Radioactive Waste The objectives of this Convention are (i) to achieve and maintain a high level of safety worldwide in spent fuel and radioactive waste management… (ii) to ensure… effective defenses against potential hazards… (iii) to prevent accidents with radiological consequences… Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management, Article 1
some progress Radioactive waste continues to be generated by the nuclear industry, medical and industrial sectors, and from mining of substances like uranium. As of February 2012, 435 reactors were in operation in 30 countries, of which about 75% were more than 20 years old, and 63 plants were under construction.63 Despite some progress, much still needs to be done to establish adequate management and disposal facilities, in particular the often contentious process of deciding where they should be located. Some legacy sites from nuclear weapons production and testing still need to be remediated, as well as legacy uranium mines in Africa and Central Asia. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) predicted in 2008 that the use of nuclear energy would increase by 15-45% by 2020 and 25-95% by 2030,64 but the Fukushima disaster is likely to affect future trends, with a number of countries deciding to phase out their nuclear programmes following the accident.
High Level Radioactive Waste
Thousand Cubic Meters 400
from Decommissioning
Storage (interim)
300
200
100
Disposal
0
Source: IAEA
0.01
2004
0.01
2005
0.01
2006
0.01
2007
3.9
2008
3.9
2009
3.9
2010
Storage (i Storage ((interim): intteriim): ) Th The placement pllacementt off radi radioactive dioactive ti wast waste te iin nan nuclear uclear l ffacility acilit ility where h isolation, environmental protection and human control (for example, monitoring) are provided with the intent that the waste will be retrieved. Disposal: The emplacement of waste in an approved, specified facility without the intention of retrieval. IAEA (1995), The Principles of Radioactive Waste Management 17