AGR

Advanced Gas-Cooled Reactor. A type of nuclear power reactor operated in the UK by BE.

Amersham

Previously Nycomed Amersham. A company which provides products and services for use in healthcare and life science research. This includes radioisotopes for medical and research users.

Authorisation

Permission granted by EA or SEPA under the Radioactive Substances Act 1993 to accumulate or dispose of radioactive waste.

AWE

The Atomic Weapons Establishment located at Aldermaston and Burghfield in Berkshire. The Establishment is responsible for UK nuclear weapons production and decommissioning.

BE

British Energy. A UK private sector company, which operates nuclear power stations.

BNFL

British Nuclear Fuels plc. A company responsible for provision of nuclear fuel cycle and reactor services, Magnox generation, and nuclear decommissioning and clean-up, including the operation of the Sellafield, Cumbria site.

BPEO

Best Practicable Environmental Option. A concept developed originally by the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution, which implies that decisions on waste management have been made after assessment of alternative options covering factors such as occupational and environmental risks, environmental impacts, costs and social implications.

Challenging wastes

The term "challenging" is applied to ILW that is difficult to characterise, retrieve or condition. The term includes historic wastes whose nature is uncertain, wastes that are difficult to access under current storage arrangements, material where immobilisation is difficult, and materials with inherent hazards.

Cm 2919

The last comprehensive statement of Government radioactive waste management policy - entitled "Review of Radioactive Waste Management Policy: Final Conclusions" - published in July 1995.

"Common purpose"

A "common purpose" approach is one where a number of bodies with a common interest liaise early in a decision-making process to agree a way forward that all can agree and subscribe to.

Conditioning

The term "conditioning" refers to the processes used to prepare radioactive wastes for long-term storage and/or disposal.

Cost-effective

A decision or action that is effective in relation to its cost.

Decommissioning waste

Wastes arising after the shutdown of a facility associated with the use or handling of radioactive materials. They can consist of items of plant orequipment, building debris, and material from the clean up of surrounding ground.

Disposal

The emplacement of waste in an authorised, specialised facility without the intent to retrieve it at a later time (retrieval may be possible but, if intended, the appropriate term is "storage").

Disposability

The likelihood that a package of conditioned ILW produced before a disposal facility site and design is available will, as far as is reasonably practicable, be acceptable for disposal to that facility.

Disposal facility

A purpose-designed facility for the disposal of solid radioactive wastes.

EA

The Environment Agency. The regulatory body for England and Wales with responsibility under the Radioactive Substances Act 1993 for regulating the accumulation and disposal of radioactive waste, including radioactive discharge authorisations.

Government

A collective term for the central government bodies responsible for setting radioactive waste management policy within the UK. It includes the Houses of Parliament in London and also the Devolved Administrations.

HADV

High Activity Debris Vaults. Vaults below AGR reactors which are being used by BE as locations for interim storage of ILW.

Hazard Reduction Index

A concept being developed by UKAEA primarily to demonstrate reduction of the hazard associated with radioactive waste as a result of implementing nuclear site decommissioning and radioactive waste management strategies and plans.

Historic

For the purpose of this report, the term "historic" is applied to ILW that is stored in untreated form in facilities that are decades old and fall below current standards.

HLW

High level, or heat generating, radioactive waste. Its temperature can rise significantly as a result of its radioactive content, and this factor has to be taken into account in designing storage and disposal facilities.

HSC

The Health and Safety Commission. A body set up to oversee administration of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

HSE

The Health and Safety Executive. A regulatory body, answerable to the HSC, with responsibility for the enforcement of the provisions of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. NII is one component of the HSE.

ILW

Intermediate level radioactive waste. ILW has a radioactivity content exceeding the upper boundary for low level waste, LLW, but which does not require heating to be taken into account in designing storage or disposal facilities necessary for high level waste (HLW). See paragraphs 3.2-3.3 of this report for further details of the nature of ILW.

Inspector

An employee of one of the regulatory bodies - NII/HSE, EA or SEPA - who is responsible for regulatory decision-making, either under the Nuclear Installations Act 1965 or the Radioactive Substances Act 1993.

Interim storage

A term used in this report to denote storage of ILW up until the point that a long-term management option is implemented.

ISS

Interim Safe Storage. A strategy developed by BNFL to refer to early conditioning of waste to facilitate its interim storage, either with or without the cover of a LoC.

Legislation

National law enacted by an Act of Parliament.

LoA

A Letter of Advice. This is a document prepared by Nirex following the assessment of ILW packaging proposals submitted by a waste producer. The LoA gives advice on the packaging proposal, identifies further information requirements and/or highlights issues that need further attention.

LoC

Letters of Comfort. These are documents prepared by Nirex which provide assurance to the waste producer that proposed ILW packaging is compatible with the Nirex concept, as currently foreseen, for an underground repository and associated transport systems. See paragraph 6.6 for the different types of LoC.

Licence

Permission granted under the Nuclear Installations Act 1965 to operate a licensed nuclear site.

Licensee

An organisation that is licensed by NII/HSE under the Nuclear Installations Act 1965 to operate a UK nuclear site.

LMA

The Liabilities Management Authority. A new organisation to be set up by the UK Government which will assume responsibility for the management of the UK's public sector civil nuclear liabilities, including ILW.

Long-term management option

This is a term used in this report to denote the radioactive waste management option adopted following interim storage. Options include indefinite surface storage or disposal underground.

LLW

Low level radioactive waste. LLW contains radioactive materials other than those acceptable for disposal with ordinary refuse, but not exceeding 4 gigabecquerels per tonne (BGq/te) of alpha or 12 GBq/te of beta/gamma radioactivity.

Magnox Electric

A company which was responsible for operating the UK's Magnox nuclear power-generating reactors. The company was subsequently absorbed into BNFL.

MoD

Ministry of Defence.

MoU

Memorandum of Understanding. A written administrative agreement between two or more bodies setting out respective responsibilities, and the way these will be interpreted for day-to-day business purposes, in an area of common or overlapping interest.

MRWS

"Managing Radioactive Waste Safely". A Government consultation document issued in September 2001 as a first step in the process of deciding the UK's future policy for the management of its radioactive waste.

NGO

Non-Government Organisation. Used in the context "environmental NGO", the term refers to bodies such as Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace which champion environment concerns, including those in respect of radioactive waste management.

NII

The Nuclear Installations Inspectorate of the Health and Safety Executive. The regulatory body responsible for the safe management of ILW on licensed nuclear sites under the Nuclear Installations Act 1965.

Nirex

United Kingdom Nirex Ltd, an organisation set up by the nuclear industry with the support of Government to research, develop and operate disposal services for ILW and some LLW. When first set up in 1982, it was as the Nuclear Industry Radioactive Waste Executive; but was incorporated as a limited company, United Kingdom Nirex Ltd, in 1985. Following the collapse of its repository development programme in 1997, the company retains responsibility for issuing advice on the conditioning and packaging of ILW via its LoA/LoC system.

NuSAC

The Nuclear Safety Advisory Committee. A national advisory committee that advises Government on issues affecting the safety of nuclear installations. See paragraph 1.1 of this report for a fuller statement of its role.

Operational waste

Wastes arising from the day-to-day operations of a facility associated with the use or handling of radioactive materials.

OSPAR

From the Oslo and Paris Convention. There are 16 contracting nations, including the UK, to the 1992 Convention which has the aim of protecting the marine environment of the North East Atlantic. Its coverage includes radioactive discharges to this marine environment.

Packaging

This term refers to the product of conditioning, including the waste form and its container.

Passivity

Having the characteristic of being "passively safe".

Passively safe storage

This requires radioactive wastes and materials, including ILW, to be immobilised in a form that is physically and chemically stable and stored in a manner which minimises the need for control and safety systems, maintenance, monitoring and human intervention. See paragraph 8.4 for the breakdown of this definition into NII's principles for passivity.

Phased Disposal Concept

A concept developed and documented by Nirex to describe the way in which ILW would be managed through from conditioning to its eventual disposal in an underground disposal facility. See paragraph 6.4 of this report.

PWR

Pressurised Water Reactor. One of the more modern types of nuclear power-generating reactors. BE operates a PWR reactor at Sizewell in Suffolk (Sizewell B).

RCF

Rock Characterisation Facility. An underground laboratory which was at one point proposed by Nirex, as part of its underground repository development programme, for the further testing of the geology and hydrogeology of a site at Longlands Farm near Sellafield.

Reasonably practicable

A reasonably practicable action is one that may be judged reasonable when all factors judged relevant to the decision have been assessed and taken into account.

Regulatory assurance

A mechanism for showing that a regulatory body subscribes to a proposed waste treatment plan or proposal.

Regulatory bodies

A collective term used in the context of this report to refer to NII, EA and SEPA, all of which have regulatory responsibility relating to management of ILW in the UK.

Reworking

Reworking is a term used to describe a situation in which radioactive waste, which has already been treated in some way, needs to be repackaged to get it into a disposable form.

RWMAC

The Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee. A national advisory committee that advises Government on radioactive waste management. See paragraph 1.1 of this report for a fuller statement of its role.

Safety Index

A concept being developed by BNFL to measure "capability to cause harm", primarily to show progress with the implementation of radioactive waste management strategies and plans.

SEPA

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency. The regulatory body for Scotland with responsibility under the Radioactive Substances Act 1993 for regulating the accumulation and disposal of radioactive waste.

Stakeholder

In this report, bodies or persons with a specific interest in the management of ILW.

Statutory

Required, permitted or enacted by an Act of Parliament.

Statutory power

A power to require, permit or enact an activity under an Act of Parliament.

Storage

The emplacement of radioactive waste in a facility with the intent to retrieve it at a later time (if there is no intention of retrieval, the appropriate term is "disposal").

Storage facility

A facility that caters for the storage of radioactive waste including ILW.

Superplasticiser

A material used to improve the flow of cement or some other form of grout into a radioactive waste container. It is used to help ensure the effective filling of voids in the grout.

TUC

Trades Union Congress.

Treatment

Taking action to change the state or form of ILW to facilitate its future management. Such action may or may not serve to put the waste into its finally conditioned form.

UKAEA

The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority. A UK Government owned organisation responsible for the operation of a number of sites used originally for the UK's nuclear research and development programme, including those at Dounreay, Harwell and Winfrith.

Underground disposal

The act of disposing of radioactive waste in a facility that is located beneath the earth's surface.

Underground repository

A disposal facility that is located beneath the earth's surface.

Untreated

A term to denote ILW that remains in the form in which it was originally produced.

VLLW

Very low level radioactive waste which can be disposed of with ordinary refuse (dustbin disposal), each 0.1m³ of material containing less than 400 kilobecquerels (kBq) of beta/gamma radioactivity.

Waste producers

A collective term to denote, for the purposes of this report, producers of ILW. The four main producers are BNFL, UKAEA, BE and the MoD. Other producers are Amersham and a range of "small users" such as hospitals and educational establishments.

Wigner energy

The build-up of stored energy in graphite as a result of bombardment with neutrons, which may be released at some later point as heat.