1PAPER NUMBER 184
SITEX, the European network of technical expertise organisations for geological disposal
D. Pellegrini1, F. Bernier2, V. Detilleux3, G. Hériard Dubreuil4, A. Narkuniene5, J. Miksova6, M. Rocher1
1Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Institute (IRSN), France
2Federal Agency for Nuclear Control (FANC), Belgium
3Bel V, Belgium
4MUTADIS, France
5Lithuanian Energy Institute (LEI), Lithuania
6Research Centre Rez (CV-REZ), Czech Republic
E-mail contact of main author:
Abstract. A EuropeanSITEX network is being prepared to ensure a sustainable capability for developing and coordinating joint and harmonized activities related to the independent Expertise Function in the field of deep geological disposal safety. Two successive EURATOM projectsdevoted to the preparation of this network worked onthe needed set of activities,which entailsstrengthening the review of safety cases, developing a research strategy, interacting with civil society and training. This paper presentsthe main outlines of the on-going second project called SITEX-II, with a specific focus on the Strategic Research Agenda issued recently.
Key Words: Expertise Function Network, Geological Disposal, Safety Case Review, Civil Society Involvement.
1.Introduction
The European Council Directive 2011/70/EURATOM of 19 July 2011 establishes a Community framework for the responsible and safe management of spent fuel and radioactive waste. In line with this Directive and in consistency with international high level safety standards issued by IAEA and WENRA, waste management organisations (WMOs) are developing a safety case for presenting the technical and organisational arguments that support the development of the national geological repositoryin each concerned country.
As safety cases develop, the safety case review by regulatory bodies in the framework of the decision making process develops as well. In that context, organisations in charge of reviewing the safety case must in particular evaluate whether the elements of safety, and in particular that supported by scientific and technological results, are sufficiently convincing to be accepted by the regulatory authority as a basis for proceeding with the decision making process.
In that context, there is a need at the international level for developing and coordinating activities associated with the regulatory review process of deep geological disposal. In 2012, the EURATOM FP7 SITEX (“Sustainable network for Independent Technical EXpertise of radioactive waste disposal”)project was launched in order to complement existing initiatives (ENSREG, WENRA, NEA/RWMC/Regulator Forum…) with the view to characterizethe Expertise Function (see Figure 1) devoted to the technical review of a safety case at national level for deep geological disposal of radioactive waste.
FIG. 1. The Expertise Function and its interactions [1].
The SITEX-II Project (2015-2017), a EURATOM Horizon2020 Coordination and Support Action, is aimed at practical implementation of the activities defined by the former SITEX project using the interaction modes developed by that project and with a view to further prepare the future Expertise Function network. SITEX-II brings together, as partners, representatives from 18 organisations involving National Regulatory Authorities (NRAs), Technical Support Organisations (TSOs), Research Entities (REs), Non-Governmental Organisations(NGOs), specialists in risk governance and an education institute, and involves interactions with a wider group of Civil Society (CS)participants. Its tasks includeprogramming R&D, developing a joint review framework, training and tutoring for reviewing safety cases and interacting with CS, as detailed below, together with preparing an Action Plan that will set out the content and practical modalities of the future Expertise Function network.
2.Programming R&D
The 2011/70/EURATOM Directive requires the Expertise Function to carry out its own horizontal and R&D activities,so that it is not dependent on those developed by the Implementer Function to make its own judgement. It is also stressed in IAEA safety guides that the Regulatory Body, and thus its supporting organisations (see Figure 1), may need to conduct or commission R&D in support of regulatory decisions (see IAEA GS-G-1.1 [2] (see §3.33) and IAEA GS-G-1.2 [3] (see §3.68)).
SITEX-II therefore includes a task which pursues the general objective of further definingthe Expertise Function’s R&D programme necessary to ensure independent scientific and technical capabilities for reviewing a safety case for geological disposal. In this perspective, a Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) [4]has been issued, which will be completed by the Terms of Reference (ToR) for its implementation. This SRAhas beenalso an input to the JOPRAD project (EURATOM Horizon2020 Coordination and Support Action “Towards a Joint Programming Project on Radioactive Waste Disposal”, 2015-2017), which aim is to assess the feasibility and, if appropriate, to generate a proposal for Joint Programming activities that could be developed by WMOs, TSOs and/or REs in the field of Radioactive Waste Management (RWM), in particular geological disposal.
The commitments of SITEX-II members for the development of theExpertise Function SRA are the following:
–the SRA is developed by applying a transparent methodology;
–the SRA addresses the needs associated with the different states of advancement of geological disposal programmes;
–the concerns of CSparticipants are duly taken into consideration.
The current version of the SRA entails topics relevant to the Expertise Function to assess whether geological disposal facilities are developed and will be constructed, operated and closed in a safe manner, for which a sufficient level of common interest has been expressed amongst the SITEX-II members. So, seven main topics related to pre and post-closure safetyare considered in the SRA (1. Waste inventory, 2 Transient THMBC conditions in the near-field, 3.Evolution of EBS material properties, 4. Radionuclide behaviour in disturbed EBS and HR, 5. Safety relevant operational aspects, 6. Managing uncertainties and the safety assessment, 7. Lifecycle of a disposal programme and its safety case). In addition to R&D activities, the needs for knowledge transfer (e.g. training, tutoring), for developing states of the artand for exchanging on practices and developing common positions are also identified.
One particularly innovative development of the SRA relates to the introduction in the main topic n°7 of several holistic (complex) topics, for which both technical and societal aspects need to be investigated in an integrated manner,using specific interdisciplinary methodologies and involving CS participation. Also, regarding the other main topics, that are mainly technical, it came out essential to embed CS participation through the involvement of trained individuals, therefore offering the public the possibility to follow the development of this technical research, and to perform Knowledge Sharing and Interpretation (KSI) activities along the development of R&D results
Figure 2illustrates the associated issues and activities of common interest for Main Topic 1.
SRA Main Topic and associated issues / Research activities (experiment and/or modeling works) / Horizontal activitiesExchange on practices, develop common positions / Develop states of the art / Transfer of knowledge (eg. training)
Main Topic 1: Waste inventory and source term
#1. / Uncertainty about databases and methodologies used for defining waste inventories(including historical waste)
#2. / Evolution of the waste inventory due to possible neutron activation
#3. / Understanding of the release processes and speciation of the radionuclides for spent fuel, vitrified and cemented waste
#4. / Waste acceptance criteria
FIG. 2. Associated issues and activities for Main Topic 1 of the Expertise FunctionSRA.
3.Developing a joint review framework
High-level safety requirements and regulatory expectations for the safety case at different phases of geological disposal facility development (conceptualization, siting, reference design, construction, operation, post-closure) are addressed by the EU Directive and international standards and recommendations (IAEA, ICRP, WENRA, etc.). This leads to a key objective for a second SITEX-II task to further develop a common understanding of the interpretation and proper implementation of safety requirements in the safety case for the six phases named above of geological disposal facility development. Position paper on the selected topics and technical guides related to the review of a safety case will be elaborated, accounting for existing initiatives and building upon return of experience at the international level. To date, SITEX-II participants have exchanged their views and experience on how to implement in practice the requirements and expectations related to “optimisation of protection” and to “waste acceptance criteria”. The next topics will be “operational issues in regards with post-closure safety”, with an introductory presentation by a GEOSAF2 representative, and “programme for site characterization”.
4.Training and tutoring for reviewing the Safety Case
The third task of the ongoing project aims to implementa practical demonstration of training services that may be provided by the foreseen SITEX network. The training will be undertaken within the existing institute for expert training in nuclear safety (the European Nuclear Safety Training and Tutoring Institute, ENSTTI). The development of a training module at a generalist levelwith emphasis on the technical review of the safety case is on-going. The module will be presented and evaluated in the pilot training session in 2017.
5.Interactions with Civil Society
The quality of the decision-making process, and its compliance to international rules and conventions, includes several requirements such as maintaining over time consultation and interaction with interested parties in the decision-making process. It is therefore crucial for the consistency of the SITEX-II project that interaction with CS is embedded all along the development of the future SITEX network. This is expected to contribute to transparency in the specific area of expertise, supporting the development of interactions between Expertise and Society functions at different levels of governance and at different steps of the decision-making process.SITEX-II involves, as partners, representatives of NGOs and interacts with CS participants through workshops covering three thematic tasks, namely: R&D, safety culture/review and governance. The results will be integrated in one deliverable addressing the conditions and means for developing interactions with CS in the framework of the foreseen SITEX network. The constructive discussions that took place to date within SITEX-II allowed both institutional and CS participants to exchange and challenge their views, fostering mutual understanding, notably through the elaboration of the SRA. The need for building mutual understandingled to the development of– and was in turn dynamized by– an innovative multi-stakeholders evaluation process and tool, allowing for a participative and comparative discussion of alternative scenarios of long-term RWM which target passive safety as their end point.
6.Conclusion
The progress to date of the EURATOM Horizon2020 SITEX-II project shows that developing and coordinating joint and harmonized activities at the international level supporting the independent Expertise Function is achievable and promising in the field of geological disposal safety. Particularly, the involvement of of NGO representatives linked with a wider group of CS participants within SITEX-II should allow the Expertise Function to better account for societal concerns in its future networking activities, thus strengthening the decision making process. At this stage, the launching of the Expertise Function network is foreseen in 2018-2019, together with the Joint Programming if supported, meaning an ambitious calendar that calls for interested organizationsthat are not part of the SITEX-II project to expresstheir interestnow.
This project has received funding from the EURATOM research and training programme 2014-2018 under grant agreement No 662152.
References
[1]EC FP7 SITEX project, “D6.1 Conditions for establishing a sustainable expertise network”, 2014.
[2]IAEA, “Safety guide GS-G-1.1-Organization and staffing of the regulatory body for nuclear facilities”,Vienna, 2002.
[3]IAEA, “Safety guide GS-G-1.2-Review and assessment of nuclear facilities by the regulatory body”, Vienna, 2002.
[4]DETILLEUX, V. et al., “Overview of the Strategic Research Agenda in the field of geological disposal of radioactive waste developed by the Expertise Function in the EC-H2020-SITEX-II project”, EUROSAFE Forum 2016, 7th & 8th November 2016, Munich, Germany(in preparation).