ņňĶĻ Ĵņ ׇӆӈ ĴŁķ ӄӄӋׇŃŅĸņĸŁŇ ŃĴŅŇļĶňĿĴŅ ĶĻĴĿĿĸŁĺĸņє Ļĸņĸ ņĴĹĸŇŌ ŅĸʼnļĸŊņ must address the control of the waste storage conditions, including legacy waste, the retrieval and packaging of this waste with a view to removal via the dedicated route and the scheduled post- operational clean-out of the buildings. In relation with these challenges, the safety reviews must allow control of the impacts of discharges into the environment (soils, groundwater, or seawater ļŁ ŇĻĸ ĶĴņĸ łĹ ӄӄӋҏє łŅ ŇĻĸ ŀłņŇ ŅĸĶĸŁŇ ĹĴĶļĿļŇļĸņё Ĵņ ļņ ŇĻĸ ĶĴņĸ ŊļŇĻ ĸķŅĴ ĴŁķ Chicade, the periodic safety reviews highlight more generic problems. The resistance of the buildings to internal and external ĻĴōĴŅķņ ҎĸĴŅŇĻńňĴľĸё ĹļŅĸё ĿļĺĻŇŁļŁĺё ĹĿłłķļŁĺё ĴļŅĶŅĴĹŇ ĶŅĴņĻҏ ļņ łŁĸ of the important aspects. א ِ א ِ א ¨ƺȸǣȒƳǣƬ ɀƏǔƺɎɵ ȸƺɮǣƺɯɀ Ȓǔ ȸƏƳǣȒƏƬɎǣɮƺ ɯƏɀɎƺ ƳǣɀȵȒɀƏǼ ǔƏƬǣǼǣɎǣƺɀ The CSA and the CSM are subject to the obligation to hold periodic safety reviews. Their safety reviews have the particularity of addressing control of the risks and adverse effects over the long term, in addition to reassessing their operational control. Their purpose is therefore, if necessary, to revise the scenarios, models and long-term assumptions in order to confirm satisfactory control of the risks and adverse effects over time. The periodic safety reviews of these two facilities, although they are at different stages of progress (for the CSM, the review report ŊĴņ ņňĵŀļŇŇĸķ ļŁ ŃŅļĿ ӅӃӄӌђ ĹłŅ ŇĻĸ ё ļņ ĹļŁĴĿļņļŁĺ ļŇņ examination of the review report), thus highlighting the need for increased knowledge of the long-term impacts associated with the toxic chemicals contained in the waste and of the impacts of radionuclides on the environment. The successive safety reviews must also serve to detail the technical measures planned by the licensee to control the adverse effects of the facility over the long term, notably for the cover which contributes to the final containment of the disposal concrete blocks. The durability of the CSM cover is, along with the preservation of the site memory for future generations, the predominant theme of the periodic safety review of a radioactive waste disposal facility. ňŅŇĻĸŅŀłŅĸё ŇĻĸņĸ ņĴĹĸŇŌ ŅĸʼnļĸŊņ ĴĿņł ņĸŅʼnĸ Ňł ķĸŇĴļĿё łʼnĸŅ Ňļŀĸё the measures the licensee plans to take to ensure the long-term monitoring and surveillance of the behaviour of the disposal facility. א ِ ב !0 ټ ɀ ɯƏɀɎƺ ȅƏȇƏǕƺȅƺȇɎ ɀɎȸƏɎƺǕɵ ƏȇƳ ǣɎɀ ƏɀɀƺɀɀȅƺȇɎ ƫɵ ³z • Áɵȵƺɀ Ȓǔ ɯƏɀɎƺ ȵȸȒƳɖƬƺƳ ƫɵ !0 The CEA operates diverse types of facilities covering all the activities relating to the nuclear cycle: laboratories and plants associated with fuel cycle research, as well as experimental reactors. CEA also carries out numerous decommissioning operations. Consequently, the types of waste produced by CEA are varied and include more specifically: ҄ waste resulting from operation of the research facilities (protective garments, filters, metal parts and components, liquid waste, etc.); ҄ waste resulting from legacy waste retrieval and packaging operations (cement-, sodium-, magnesium- and mercury- bearing waste); ҄ waste resulting from final shutdown and decommissioning of the facilities (graphite waste, rubble, contaminated soils, etc.). The contamination spectrum of this waste is also wide with, in particular, the presence of alpha emitters in activities relating to fuel cycle research and beta-gamma emitters in operational waste from the experimental reactors. The CEA has specific facilities for managing this waste (processing, packaging and storage). Some of them are shared between all the CEA centres, such as the liquid effluent treatment station in Marcoule or the solid waste treatment station in Cadarache. • Áǝƺ ǣɀɀɖƺɀ ƏȇƳ ǣȅȵǼǣƬƏɎǣȒȇɀ The main issues for the CEA with regard to radioactive waste management are: ҄ the renovation of existing facilities or commissioning of new facilities for the processing, packaging and storage of the effluents, spent fuel and waste under satisfactory conditions of safety and radiation protection and within time frames compatible with the commitments made for shutting down old facilities which no longer meet current safety requirements; ҄ the management of legacy waste retrieval and packaging projects. ASN notes the difficulty the CEA has in fully managing these issues and conducting all the associated projects, especially decommissioning projects, at the same time. • ³z ټ ɀ ƺɴƏȅǣȇƏɎǣȒȇ Ȓǔ Ɏǝƺ !0 ټ ɀ ɯƏɀɎƺ ȅƏȇƏǕƺȅƺȇɎ ɀɎȸƏɎƺǕɵ ASN’s last examination of the CEA’s strategy, which was concluded in 2012, showed that waste management on the whole ĻĴķ ļŀŃŅłʼnĸķ ņļŁĶĸ ŇĻĸ ĸŋĴŀļŁĴŇļłŁ ĶĴŅŅļĸķ łňŇ ļŁ ӄӌӌӌє nevertheless observed that certain aspects of the strategy required improvement, particularly with regard to the management of intermediate-level long-lived solid waste and low or intermediate- level liquid waste, which therefore had to be consolidated. At the joint request of ASN and ASND, the CEA conducted an overall review of its decommissioning and radioactive waste management ņŇŅĴŇĸĺŌ ĴŁķ ņňĵŀļŇŇĸķ ŇĻĸ ŅĸņňĿŇņ łĹ ŇĻļņ ŊłŅľ ļŁ ĸĶĸŀĵĸŅׇӅӃӄӉє After examining this report, the two Authorities gave a joint łŃļŁļłŁ łŁ ŇĻļņ ņŇŅĴŇĸĺŌ ļŁ ĴŌ ӅӃӄӌׇҎņĸĸ ĵłŋ ļŁ ĶĻĴŃŇĸŅׇӄӆ ĹłŅ further information). ASN and ASND consider that the CEA’s facility decommissioning strategy and its updating of the waste and material management strategy are the result of an in-depth review and analysis. It appears acceptable for the CEA to envisage staggering the decommissioning operations in view of the resources allocated by the State and the large number of facilities undergoing decommissioning, for which waste retrieval and storage capacities will have to be built. With regard to the material and waste management strategy, the two Authorities observe several vulnerabilities in the CEA’s strategy, due in particular to the envisaged sharing of resources between centres, for the management of liquid radioactive effluents or solid radioactive waste for example, which means that for some operations which can only be carried out by one ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2019 361 ׏ ٲ ג RADIOACTIVE WASTE AND CONTAMINATED SITES AND SOILS 14