STUK-B 138

Joint Convention | STUK-B-reports

Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management

4th Finnish National Report as referred to in Article 32 of the Convention

ISBN 978-952-478-661-4 (print) Edita Prima Oy, Helsinki 2011
ISBN 978-952-478-662-1 (pdf)
ISSN 0781-1713

Keywords: national report, Joint Convention, Finland, spent fuel management, radioactive waste management

Executive summary

This is the Finnish National Report, in accordance with the provisions of the Article 32 of the Joint Convention, to the 4th Review Meeting of the Contracting Parties in May 2012. The aim of this report is to present the recent developments of waste management in Finland, to describe waste management facilities and practices in Finland and, for discussion and review among contracting parties, to describe how the obligations under the Convention are fulfilled in Finland.

There were major developments in safety of spent fuel managements and safety of radioactive waste management in Finland during the reporting period 2008–2010. The main focus of activities was the spent fuel disposal project, where preparedness for the submittal of a construction license application is approaching. This has required extensive effort, from both the regulator and the implementer, in research, technical development and development of organizations.

As spent fuel is defined in legislation as radioactive waste in Finland, the nuclear power plants at Loviisa and Olkiluoto are the main generators of radioactive waste. Fortum Power and Heat Oy operates two VVER units at the Loviisa site and Teollisuuden Voima Oyj two plant units at Olkiluoto. The Loviisa units 1 and 2 were commissioned in 1977 and 1981, and the Olkiluoto units 1 and 2 in 1978 and 1980, respectively. In addition, a new nuclear power plant unit is being constructed at the Olkiluoto site. The Decision-in-Principle, the first step in licensing decisions, was made by the Government for two new reactors, one for Teollisuuden Voima Oyj at the Olkiluoto site and one for Fennovoima Oy, which will make a decision between two alternative sites in 2011. At the Olkiluoto and Loviisa sites there are interim storages for spent fuel as well as final repositories for medium and low level radioactive wastes. Furthermore, a Triga Mark II research reactor is operated in Espoo by the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland. During the reporting period, the Finnish fuel cycle policy continued to be based on the once-through option.

During the reporting period the Finnish NPPs operated and produced spent fuel and radioactive waste as expected. The level of safety in spent fuel management and radioactive waste management was high. Activities and programs continued to be developed and improved in accordance with the Finnish national strategy, milestones and timetable. The licensees and Posiva Oy, the Decision-In-Principle holder for a spent nuclear fuel disposal facility, have shown good safety performance and safety management practices in carrying out their responsibilities in spent fuel and radioactive waste management in existing NPP’s as well as in developing the final disposal project further.

During the reporting period, the highlights in Finland were as follows:

Spent nuclear fuel disposal project progressed as planned

• The project proceeded as planned with good progress in underground rock characterization facility construction, encapsulation and disposal facility design, technical development and the development of the safety case. Despite the complexity of the work and the challenges involved, no unexpected delays or problems were encountered. The regulatory approach is presented in Annex L.1 and the implementation of the project in Annex L.2.
• The construction of the underground rock characterisation facility, ONKALO, which started in July 2004, progressed to disposal depth. The access tunnel reached the length (chainage) of 4560 m and the depth of 433 m, and two ventilation shafts for ventilation and a personnel shaft each reached the depth of 290 m at the end of 2010.
• Regulatory oversight procedures for ONKALO, as described in Annex L.1, have been established. Regulatory oversight of ONKALO construction continues with the depth and detail that would allow the use of the facility as a part of the disposal facility.
• Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) continued the review of the evolving Safety Case for the disposal facility. During the latter part of 2009, Posiva Oy, the implementer, sent drafts of main licensing documents to the authorities. Posiva also submitted their triennial Research, Development and Design plans report for the years 2010–2012. During 2010 STUK reviewed this documentation, compiled a draft safety evaluation, and gave, as requested by the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, statements on the maturity of the project and on the research, development and design plans. There has been considerable progress by Posiva, but work is still needed in several areas to achieve the level required for a construction licence application. The application is expected to be submitted at the end of 2012.

The regulatory system was strengthened

• STUK continued to increase its resources and activities in response to expanding operations of Posiva in constructing the ONKALO and in preparing the review the disposal facility (encapsulation facility and repository) construction license application. STUK’s planning for the review of the construction license application for the spent fuel disposal facility started and the planned procedures were used during the 2010 review of Posiva’s draft licensing material. This exercise was valuable feedback to planning.
• The Finnish nuclear legislation and regulatory guidance were developed further. This included a revised Government Decree on the safety of disposal of nuclear waste and advanced drafts of revised Regulatory Guides on waste management were available at the end of 2010. International guidance such as IAEA safety standards and WENRA recommendations were taken into account in this work.
• In 2009 STUK organized a Peer Review of STUK’s waste management related activities. All EU member states were invited and representatives from 11 countries participated in the peer review.

Progress was made in the spent fuel management

• Spent nuclear fuel from the Finnish NPPs is stored at the power plant sites until it will be disposed of. In Loviisa NPP, the installation of dense fuel racks was started in 2007 and will continue until 2018. The operating licence issued in 2007 allows storing spent fuel up to 1100 tU and this capacity will be adequate until the start of disposal of the spent fuel.
• At Olkiluoto, where the construction of Olkiluoto 3 unit is ongoing, the construction of the extension of the spent fuel storage facility started in 2010. Protection against large airplane crash is included in the design of the extension of the existing part of the facility will also be improved. In addition, spent fuel pool cooling water systems will be modified to enable water feed from outside.

Management of LILW from nuclear facilities was improved

• Improved facilities for LILW operations at Loviisa NPP were commissioned in 2010.
• The LLW disposal section of the Loviisa LILW disposal facility was taken in operation in 1998. The construction of the second stage of the facility – the cementation facility for solidification of wet ILW, and the ILW disposal cavern – was completed in 2007. Technical problems during commissioning tests of the solidification facility have delayed the start of the facility until the next reporting period. The construction to enlarge the LILW repository with a new room for waste handling and a tunnel facilitating disposal operations started in 2010.
• A part of the small user’s waste – small amount of nuclear material and a few high activity sources – can not be disposed of in the Olkiluoto facility. Actions have been started to find an alternative disposal route for these wastes.
• During the reporting period, no spent fuel or radioactive waste incidents in the Finnish NPPs were reported.

Technical support and competence were developed

• VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland continued to support effectively the regulatory body in safety assessment work, providing safety analysis capabilities and tools e.g. via the regulatory research programmes, and performing reviews of safety analyses.
• Management of competence, taking into account retirement of large post-war age groups born in late 1940’s and early 1950’s, is a concern also in Finland. During the reporting period, the Finnish nuclear safety community has succeeded well in recruiting new staff in response to the needs of the expanding nuclear sector. However, challenges remain in providing sufficient post-graduate education and training as well as funding for comprehensive knowledge transfer between the expert generations. A pilot project for enhanced joint education and training concerning spent fuel disposal was launched for newcomers in the field in 2010, with the intention to set up a program similar to that for the nuclear reactor safety. More advanced familiarisation continues to be obtained through extensive on-job training and tutoring at the different organisations.
• International cooperation and transparency belong to the cornerstones of the development of the national solutions for spent fuel and waste safety in Finland. In addition to active participation in international and bilateral forums (IAEA, EU, WENRA, OECD/NEA), foreign consultants continued to participate both in regulatory reviews and Posiva’s development work.

Challenges for future work

• Main challenges are related to keeping up with the timely progress made with the Olkiluoto spent fuel disposal project. Research and development programs have a major challenge to produce results related to the Olkiluoto site, the engineered barrier system and the safety case, which are needed to justify the construction licence application planned to be submitted in 2012. Posiva and STUK invest in their processes and resources to ensure that all safety related regulatory and implementation tasks can be performed with high quality and without undue delay. Still more research and development and more resources are needed as the project proceeds. To develop and maintain competence in nuclear safety, STUK provides guidance to the national research programmes on operational safety of nuclear power plants and on the safety of nuclear waste management and geological disposal.
• In Olkiluoto, a new NPP is under construction and two new reactors have passed the first licensing step, Decision-in-Principle. One of the decisions was for Fennovoima Oy, a new company in this field. The Olkiluoto disposal project covers currently spent fuel from the four reactors in operation, from the one under construction (Olkiluoto 3) and from one under planning (Olkiluoto 4). As Fennovoima Oy is not an owner of Posiva, the plans of Posiva do not cover spent fuel from Fennovoima’s future NPP unit. According to the Decision-in Principle Fennovoima must improve its plan for the disposal of spent nuclear fuel by 2016 by submitting to the Ministry of Employment and the Economy either an agreement on nuclear waste management in cooperation with Posiva as outlined in the application for a Decision-in Principle or an environmental impact assessment program for a spent duel disposal facility to be operated by Fennovoima itself.
• The European Commission promotes worldwide co-operation to further develop nuclear, radiation and waste safety through its INSC program and its predecessors. Finland has been and will be a supporter of this European development and involvement. During the reporting period, three fourths of STUK’s service volume comprised promotion of radiation and nuclear safety, including waste safety, in Eastern European countries.The retirement of large post-war age groups will affect the organizations responsible for waste management and also the regulators and require efforts from them so that they will have enough competence and manpower available.
• Communication will become an increasingly important success factor for STUK, Posiva and power companies. Interest in radiation and nuclear safety topics will continue to increase. The media plays an important role in communication.

• While most radioactive waste streams have a disposal solution, a part of the small user’s waste – small amount of nuclear material and a few high activity sources – can not be disposed of in the Olkiluoto LILW disposal facility. A disposal route for these wastes is currently being negotiated.

From the 3rd Review Meeting

The 3rd Review Meeting in 2009 identified challenges and items for follow-up, and recorded some planned measures to improve safety of nuclear waste management in Finland. On request of the Review Meeting these issues are included and responded in this 4th National Report of Finland. These items were (in brackets the articles, in which the issues are addressed):

• Keeping up with the timely progress made with the in-situ rock characterisation project at the spent fuel disposal site in Olkiluoto (ONKALO) (see Articles 13–15, Annexes L.1 and L.2 )
• Managing the waste that will arise from new NPPs under construction and Decision-in-Principle applications for 3 new NPPs submitted (See Articles 32, 12, 16)
• The retirement of large age group will affect STUK, nuclear power utilities and waste management organisation (Articles 20 and 22, Section K)
• Communication will become an increasingly important success factor for STUK as interest in radiation and nuclear safety continue to increase (Article 20).

Conclusion: In conclusion, Finland complies with the obligations and objectives of the Joint Convention. Challenges for the future are recognized, regularly reviewed and addressed. Efforts for continuous improvements are needed and taken.

Whole report (2.75 megabytes)