F N C A N e w s l e tt e r N o . 4
Radiation Safety & Radioactive Waste Management
C o n te n t s
Repo rt of F N C A Work sho p201 0
P. 1- P. 2
I ntroduc tio n of Pro jec t L eaders
P. 2
Topic s fr om partic ipat ing c o untri es
P. 3 - 17
F NCA F ram e work
P. 18

Ma rc h 20 11
I ss ue d by

Nuclea r S a fety
Res ea rch
A s s ocia tion

(F NC A S e cr e t a r i a t ,J A PA N)

FNCA Workshop on
Radiation Safety & Radioactive
Waste Management (RS&RWM)
stth
21 -25 May, 2010, Tokyo

on further improvements in thereliability of dosimetry, followed bydiscussion on calibration, exposure
control and training/education. After thepresentations on experiences on designand siting for LLW Facilities delivered
by Participants from Thailand, Vietnam,
and Indonesia, all the participants
exchanged their opinions, referring tolessons learnt from radiological accident
occurred in their country and predisposal
management of radioactive waste.

The FNCA 2010 Workshop on
Radiation Safety and Radioactive Waste
M anagement was held from M ay 21st to
25th 2010, in Tokyo, Japan. This
Workshop was hosted by the M inistry of
Education, Culture, Sports, Science andTechnology (M EXT) of Japan, and wasattended by twenty representatives fromnine FNCA member countries, namely
Australia, Bangladesh, China, Indonesia,
M alaysia, Philippines, Thailand, andVietnam.
At Opening Session, Dr. Sueo M achi,
FNCA Coordinator of Japan presented
updates on the status of the eleven
FNCA projects. Finally, Dr. Toshio
Kosako, Project Leader of Japan,
Professor of the University of Tokyo,
delivered the opening speech anddeclared the workshop opened. The
participants then presented their country
report detailing legislative framework,and updates, and plans regarding
radiation safety, followed by questions
and answers.
In the morning of the second day, theparticipants
discussed
detailsof
consolidated repot on radiation safety. In
the afternoon, they made presentations

Panel Discussion a t Joint Session with AOCRP-3

On the third day, it was suggested at
the session titled “Future Plan andPreparation for Round Table Discussion”
that this project mainly focuses on thesixtheme;(1)Radioactive
Waste
M anagement and decommissioning,

1The fourth day started with thesession titled “Introduction of Japan’s
Experiences”. The participants observed
DVDs on “The Renaissance of Nuclear
Exposure Scenarios, Clearance, Safety&Security, Emergency Preparedness,and Nuclear Power Program.Fuel”,“Core Inspection Instruments” and“SPEEDI Network System” as well as“DocumentofEarthquakeinKashiwazaki-Kariwa”
that
is
a
documentary made by Tokyo
Electric Power Company. In theafternoon, the meeting minutes weredrafted and agreed by all the participants.

(2)NORM /TENORM ,(3)Clearance,(4)Safety & Security, (5)Emergency,and (6)Nuclear Power Plant program.
At the beginning of Joint Session with
the Third Asian and Oceanic Congress
on Radiation Protection (AOCRP-3),
Prof. Kosako introduced activities andachievements of this project and FNCA
representatives
introduced
current
situation and activities regarding
radiation safety and radioactive waste
management in their countries. The
participants then formed a panel todiscuss variety of subjects related toradiation safety and radioactive waste
management such as Radioactive Waste,
NORM , Safety and Security, andClearance.

FNCA RS&RW M P roject Leaders
Australia

Bangladesh

China

Indonesia

Japan

Dr. Lubi Dimitrovski

Korea

Manager,
Waste Operations
Safety and Radiation Servic
Australian Nuclear Science &Technology Organisation(ANSTO)

Malaysia

Dr. Moinul Islam
Senior Scientific Offi cer,
Atomic Energy Research
Establishment (AERE),
Bangladish Atomic Energy
Commission (BAEC)

Dr. Chang Lak Kim
Director,
Radioactive Waste
Management Policy Office,
Korea Radioactive Waste
Management Corporation(KRMC)

Dr. Mohd Abdul Wahab
Yusof
Senior Research Offi cer,
Waste Technology &Environment Division,
Malaysian Nuclear Agency(Nuclear Malaysia)

Dr. Zhang Jintao
Deputy Director General,
Department of Safety, Protection
and Quality,China National
Nuclear Corporation (CNNC)

Philippines

Senior Science ResearchSpecialist, Nuclear Regulations,
Licensing and Safeguards
Division, Philippine Nuclear
Research Institute (PNRI)

Mr. Syahrir
Head of Safety and Environment
Division, National Nuclear
Energy Agency (BATAN)

Ms. Maria Visitacion B.
Palattao

Thailand

Mr. Sutat Thiangtrongjit

Vietnam

Dr. Le Ba Thuan

Director,
Radioactive Waste
Management Center,
Thailand Institute of Nuclear
Technology (TINT)

Prof. Toshiso Kosako
Professor,
Nuclear Professional School,
Graduat e School of Engineering,
The University of Tokyo

2

Director,
Institute for Technology ofRadioactive and rare Elements,
Vietnam Atomic Energy
Institute (VAEI)Topics from Participating Countries
Australia

Termination of the facility license is
expected from ARPANSA in early 2011.

Mr. Lubi Dimitrovski
Mr. Ge off Malone
Australian Nuclear Science & Technology
Organisation (ANSTO)

Project Phase 1
The dismantling operation wasundertaken in two phases. The firstphase of the dismantling -Preliminary
Dismantling – took place during July2009 and was undertaken entirely by
ANSTO staff.
It involved removal of all the control
drive hardware, support and alignment
components, fuel element tanks andassociated piping, 12 tonnes of nuclear
grade graphite reflector from the coreregion and the four adjacent horizontal
cavities used for experimental beam
ports, and an internal lead gamma shield.
M ost of the work was done by handusing hand tools whilst heavy-duty
hydraulic shears were used to cut thesteel shafts and accessible aluminium
pipework. An internal pipe cutter wasused to remotely cut aluminium pipes atthe bottom of the fuel tanks and avacuum lifter was used for the verticallifting of the graphite rods from the coreregion. The metal components wereplaced in 50mm thick steel boxes and thegraphite was placed into 24 lightweightsteel boxes for storage in ANSTO lowlevel waste storage facilities.

MOATA Reactor Dismantling
Overview
In 1961, the Australian Atomic
Energy Commission acquired the 10kW
Argonaut type research reactor, M OATA,
which was later modified to 100kW.
MOATA was used for a variety of
research and industrial applications. In
1995 due to insufficient demand for its
services to justify running costs, thereactor was shutdown and put into a safe
state. After removing the fuel andcontrol systems, and draining the coolingwater, the facility was licensed forpossession,
controlanddecommissioning by the Australian
nuclear regulator ARPANSA in 2001.
ANSTO internal approvals for
dismantling were granted in January
2008. Table 1 below provides an
overview of the approval and completion
timeline for the project.
Phase 1:
Remov al of componentsof the reactor core
Phase 2:Dismantling of theconcrete bioshield
Restoration of the site
Site survey
Submission to ARPANSA

Approvaldate*
Jun 2009

Completio
n dateJul 2009

Jan 2010

Sep 2010

Oct 2010
Dec 2010
Dec 2010* Approval regulator y body = Australian Radiation
Protecti onandN uclear
Safeguards
Agenc y(ARPANSA)

Table 1: T imeline of project

Figure 1: Lifting graphite from reactor core3

Figure 4: Truck loaded with concrete blocks
Figure 2: Lifting 50mm steel box

The demolition was carried out by
cutting the structure into large sectionsof approximately one cubic metre involume and several tonnes weight, using
the diamond wire sawing (DWS) process.
The cutting was guided by accurately
establishedcoring holes
locatedthroughout the concrete. The cut sections
were checked locally in the containment
area.
Identified
hot-spots
were
subsequently removed. After clearance
from the containment area all blocks
were taken to a nearby low backgroundarea for ISOCS scanning (field mounted
gamma scanner) – Figure 5.

Figure 3: Graphite loaded lightweight box

Project Phase 2
The second phase of the project
involved the dismantling of the concrete
bioshield and subfloor region. This wasundertaken between M arch and August
2010. Two fuel element storage pits, aprocess cooling pit and various shieldguide rails in the adjacent floor weredemolished and the area remediated.
The dismantling of the concrete wasundertaken by a specialist concrete
dismantlingcontractor(Cardinal
Services) engaged for the project. Allother aspects of the work such as sitemanagement, radiation and occupational
health and safety monitoring, wastemonitoring, and control of active wastes
were undertaken by ANSTO staff.
Wastes that meet ANSTO’s releasecriteria were removed from site by thecontractor, the majority being concrete
which was subsequently recycled.

Figure 5: ISOCS Gamma Scannerto confirm suitability for release. Only
two blocks failed this scanning check,requiring the return to the containmentarea for removal of the contaminatedmaterial.
The cutting of the concrete had beenplanned based on careful characterisation
to ensure only concrete at and below therelease levels would be cut and removed4

from the structure. The more active
concrete nearer to the core of the reactor
on the other hand would be stored as low
level
solid
waste.
(LLSW).
Approximately 500mm of concretearound the core was classified as LLSW.
The inner 300mm was heavy density
concrete loaded with small pieces of iron,making it unsuitable for cutting by DWS.
Therefore a hydraulic hammer and a
jaw-type crusher were used instead.
These active concrete material (and theactive sub-floor region) was then placed
into 24 bins, each of 1.75m3 and 6 tonnes
capacity for storage in ANSTO’s LLSW
storage facility.

dismantling could signal the end of theSTAR accelerator in this application.
However the strict control measures
adhered to throughout the project
ensured no C-14 contamination of theSTARaccelerator
or
immediatesurrounds. The dismantling of the
MOATA reactor was undertaken withina large containment tent which enclosed
the reactor and work area around it
entirely. It was ventilated by a HEPA
filtered exhaust system which provided
approximately nine changes of air per
hour, ensuring no leakage of potentiallycontaminated air from the demolitionzone. No discharges of radioactive
materials or other noxious wastes to theenvironment was recorded either.

Site Remediation
The site was remediated by filling all
the pits with compacted crushed concrete.
A new load-bearing concrete flooring
was poured and finished to match theexisting floor structure and surfaces. A
new covered service-duct was included
as part of the floor restoration to allow
for future use.

Impact on Dose Rates
Doses to workers involved in the project
were very low. Table X provides theactual and estimated doses for bothphases of the project.
(Man- µSv )Estimated

ActualCollective dose in
Phase 1

169

155

Indiv idual dose in
Phase 2

1500

252

Collective dose in
Phase 2

10,4001679

Table 2: Dose rates

Impact on Waste Volumes
Radioactive
waste
volumes
generated were less than the initial
forecast. M uch of the concrete shielding
around the reactor was found to be nonactive and therefore recycled via normalindustrial processes. The radioactive
waste generated was managed under
ANSTO’s waste processes.

Figure 6: Excavated and remediated floor

Challenges of Project
One of the most challenging issues
encountered in this project is associatedwith ANSTO’s STAR Accelerator. The
STAR accelerator provides Australia
with one of the world’s most sensitivemeans of monitoring Carbon-14.
Located in the same building as
MOATA, the risk of C-14 contamination
during the removal of the 12 tonnes ofirradiatedgraphiteduringthe5The wastes generated by this project
include:Waste

of radioactive material by individual andgroups has been a matter of great
concern. According to IAEA resolution
GC(42)/RES/12 all governments areencouraged, to take steps to ensure theexistence within the territories ofeffective national systems of control for
ensuring the safety of radiation sources
and the security of radioactive materials.
In order to provide high assurance that
activities involving radioactive waste
management do not constitute an
unreasonable risk to public health andsafety it is therefore important toestablish and maintain a physicalprotection for such a system. To
establish a system and to protect
radiological hazard to the personnel,
public and the environment, generaladministrative measures and technicalmeasures have been applied for the
management of radioactive sources at
CWPSF AERE Savar, in the recent years.
The combinations of administrative andtechnical measures include:

WeightGraphite Moderator*
12TonneLow Lev el Solid Wastes f rom core
1.5 Tonne
region (lead & steel)*
Heavy Density Concretes
40 Tonne(non-activ ated, restricted release)
Normal Density Concrete
175 Tonne(f ree release)
Concrete Cutting Slurries
10 Tonne(~ 30% mass as water)*Heavy Density & normal density
80 Tonne
concretes (incl. steel inserts)(activ ated, low lev el solid waste)*
Normal Density concrete f rom sub20 Tonne
f loor region and f uel pits (activatedand NORMs, low level solid
wastes)** materials retained by ANSTO for future
disposition

Achievements Recognised
During the Preliminary Dismantlingphase of the project in July 2009,
ANSTO hosted a week-long IAEA
workshop on ‘Planning for Dismantlingof Small Nuclear Facilities’ during
which the overseas participants wereable to witness dismantling work inprogress. A short DVD of the project isavailable and was presented to the 2010
Annual M eeting of the IAEA’s
International Decommissioning Network(IDN).

Entries of private vehicles to
CWPSF compound are limited
The vehicles are searched andchecked during the entering andleaving the facility compound
The facility is surrounded by a fenceor wall, which provides penetration
delay
The number of entries and exists tothe main interim storage area havebeen kept minimum
A record is maintained for all
persons having access to keys
All persons and packages entering or
leaving inner areas are checked.
The issuing of keys to facility arestrictly controlled
Access to storage facility is strictly
limited
Waste
Storageareas
arecontinuously locked and alarms
activated when not occupied
A 24-hours guarding service has
been provided to CWPSF

The Australian Institute of Project
M anagement (AIPM ) recognised thequality of management of this projectwith the awarding of NSW Small Projectof the Year, NSW Overall Project of theYear (2010) and National Small Projectof the Year (2010).

Bangladesh
Dr. Moinul Islam
Bangladesh Atomic Energy
Commission(BAEC)

Physical Protection ofCentral Waste Processing andStorage Facility (CWPSF)
The possibilities of theft, sabotage,
unauthorized access and illegal transfer

6Patrols around the CWPSF area
during all over the night are also
providedJapan(1)Prof. Toshiso Kosako, University ofTokyo, (2)Dr. Yasushi Sato, National
Institute of Advanced Industrial Scienceand Technology (AIST ), (3)Dr. Toan
Ngoc Tran, Vietnam Atomic Energy
Institute(VAEI), and (4)Dr. Hide ki
Harano, National Institute of Advanced
Industrial Science and Technology (AIST)

M oreover, the intrusion detection in
CWPSF have been equipped withfollowing measures: CCTV System,
Homeland Surveillance Security System(IR Camera, PTZ Camera, Radiation
Detector, Long range IR Illuminator),
M etal Halide Security Light, Remote
Key Pad, Digital Speech Dialer, Key
Safe Box, High Security Pad Lock,
Heavy steel door.

Remote calibration of ionizationchambers for radioactivity
measurements
1. Introduction to remote calibration
The new ‘e-trace’ calibration
technique has been developed by AIST
(National Institute ofAdvanced
Industrial Science and Technology) torationalize traceability. The e-tracetechnique enables the rapid remotecalibration of measurement equipment
and requires minimal resources. The etrace concept is as follows: NM Is(National M etrology Institutes) thatparticipate in an M RA (M utual
Recognition
Arrangement)orlaboratories that have been accredited
send transfer standards to customers.
M easurement equipment in the remotelocation is controlled via the internet andtransfer standard data are obtained. The
work of authorized personnel at the
remote location is monitored by videoconferencing. The measurement data are
analyzed by NMIs or accredited
laboratories before a certificate ofcalibration is issued; all of the calibration
methods for maintaining traceability are
managed based on a quality management
system.
Traceability refers to an unbroken
chain; measurement equipment iscalibrated by references at higher levels,with the calibration chain ending at the
primary standard. E-trace has beenutilized to maintain the traceability ofradioactivity measurements between the

Figure 1: CCTV & Control Panelof Phys ical Security System at CWPSF

To ensure consistency with theinternational Basic Safety Standard andthe revised code of conduct for the safety
and security of radioactive sources, thesesecurity measures primarily aimed attrying to prevent the necessary level ofprotection
againstunauthorizedacquisition of radioactive sources. These
integrated measures involving safety
arrangements,
radiation
protection
measures and appropriate design toachieve the safety and security
objectives.

7

primary and secondary standards inJapan since 2005.
On the other hand, many hospitals
currently use radiopharmaceuticals for invivo diagnostic imaging. Single photon
emissioncomputed
tomography(SPECT)and
positronemission
tomography (PET) are useful methods
for obtaining physiological informationsuch as the presence and location ofcancerous regions following the injectionof a radiopharmaceutical. Ionizationchambers are commonly used to measure
the activity of radiopharmaceuticals andconfirm that an adequate amount ofradionuclide has been injected. Such
ionization chambers are calibrated byaccredited laboratories to maintaintraceability. E-trace is now beginning tobe applied to ionization chambers forworking standards in work places suchas research institutes and hospitals toenable rapid calibration using limited
resources.

calibrate radioactive sources produced at
the users’ site. This calibrated source ismeasured by users’ ionization chambers
and the calibration coefficients of users’
ionization chambers are then calculatedusing the measured activity and theactivity of the calibrated source. Thismethod is used for short-lived nuclides
such as 18F.
AISTInternet

Ionizationchamber

Transferstandard sources

Figure 1: Remote ca libration us ing trans fer
standard s ources. 1)

AISTInternet
Transfer
equipment

2. Remote calibration methods
There are two methods of remotecalibration, involving the use of eithertransfer standard sources or transfer
equipment.

Cyclotron

Radioactive
sourceIonizationchamber

Figure 2: Remote ca libration us ing transfer
equipment. 1)

2.1 Use of transfer standard sources
A schematic diagram of the remotecalibration method based on transfer
standard sources is shown in Fig. 1.
AIST calibrates the standard sources
before they are sent to users of ionizationchambers. The sources are measured by
the users’ ionization chambers underremote control via the Internet, and theresults are transferred back to AIST via
the Internet. This method is used for
nuclides that are sufficiently long-lived
to be sent to users.

3. Joint research with INS T, Vietnam
Until now, there has been no primary
standard laboratory for radioactivity in
Vietnam; however, the Secondary
Standard Dosimetry Laboratory (SSDLVietnam), belonging to the Institute of
Nuclear Science & Technology (INST),
has been accredited as the national
standard laboratory
for radiation
dosimetry & radioactivity. It is essential
for
SSDL-Vietnam
tomaintain
traceability to international standards
through NM Is such as the NMIJ, AIST
(National M etrology Institute of Japan,
National Institute of Advanced Industrial
Science and Technology). To this end, in
2006, SSDL-Vietnam participated in aninternational comparison of radioactivity
measurements of 133Ba (APM P.RI(II)-

2.2 Use of transfer equipment
A schematic of the remotecalibration method involving transfer
equipment is shown in Fig. 2. The
equipment involved might be an
ionization chamber, which can becontrolled from AIST via the Internet to8

K2.Ba-133) organized by AIST within
the framework of the Asia-Pacific
M etrology
Programme(APM P).
Recently, AIST has supported INST withcalibration of 131I by the e-tracetechnique. AIST first sent the 131I
transfer standard source to INST; aresearcher from AIST then travelled to
INST to help SSDL-Vietnam to set up aremote calibration procedure controlled
by NM IJ via the Internet. In the near
future, it is expected that AIST will sendatransferstandard
radioisotope
calibrator to INST for calibration ofshort-lived nuclides such as 18F, used in
the PET systems that are rapidly
becoming widespread in Vietnam.

accordance with the site selection
procedures.
LILW disposal facility is being
constructed in Bongil-ri, Yangbukmyeon, Gyeongju. The official name ofthe disposal facility is called ‘Wolsong
Low and Intermediate Level Radioactive
Waste Disposal Center (LILW disposal
center)’. It can dispose of 800,000 drumsof radioactive wastes in a site of
2,100,000 square meters. At the firststage, LILW repository of undergroundsilo type with disposal capacity of
100,000 drums is under construction
expected to be completed by the end of
2012.
The Wolsong Low and Intermediate
Level Radioactive Waste Disposal
Center consists of surface facilities andunderground facilities. The surface
facilities include a reception andinspection facility, an interim storage
facility, a radioactive waste treatmentbuilding, and supporting facilities suchas main control center, equipment &maintenance shop. The undergroundfacilities consist of a construction tunnel
for transport of construction equipment
and materials, an operation tunnel fortransport of radioactive waste, anentrance shaft for workers, and six silos
for final disposal of radioactive waste.
As of Dec. 31, 2010, the overall projectprogress rate is 72%. The facility layoutof six disposal silos for the initialdisposal of 100,000 drums is depicted in
Figure 1. The engineered barrier systemof the disposal silo consists of waste
packages, disposal container, backfills,
and a concrete silo. The conceptual
drawing of the post-closure phase of
disposal silo is shown in Figure 2.

4. Conclusion
A new calibration technique, referred
to as e-trace, has been developed by
AIST and is already being partly used
for traceability maintenance in Japan. It
is expected that this method will allow
reliable quantitative comparisons ofnational metrology services.
5. Acknowledgement
This work was supported by the New
Energy and Industrial Technology
Development Organization, project code
P01029.
Reference
1. The remote calibration of radioisotope
calibrators, Y. Sato et al., IFMBE proceedings,
14, pp. 1949-1952, 2006.

Korea
Dr. Chang-Lak KIM
Korea Radioactive Waste Management
Corporation (KRMC)

Status of LILW Disposal Facility
Construction in Korea
In December 2005, the Korean
Government designated Gyeongju-city
as a host city of LILW disposal sitethrough local referendums held inregions whose local governments had
applied to host disposal facility in9At the Wolsong LILW disposal
center,
KRM C isbuildingan‘Environment Friendly Complex’ withthe theme of nature and science (shownin Fig. 4). The environment friendly
complex consists of the ‘Four Season
Flower Garden’, Kiosk of Perception’,“Dynamic Deck’, ‘Light Theme Park’ aswell as a visitor center, and open air
performing theatre.

Figure1: Layout of the Wols ong LILW Disposa lCenterFigure 4: Layout of the E nvironment Friendly
Complex

Figure 2: Concept of Disposal S ilos after Clos ure

Malaysia

All nuclear power plants in Korea arelocated on the coast. The radioactive
waste shipments therefore go by sea.
KRM C has constructed and now
operates the ship, ‘Cheong Jung Nuri’,for the transport of radioactive wastefrom nuclear power plants to Wolsong
repository. Last year, 1,000 drums from
Ulchin NPP site were transported to the
Wolsong LILW disposal center.

Dr. Nik Marzukee Nik Ibrahim
Dr. Mohd Abd Wahab Yusof
Malaysian Nuclear Agency

Enhancement of Safety andSecurity and Upgrading ofStorage Facility
M ost of the radioactive wastes
produced in M alaysia are from small
applications using radioactive material
and nuclear technologies. Nuclear
M alaysia maintains a solid waste
processing area where solid wastes arecollected, segregated, and decayed instorage where applicable. Also, a pretreatment storage facility and an interim
long term storage facility exist; designed
to accommodate of 200-L waste drums
package and DSRS prior to availabilityof a repository.
The solid waste is placed in 200-liter
drums for processing (decay storage,

Figure 3: Cheong Jung Nuri (Radioactive Was teTransport Ship)10

volume reduction, etc.) before temporarystorage. The current storage facility is
located near the waste processing area. 2
projects for development, upgrading offacilities and enhancement of safety andsecurity related to waste management
facilities were proposed and carried out
in 2010.

The system includes: double fencing
which includes anti-climb feature andrazor wires on top, anti-cut and vibration
detectors on fences linked to central
monitoring system (including intrusion
alarms, intrusion alert signals, etc.). The
system is also complemented by CCTV
within the perimeter and the storage
facility which is monitored by security
personnel – enhancing safety andsecurity especially related to DSRS.

Perimeter Intrusion Detection S ystem(PIDS )

Automated S torage Retrieval S ystem(AS RS )The storage facility is 15 m x 40 m indimension and is used for storage ofsolid waste and DSRS. The ASRS will
facilitate the movement of solid waste
packages for temporary storage, decaystorage, characterization and further
processingfortreatment
andconditioning. It would allow remote
operation from the control room locatedoutside the storage facility – reducing
operating doses to the workers. Further
improvements are expected in the future.

Before Installa tion

Prior to Insta llation of ASRS

After Installation

Testing a nd Commissioning of ASRS

11

The Philippines
Ms. Rhodora R. Le onin
Philippine Nuclear Research Institute(PNRI)

Atomic Energy Week Celebration in
the Philippines Features Nuclear
S cience and Technology Applications
The applications of nuclear scienceand technology in the Philippines werefeatured during the 38th Atomic Energy
Week (AEW) celebration on December
6 to 10, 2010 at the Philippine Nuclear
Research Institute (PNRI) in Diliman,
Quezon City, Philippines. The theme forthe celebration was “Accele
rating
Socio-Economic Development ThroughNuclear Science and Technology”.
The PNRI, which spearheaded thecelebration,isa researchanddevelopment institute of the Departmentof Science and Technology and thenational authority on nuclear energy
matters. PNRI Director Dr. Alumanda
M . dela Rosa informed that the annual
AEW celebration, as mandated under
Presidential Proclamation No. 1211 in
1973, aims to generate awareness of theFilipino people on the beneficial uses ofnuclear science and technology in foodand agriculture, health and medicine,industry, energy, and the environment.
Representative Angelo Palmones,
Vice Chairman of the Committee on
Science and Technology of the House ofRepresentatives, Philippine Congress
was the keynote speaker during the
AEW opening ceremonies on December
6.
Congressman
Palmoneswasrepresented by his Chief of Staff Dr.
Florentino Tesoro. Dr. Yukiya Amano,
Director General of the International
Atomic Energy Agency, was the guest
speaker during the closing ceremonies
on December 11.

Figure 1: The 38th Atomic Energy
Week(AEW) Celebration

The activities during the celebration
included opening of exhibits and a press
conference on December 6; technicalsessions for professionals and highschool students on December 7 andDecember 8, respectively; on-the-spot
poster making and essay writing contests
for high school students on December 8;
and video showing and guided tours
for students, teachers and the public on
December 6 to 10.
The
Director-generaloftheInternational Atomic Energy Agency, Dr.
Yukiya Amano gives the certificate ofrecognition to Justen Paul Tolentino of
St. Stephem High School for winning thefirst place in the on-the spot making
contest during the 38th Atomic Energy
Week (AEW) celebration at thePhilippine Nuclear Research Institute(PNRI)- Department of Science andTechnology (DOST) . DG Amano, who
was the guest speaker at the closing
ceremony of AEW on December 10, isjoined by PNRI Director Dr. Alumanda
M . Dela Rosa and Deputy Director Dr.
Corazon C. Bernido (second from rightand extreme right, respectively).)
DG Amano also visited the DOST, theDepartment of Foreign Affairs, theDepartment of Health and theDepartment of Energy in his three-day
visit to the Philippines.
M utant ornamental plants developedby PNRI, the PVP carrageenan hydrogel
dressing for burns and wounds,

12

irradiated beehives and other products ofnuclearscienceandtechnology
applications were exhibited at the PNRI
lobby during the week-long celebration.
M ore than 300 professionals andstudents participated in the technicalsessions held on December 7 andDecember 8 at the PNRI Auditorium.
The topics discussed on December 7
were:“LocalAvailabilityofTechnecium-99m (Tc99m) for Enhanced
Nuclear M edicine Applications thru theSetting-up of the PNRI Tc99m
Generator Facility”; “Biofertilizers”,“Prospects of Radiation Processing
Applications by Gamma and Electron
Beam in the Philippines” and “Using
Isotopic and Radiotracer Techniques in
the M anagement of Coastal Resources in
the Philippines”. The topics presented
during the technical session for highschool students on December 8 were:
NuclearPower
forElectricity;
Applications of Nuclear Science andTechnology in Agriculture; Radiation
Processing Applications; and Isotopic
Techniques for Environmental
Investigations.
A total of 71 high school students
from public and private secondary
schools participated in the on-the-spot
essay writing and poster making contests.
The Office of the M ayor of Quezon City
sponsored the contests.

Thailand
Mr. Sutat Thiangtrongjit
Ms. Nanthavan Ya-anantThailand Institute of Nuclear Technology(T INT)

Safety Case and Safety
Assessment for
Predisposal Management ofRadioactive Waste
The IAEA Regional Training Course(RTC) on “Safety Case for Predisposal
M anagement and Centralized Storage ofRadioactive Waste” was held from
November 8-12, 2010, at Grand
M illennium Sukhumvit hotel, Bangkok.
The RTC was held within the frameworkof the Technical Cooperation (TC)
Programme, Asia Division, under TC
Project RAS9056, and was organized by
the IAEA in cooperation with theGovernment of Thailand through theThailandInstituteforNuclearTechnology (TINT).
The workshop was attended byapproximately 30 scientific, technicalandregulatory
personnel
from
Afghanistan,
Bangladesh,
China,
Indonesia, Iran, M alaysia, Myanmar,
Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri
Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam who are
involved in development and review ofsafety assessments.

The pos ter tha t won the first pla ce in the onthe spot pos ter making contest on December 8,2010 during the 38th AEW celebration at the
PNRI.

13

Predisposal Facilities in Thailand
The TINT Facility safety assessment
was used as the basis for group exercises
throughout the week. The focus of theworkshop was on the implementation ofasystematic
methodology
fordevelopment and review of the safetycase and supporting safety assessment
and its role in the licensing of a facility,with group exercises being conducted on
the following topical areas: System
Description (e.g., facilities, activities andwaste);
Scenario
Analysis(e.g.,
definition and screening of scenarios andassessment of impacts); and Results andSafety Elements (e.g., conclusions about
regulatory compliance, engineered andadministrative safety features, andmodifications to improve safety).

activities the safety assessment
needs to address;
Defining
waste
streams
andproviding data (inventories, throughput
rates, activity concentration etc.)
required for the quantitative assessments.

Figure 1: The Safety Assessment
Process for Predisposal Was teManagement

Workshop Performed
The participants took part actively inthe workshop with the following firststeps to prepare a safety assessment:
Defining the assessment context
for the safety assessment;

Work done:
The workshop
coveredthedevelopment and review of the safetycase and supporting safety assessment,

Providing a description of the site,facilities and of all relevant

14Vietnam
Dr. Le Ba Thuan
Mr. PHAM Quang Minh
Vietnam Atomic Energy Institutes(VAEI)

Results of radioactive waste
management in Vietnam recently
and its role in communicating to theregulatory body the safety ofpredisposal
waste
management
facilities and activities. The workshop
was introduced with a series ofpresentations on IAEA safety standards,
methodology
andtools,
andinternational activities related to thesafety case and supporting safetyassessmentfor
predisposal
management of radioactive waste. In
particular, GSR Parts 4 and 5, theguidance provided in DS 284 and thepractical application of the SAFRAN
software tool.
Conclusion
The TINT Facility test case was
successfulinillustrating
andreinforcing the concepts of safety caseand safety assessment, and the
SAFRAN software tool was seen as
beneficial to countries in developing
their own safety assessments.
The participants expressed aninterest in further guidance (D S284)
and training on methodology andpractical application of the SAFRAN
software related to the development
and review of the safety case andsupporting safety assessment, as well
as related international activities.

On November 25th, 2009, at the 6th
Session, the 12th National Assembly ofVietnam approved the investment policyon the construction of the first Nuclear
Power Plant in Ninh Thuan province.
Under the project’s roadmap, theconstruction of Ninh Thuan 1 Nuclear
Power Plant will begin in 2014 and thisfirst Nuclear Power Plant will be put into
commercial operation in 2020.
On June 23rd, 2010, the Prime
M inister of Vietnam approved theorientations for planning development of
nuclear power up to the year 2030.
According to this plan, in Vietnam, eight
8,000 M W units will be installed in 2025
and is ready to develop up to 14 units
with a total capacity from 15,000 to
16,000 M W in 2030. From now till 2030,
the development of nuclear power can bedivided into three stages. In the firststage (from now till 2015), theinvestment project will have been
approved and the construction timing of
the first Nuclear Power Plant will also
been prepared. In the second stage (from2015 to 2020), the construction of Ninh
Thuan 1 Nuclear Power Plant will havebeen completed and its first units will
have been put into commercial operation.
The third stage (from 2020 to 2030) willcontinue developing other Nuclear
Power Plants under the project’s
roadmap.
According to the evaluation of IAEA
experts, up to now, Vietnam hascompleted one of three main M ilestonesin the development of a National
Infrastructure of Nuclear Power and15

prepared for the second milestone: put
Nuclear Power Plant out to contract.
M anagement
andtreatmentofradioactive waste is one of nineteen
infrastructure issues which are necessary
to be prepared and completed.
This report gives some obtained
results in the field of management andtreatment of radioactive waste in
Vietnam recently.

Environment) in Luong Son, Hoa Binhprovince was also upgraded andexpanded in 2010.

1. Material facilities and devices:
Institute for Technology of Radioactive
and Rare Element (ITRRE) has
researchedonmanagement
andtreatmentofradioactive
wastein the North area of Vietnam. In 2007,
ITRRE was helped with project
VIE3/005 “Upgrading capacity of Waste
Processing and an Interim Storage
facility for Low and Intermediate level
radioactive Waste” by IAEA for
upgrading an interim storage formanagement
andtreatmentofradioactive waste in Phung base. From2008 to 2010, ITRRE had received
devices supplied by the project and put
them into operation for the research on
management
andtreatmentofradioactive waste.

Figure 2: On-site upgraded Phung’s storage ofradioactive was te at ITRRE

2. Training activities:
Vietnam A gency for Radiation and
Nuclear Safety (VARANS) and VAEI
have held many basic and advanced
courses of safety, emergency response
and handling for radiation and nuclear
incidents for hundreds of scientificpersonnel who come from many units
operating in the radiation field in
Vietnam. Vietnam has built state-levelprojects on upgrading infrastructure forradioactive waste management in orderto prepare infrastructure, study policies
andmanagement
technologyofradioactive waste from Nuclear Power
Plants of other countries such as Russia,
Japan, and France. Recently, Vietnam
has been helped with training manpowerby above countries to have enoughcapacityforreceivingadvanced
technology and be ready for safety
management of radioactive waste fromthe 1st Nuclear Power Plants in Vietnam.

Figure1: Some devices of VIE3/005

From 2009 to 2010, some interim
radioactive waste storages in ITRRE,
Institute for Nuclear Science andTechnology (INST), Nuclear ResearchInstitute (NRI) under Vietnam Atomic
Energy Institute (VAEI)) had been
upgraded, met the regulated technology
standards. Besides, the radioactive
source storage of Geophysics Institute(under M inistry of Resource andFigure 3: Practice of emergency response16

3. Law and regulation documents:
From 2009 to 2010, many law andregulation documents relating tomanagement of radioactive waste were
issued such as:
Decision of Prime M inister-Decision 2376/QD-TTg on Planning
Orientation for Storage, Disposal Sites ofRadioactive Waste up to 2030 with
Vision up to 2050.

to prepare infrastructure, study policy
andmanagement
technologyofradioactive waste from Nuclear Power
Plants of other countries such as Russia,
Japan, France and train human resource
to have enough capacity for receiving
advanced technology and be ready forsafety management of radioactive wastefrom the 1st Nuclear Power Plants in
Vietnam.

-Decision 1636/QD-TTg on Planning on
National Network of Environmental
M onitoring and Radioactive Warning up
to 2020.
MOST Circular-QCVN 5: 2010. National technicalregulation on Radiation protection- Exemption from requirements of
notification and licensing- QCVN 6: 2010 National technicalregulation on radiation protection- Categorization and classification ofradioactive sources- Circular guiding security assurance forradioactive sources.
- Circular guiding specialized inspection
on nuclear and radiation safety.
- Circular guiding nuclear and radiation
measurements
anddevelopment,
management of the network ofenvironmental
monitoring
andradioactive warning.
Under the project’s roadmap, up to
the year 2013, Vietnam will havereached the second milestone in thedevelopment program of nuclear power,so there is some work relating tomanagement
andtreatmentofradioactive waste which has to be donein the future.
VARANS has to complete thedocuments guiding the implementationof laws and decrees relating toradioactive waste such as managementofartificial
radioactive
waste,
management of NORM and TENORM.
Vietnam has built state-level projects
onupgradinginfrastructureforradioactive waste management in order

17

FNCA Framework**As of JFY 2010

FNCA Consolida ted reports on RS&RWM and Task Group Reports are availa ble on FNCA Website.

[URL]: http://www.fnca.mext.go.jp/english/rwm/e_projectreview.html

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