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Reverse Logic - Safety of Spent Nuclear Disposal

By Lempinen Antti, Lempinen-Silvan Marianne

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OVERVIEW

The political and public acceptance of nuclear power depends partly on the issues of nuclear waste and safety. Therefore, the nuclear industry has to show that it has a solution to the problem of spent nuclear fuel. 

Finland intends to be a pioneer in the nuclear renaissance. The main reason for this is the special role the dependence on electricity plays. Despite its small population, Finland uses more electricity per capita as the OECD countries on average and its energy consumption is rising. Half of the consumed electricity in Finland is used by the industry, with the paper and metal industry playing a major part in this. Therefore, availability of cheap electricity is considered to be an important factor for the economical competitiveness of Finland.

Posiva is the company to whom its owners, the nuclear power operators in Finland, have given the task of disposal of the spent nuclear fuel. It has adopted the KBS-3 (Kärnbränslesäkerhet, version 3) as the method for disposal. KBS-3 is a deep geological repository concept originally developed in Sweden. Most of the research and development work relies on the co-operation with Svensk Kärnbränslehantering (SKB), which is the company responsible for the implementation of spent nuclear fuel disposal in Sweden. The technical core of KBS-3 has only changed a little since the introduction of its first version in 1977: the waste is placed in copper canisters into deposition holes with bentonite buffer surrounding the canisters at a depth of several hundred meters in the bedrock.

This report presents a historical analysis of administrative and political decisions in Finland regarding nuclear power with respect to Posiva’s work to demonstrate the safety of the planned repository for spent nuclear fuel. The material used is mainly Posiva’s publications and the Finnish legislation and decisions of the authorities and the policymakers.