Current Arrangements and Requirements for the Conditioning, Packaging and Storage of Intermediate Level Radioactive Waste: Joint RWMAC/NuSAC Report

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 The Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee (RWMAC) is the independent body that advises United Kingdom (UK) Government, including the Devolved Administrations for Scotland and Wales, on the technical and environmental implications of major issues concerning the development and implementation of policy for the management of civil radioactive wastes. The Nuclear Safety Advisory Committee (NuSAC) advises the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) and, when appropriate, Secretaries of State, on major issues affecting the safety of nuclear installations, including design, siting, operation, maintenance and decommissioning, which are referred to it or which it considers require attention. It also advises the HSC on the adequacy and balance of its nuclear safety research programme.

1.2 Following discussions held at the end of 2000 and during the first part of 2001, the two advisory committees agreed that they had a mutual interest in carrying out a joint study of current UK arrangements and requirements for the conditioning, packaging and storage of intermediate level radioactive waste (ILW). The terms of reference that were initially agreed for the study are set out in Annex 1.

1.3 The thinking behind the study was that it should be multifaceted. It was intended to cover: the current state of the UK's ILW; any problems caused by the collapse of the Nirex ILW underground repository development programme ^* in 1997; plans and arrangements for the interim management of ILW; the approaches and interaction of the regulatory bodies - the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the environment agencies (the Environment Agency, EA, and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, SEPA); the residual role of United Kingdom Nirex Ltd (hereafter Nirex) following the demise of its repository programme; and the nature and adequacy of current Government policies relating to the management of ILW.

* This programme collapsed in March 1997 when an appeal against Cumbria County Council's decision to refuse planning permission for a Rock Characterisation Facility (RCF), or underground laboratory, at Longlands Farm near Sellafield, was rejected. Hereafter in this report, this will be referred to as the "RCF planning decision".