The first consideration for nuclear waste management

Hello everyone I'm Pizza and Cola. Today, I post the first consideration for nuclear waste management for Republic of KOREA.

 

 

 

  Introduction

High level waste was produced on a large scale from the early 1940’s and have been managed during about 80 years in the U.S. Until now, the Federal Government has not been able to select a nuclear waste repository site, and nuclear waste is stored where It was generated. This issue is more seriously affected by political issues than technical issues. In Republic of KOREA, the commercial reactor is started first in 1973 and the nuclear waste management begin recently. This essay shows concerns of the nuclear waste management in the history of U.S. and what is the most importance of starting nuclear waste management in the Republic of KOREA.

 

  history of nuclear waste in the U.S. and Republic of KOREA

Sites for nuclear waste in the U.S.

The projects of site selection continued to fail due to the opposition of local community and the difference in political position of the congress. During the 1950’s and 1960’s, the government in U.S. concentrated little attention the management of nuclear waste, due to there was no technical problem. The site selection for the nuclear waste repository was delayed due to the technical optimism. In 1969, a fire at the Federal weapons components facility in Rocky Flats, officials sent the nuclear wastes to the National Reactor Test Station in Idaho for storage and pledged to remove them by 1980. The nuclear waste storage facility started to construct at Lyons, but it failed because it had the potential to become low-budget permanent repository sites. The site characterization effort and struggles between state of New Mexico and DOE, Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) began to accept TRU waste on march 26, 1999. After searching several states to store commercial nuclear waste, Yucca mountain, NV was selected and could meet EPA and NRC requirements. However, the site of Yucca Mountain has been repeatedly granted and canceled during 40 years. The transportation issue is still remained in 2020. In view of these site issues, the site selection is possible only when political issues are resolved.

Transport for nuclear waste in the U.S.

Utah, which was signed by the utility consortium, and the Yucca Mountain were not approved by the Bureau of Land Management due to transportation issues. Nuclear waste is transported from the place of origin to storage by rail or highway. The transport for nuclear waste takes days and weeks, as the territory is wide in U.S. The opposition for transportation from local officials and the house will arise due to the same issues as site selection. To meet these requirements, new railway lines and highways will need to be expanded and additional costs will be incurred. Thus, the transport project will be a task for decades without the resolution of political issues.

Nuclear waste management in the Republic of KOREA

In the Republic of KOREA, site selection is the first concern for the nuclear waste management. The nuclear waste can be transported by rail or highway in one day. It means that an interim storage facility is not required and the risk for transportation issue is low. The technical issues will be solved, researching and learning the technologies of advanced countries. There is a nuclear waste repository in Gyeong-ju, but it will be insufficient and a new site should be selected. It will be difficult to select a site in the future, due to the individualism is considered important and the two parties are opposed to each other. Therefore, the first priority is the selection of a site that can be supported by the congress and residents.

 

  Summary

The U.S. has been managed nuclear waste for a longer time than the Republic of KOREA. Although there are technically sufficient research and the approval of the NRC and the government, it was difficult to select a site due to opposition from local residents and the politic problems. Even if the site is difficult to select, the problem of transportation must be solved before nuclear waste management can be started. Due to the same problem is likely to experience in the Republic of KOREA, selecting a site with the support of the congress and residents is the first consideration for the nuclear waste management.