1.3.2 Low-level and intermediate-level, short-lived waste Low-level and intermediate-level short-lived waste (LL/ILW-SL) –in which the radioactivity comes primarily from radionuclides with a half-life of less than 31 years– results essentially from the operation of nuclear facilities and more specifically from maintenance activities (clothing, tools, filters, etc.). It can also come from the post-operational clean-out and decommissioning of these facilities. The majority of LL/ILW-SL waste is placed in surface disposal facilities operated by Andra. Once these facilities are closed, they are monitored for a period set by convention at 300 years. The facility safety analysis reports –which are updated periodically, including during the monitoring phase– must show that at the end of this phase, the residual activity contained in the waste will have reached a residual level such that human and environmental exposure levels are acceptable, even in the event of a significant loss of the containment properties of the facility. There are two facilities of this type in France, the Manche repository (CSM –BNI 66), which operated from 1969 until 1994 and is currently in the closure preparation phase, and the Aube repository (CSA –BNI 149) which is in operation (see “Regional overview” in the introduction to this report). The quantity of LL/ILW-SL waste emplaced in the CSA repository totalled 363,000 m3 at the end of 2021, which represents 36% of the facility’s maximum authorised capacity. Added to this quantity is the waste emplaced in the Manche repository, which represents 527,225 m3. The total quantity of LL/ILW-SL waste emplaced in the Andra facilities is therefore 890,225 m3, to be compared with the quantity of 971,000 m3 produced at the end of 2020. According to the data of the National Inventory drawn up by Andra, this waste will represent a maximum volume of 2,000,000 m3 on completion of decommissioning of the existing facilities. According to the estimates made by Andra in 2016 at the time of the second periodic safety review of the CSA, this facility could reach its maximum filling capacity by 2060 instead of 2042 as initially forecast, this new estimate being based on better knowledge of the future waste and the waste delivery schedules. 1.3.3 Low-level long-lived waste Low-level long-lived waste (LLW-LL) initially comprised two main categories: graphite waste resulting from the operation of the Gas-Cooled Reactor (GCR) NPPs, and radium-bearing waste, from the radium industry and its offshoots. Other types of waste have been added to this category such as certain bituminised wastes, substances containing radium, uranium and thorium with low specific activity, as well as certain disused sealed radioactive sources. Furthermore, a fraction of the waste from the Orano Malvesi plant (Aude département) produced as from 1 January 2019 is now included in this waste category. The solid waste produced until 31 December 2018, on account of the large volumes it represents, is placed in a specific category of the national inventory called “RTCU” (French acronym standing for “Uranium Fuel Reprocessing Residues”). Putting in place a definitive management solution for this type of waste is one of the objectives defined by the Act of 28 June 2006. Finding such a management solution necessitates firstly having greater knowledge of LLW-LL waste and secondly conducting safety studies on the associated disposal solution. The successive editions of the PNGMDR have set out this objective. ASN also drafted a notice in 2008 giving general safety guidelines concerning the search for a site capable of accommodating LLW-LL. This notice defines the general guidelines to follow as from the phases of looking for a site and designing an LLW-LL waste disposal facility, in order to ensure its safety after closure. The PNGMDR 2010-2012 opened up the possibility of separate disposal of graphite waste and radium-containing waste, and asked Andra to work on the two design options: ∙ reworked cover disposal in an outcropping geological layer by excavation followed by backfilling; ∙ intact cover disposal dug in an underground layer of clay at a greater depth. The PNGMDR 2013-2015 required the various actors involved to carry out studies (characterisation and waste treatment possibilities, geological investigations on a site identified by Andra, design studies and preliminary safety analyses) so that in 2016 the State can specify guidelines for the management of LLW-LL waste. Thus, the holders of LLW-LL waste have progressed in the characterisation of their waste and in the processing possibilities, particularly with regard to graphite waste and some bituminised waste packages. More specifically, the radiological inventory for chlorine-36 and iodine-129 has undergone a significant downward reassessment. As part of the PNGMDR, Andra submitted a report in July 2015 containing: ∙ proposals of choices of management scenarios for graphite waste and bituminous waste; ∙ preliminary design studies covering the disposal options referred to as “intact cover disposal” and “reworked cover disposal”; ∙ the inventory of the waste to be emplaced in it and the implementation schedule. In 2016, ASN issued an opinion 2016-AV-264 on Andra’s interim report on the disposal project for LLW-LL waste and began a revision of the general safety guidelines notice of 2008, which will ultimately be replaced by an ASN guide. To this end, a working group bringing together ASN, the French Institute for Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN), Andra, the LLW-LL waste producers and representatives of civil society was thus set up in Autumn 2018. The work of this group was synthesised in an IRSN report in December 2020, the recommendations of which were examined by an Advisory Committee of Experts in March 2021. On the basis of these recommendations, ASN began technical discussions with Andra and IRSN in 2021, focusing in particular on the assessment of the long-term dosimetric impact of the disposal project. This work will continue in 2022. In 2011, Orano submitted (as part of the PNGMDR 2013‑2015 preparatory work) a study concerning the long-term management of the waste already produced by the Malvési site and stored in the Écrin facility (BNI 175). Various envisaged disposal concepts are presented: ∙ above-ground disposal; ∙ near-surface (40m), reworked cover disposal, in the former open-cast mine pit; ∙ near-surface (40 m) reworked cover disposal, in a new pit as yet to be built. Given the nature of the waste and the configuration of the site, ASN indicated in its opinion 2012-AV-0166 of 4 October 2012 that it is not in favour of continuing the development of a surface disposal facility, as it considers that it does not meet the longterm safety requirements. On 2 September 2019, ASN issued its opinion on the studies required by Article 7 of the Decree of 27 December 2013 relative to the implementation of a final management solution for the Malvési legacy waste in a near-surface repository. Orano’s responses are currently being examined. With the 5th edition of the PNGMDR 2021-2025 in view, ASN issued its opinion 2020-AV-0357 of 6 August 2020 which details the work focuses it recommends for the management of LLW-LL waste. ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2021 351 14 – RADIOACTIVE WASTE AND CONTAMINATED SITES AND SOILS 08 07 13 04 10 06 12 14 03 09 05 11 02 AP 01
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