Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT) (방사성폐기물학회지)

Korean Radioactive Waste Society (한국방사성폐기물학회)
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UK Civil Nuclear Decommissioning, a Blueprint for Korea's Nuclear Decommissioning Future?: Part II - UK's Progress and Implications for Korea

  • Foster, Richard I. (Nuclear Research Institute for Future Technology and Policy, Seoul National University) ;
  • Park, June Kyung (Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute) ;
  • Lee, Keunyoung (Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute) ;
  • Seo, Bum-Kyoung (Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute)
  • Received : 2021.06.26
  • Accepted : 2021.11.01
  • Published : 2022.03.30
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Abstract

The nuclear legacy that remains in the United Kingdom (UK) is complex and diverse. Consisting of legacy ponds and silos, redundant reprocessing plants, research facilities, and non-standard or one-off reactor designs, the clean-up of this legacy is under the stewardship of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA). Through a mix of prompt and delayed decommissioning strategies, the NDA has made great strides in dealing with the UK's nuclear legacy. Fuel debris and sludge removal from the legacy ponds and silos situated at Sellafield, as part of a prompt decommissioning strategy for the site, has enabled intolerable risks to be brought under control. Reactor defueling and waste retrievals across the Magnox fleet is enabling their transition to a period of care and maintenance; accelerated through the adopted 'Lead and Learn' approach. Bespoke decommissioning methods implemented by the NDA have also enabled the relevant site licence companies to tackle non-standard reactor designs and one-off wastes. Such approaches have potential to influence and shape nuclear decommissioning decision making activities globally, including in Korea.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

The authors wish to graciously thank the contributions of Dr Jennifer Rochford (Sellafield Ltd.); Dr James T.M. Amphlett (KAIST/Seaborg Technologies); Dr Simon Watson, Prof. Barry Lennox, and Dr Jennifer Jones (The University of Manchester), and Mr Barry Guy; all of whom provided invaluable insights and clarity on technical issues. This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MSIT) (No. NRF-2017M2A8A5015147). An extension of thanks is also given to Dr Kwang-Wook Kim (KAERI) for proofreading the manuscript.

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