Information Update - Steam generator processing: an excellent example of responsible and safe nuclear waste management practices

January 13, 2012

Image: One of the steam generators is offloaded at
Nyköping, Sweden (courtesy of Vattenfall)

Recent media reports have announced the arrival of used Swedish steam generators at Studsvik’s plant in Sweden. The company will process the generators to segregate the material that needs to be disposed of safely from the clean metal that can be recycled.

Steam generators pose a special challenge for final disposal because of their sheer size, not because of the trace amount of radioactive contamination they contain as a result of their use at nuclear power plants. The CNSC considers the processing of old steam generator to be an excellent application of the internationally accepted and environmentally friendly three R principles of waste management: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.

The implementation of the three R principles at Canadian nuclear facilities is endorsed by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. It ensures that the management of radioactive waste is carried out to the highest standards for health, safety, security and environmental protection.

Image: Steam generators used in Canadian NPPs

Radioactive waste minimization is a key principle in the CSA standard Management of Low- and Intermediate-level Radioactive Waste which specifically refers to the development of a waste management program to reduce the overall volume of radioactive waste requiring long-term management.

That is why the CNSC stands by the recent decision to license the transport of the Bruce Power steam generators to Sweden for recycling. This will recycle the clean steel shell and reduce the volume of waste by 90%. This is good for the environment and good waste management practice.

Related links:

• Bruce Power update on steam generator recycling project (source: Bruce Power web site)
• CNSC fact sheet: Regulating Radioactive Waste from Nuclear Power Plants in Canada (PDF)
• Canada’s 3rd National Report for the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management
• Government of Canada’s policy on radioactive waste management: Radioactive Waste Policy Framework (source: NRCan’s Web site)
• IAEA publications that include waste minimization principles and practices:
  • The Principles of Radioactive Waste Management (PDF)
  • Predisposal Management of Radioactive Waste (PDF)
  • Decommissioning of Nuclear Fuel Cycle Facilities Safety Guide (PDF)
• The Canadian Standards Association Web site