OSTROVETS DISTRICT, 14 August (BelTA) – Progress in preparations for building a radioactive waste burial facility in Belarus was reviewed by Head of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry (Gosatomnadzor) Olga Lugovskaya during an offsite session of the Industry, Energy, Transport, Communications, and Digital Development Commission of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus held at premises of the Belarusian nuclear power plant on 14 August to discuss the practice of application of legislation on atomic energy uses, BelTA has learned.
Olga Lugovskaya said: “The entire system of technical requirements for handling radioactive waste has been formed. The common legislative base that stipulates these requirements has been created. Documents of the International Atomic Energy Agency, international experience, and the latest approaches have been taken into account. In the process of implementing the plan of the main organizational steps for building the radioactive waste burial facility so far analytical materials for examined sites have been prepared. A session of the commission has taken place to discuss the fullness and the readiness of these materials. A detailed plan has been worked out. At the moment we stay on schedule. We are talking about getting the facility built by 2030.”
The burial facility is expected to handle the waste generated by the Belarusian nuclear power plant as part of its operation. “According to preliminary calculations, by 2030 it will be necessary to start moving this waste from the site. This is why this facility is supposed to be available then. As of today the discussion is sufficiently complicated but I think that we will come up with a consensus and will suggest to the government the most reliable and efficient location that will allow building the radioactive waste burial facility and ensuring its safe operation,” the Gosatomnadzor head noted.
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