Publication Laka-library:
Overall research programme and work programme for 2020-2025
| Author | COVRA, Technopolis group, E.Verhoef, E.Neeft, N.Chapman, C.McCombie, J.Bartol, M.Vuorio |
 |
1-01-4-30-78.pdf |
| Date | November 2020 |
| Classification | 1.01.4.30/78 (WASTE - GEOLOGICAL DISPOSAL IN SALT/CLAY) |
| Remarks | This document was prepared by COVRA in collaboration with Technopolis Group and advised by two international advisors during Winter 2019-2020. |
| Front |
From the publication:
Foreword
When visiting COVRA in the province of Zeeland, the storage
buildings for radioactive waste may look like they have been carved
out of solid rock and can last forever. But don’t let the appearances
fool you: the storage of radioactive waste at COVRA is only a
temporary solution. The buildings have been designed for ‘just’ a
century or two. After this period, a large part of the waste is still
radioactive. With the current state of science and technology,
disposal of this long-lived waste in stable geological layers in the
deep underground is the only accepted solution to ensure that the
waste will still remain out of the human living environment after
thousands of years. This is called deep geological disposal.
For long-term management, COVRA must align its services with
the changing market, which constantly offers different types and
quantities of radioactive waste. Because COVRA is responsible for
the entire waste management chain, we can take the requirements
for the geological disposal of radioactive waste into account already
when collecting and processing it. Conversely, we can only acquire
now the information and knowledge we need to properly carry out
the future disposal. To balance the short and long-term interests
and knowledge of both predisposal and disposal activities, we need
a robust and consistent knowledge management. An essential part
of the knowledge management is an active, continuous research
programme on geological disposal.
According to Dutch policy, the definitive decision on the disposal
method will be taken around 2100 and start of disposal is expected
around 2130. This provides us time to learn from experiences in
other countries, to carry out research and to accumulate the
knowledge to make well-founded decisions. To develop the
necessary knowledge COVRA will make conditional generic (i.e.
non-site-specific) safety cases during the next decades.
In this period, the principal driving forces for research are to:
1. Strengthen the confidence in the safety of disposal:
investigating the different host rock options (e.g. rock salt,
Boom Clay and Ypresian Clay), potential GDF design options,
the post-closure performance, and level of the public
confidence and acceptability.
2. Assess the disposability of different waste and waste
packaging families: investigating waste packaging options
and requirements on collection, treatment and conditioning
of waste families to facilitate their eventual disposal.
3. Assure adequate funding for disposal, based on regularly
updated cost estimates for the GDF: identifying and where
possible optimising cost-determining features of a GDF.
In this document we explain how the long-term research
programme will look like. How it builds on the OPERA safety case
from the previous research programme and uses a structured
process to select research activities to be carried out over the
coming years. You can also find a detailed plan for the research
in the coming five years (2020-2025). You can read how these
activities will strengthen COVRA’s competences in scientific and
technical areas related to geological disposal. How we plan to
inform politicians, the public and the scientific/technical community
about the progress of geological disposal in the Netherlands.
The plan is not yet carved in stone and will evolve over time.
Dr. ir. Ewoud Verhoef
Deputy Director COVRA