* See glossary page 34 Activities: conditioning and disposal Types of waste: low- and intermediate-level short‑lived (LLW/ILW-SL) Licensee: Andra Location: Soulaines-Dhuys (Aube département) Commissioned: 1992 Activities: reprocessing, conditioning and storage Types of waste: all types Licensee: Orano Location: La Hague (Manche département) Commissioned: 1986 à 2002 Aube repository (CSA) La Hague The Aube repository (CSA) covers 95 hectares, 30 of which are set aside for disposal*. The centre has an authorised disposal capacity of one million cubic metres of LLW/ILW-SL waste. The LLW/ILW-SL waste emplaced in the CSA is conditioned in concrete or metal packages. These packages are placed in reinforced concrete structures 25 metres on a side and 8 metres high, which have been built in stages. Once filled, these structures are closed by a concrete slab, which is made leaktight by an impermeable cover. At the end of operation, a cover consisting notably of clay will be placed over the structures to ensure the long-term containment* of the waste. Once the maximum capacity has been reached, the CSA will continue to be monitored for at least 300 years. At the end of 2022, the volume of waste disposed of in the CSA was about 371,500 m3, or 37% of the authorised maximum capacity. The site houses several units (UP3-A and UP2-800) performing a variety of operations: storage* of spent fuel* assemblies; shearing and dissolution of these assemblies; chemical separation of fission products*, of uranium and plutonium making up the fuels; purification of the uranium and plutonium; treatment of effluents; conditioning* of the waste. Orano is promoting two projects to increase the spent fuel storage capacity at La Hague: one concerning the densification of the existing pools, while the other longer-term project aims to create a dry storage facility. The fission products resulting from reprocessing of spent fuels are concentrated, vitrified and conditioned in Standard Vitrified Waste Packages (CSD-V). The pieces of fuel assembly metal cladding are conditioned in Standard Compacted Waste Packages (CSD-C). This solid waste is stored on the La Hague site pending a final disposal solution (see Cigéo project p. 22 and 23). The site is also concerned by legacy radioactive Waste Retrieval and Conditioning (WRC*) operations. In 2022, technical difficulties delayed the retrieval of waste from silos 115 and 130 and the processing* of the sludges produced during effluent treatment. 20 • Les cahiers de l’ASN • May 2024 WHAT WASTE ARE WE TALKING ABOUT?
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