WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3100/98 by Elly PLOOIJ-VAN GORSEL , Johanna BOOGERD-QUAAK to the Commission. Problems with the storage of highly radioactive waste from the High Flux Reactor in Petten
Date: 1998-10-16
Institutions: BOOGERD-QUAAK, European Parliament, PLOOIJ-VAN GORSEL
Subjects: Netherlands, nuclear reactor, radioactive waste, storage of waste













EUR-Lex - 91998E3100 - EN






Avis juridique important




|



91998E3100

WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3100/98 by Elly PLOOIJ-VAN GORSEL , Johanna BOOGERD-QUAAK to the Commission. Problems with the storage of highly radioactive waste from the High Flux Reactor in Petten  


Official Journal C 142 , 21/05/1999 P. 0084 





WRITTEN QUESTION E-3100/98by Elly Plooij-van Gorsel (ELDR) and Johanna Boogerd-Quaak (ELDR) to the Commission(16 October 1998)Subject: Problems with the storage of highly radioactive waste from the High Flux Reactor in PettenThe Zeeland Provincial Authority in the Netherlands has appealed to the Council of State against the permit allowing Covra in Borssele to build a storage facility for highly radioactive waste. The authority's objection concerns the element of the permit allowing highly radioactive waste, inter alia from the High Flux Reactor (HFR) in Petten, to be stored temporarily in containers in the existing sheds until the new storage facility is ready. The Zeeland Provincial Authority is not convinced that the containers are safe.1. Is the Commission aware of the Zeeland Provincial Authority's appeal to the Council of State against the granting of the permit for temporary storage of highly radioactive waste in the existing sheds?2. Is the Commission aware that the storage capacity of the HFR in Petten is likely to be exhausted by the end of this year?3. Has the Commission considered the possibility that the Council of State may grant the appeal and suspend the permit? If so, where will waste from Petten be stored?4. What would be the financial consequences of closing down the Petten reactor, should it come to that, and what impact would it have on research work there, particularly at the Boron Neutron Capture Therapy Facility (BNCT)?Answer given by Mrs Cresson on behalf of the Commission(21. December 1998)The Commission is aware of the appeal against the granting of a permit for temporary storage of spent nuclear fuel in the existing Centrale organisatie voor radioactief afval, Nederland (COVRA) installations. This temporary storage is included in the contract signed between COVRA and the Commission in 1996, meant to cope with the limited storage capacity still available in Petten.To solve the problem of the storage of irradiated fuel, several solutions are under consideration, in particular:- the COVRA contract providing for the temporary storage of the spent fuel;- a possible reorganisation of the storage of the spent fuel in the pond of the reactor building is still under discussion.Technical solutions, such as those mentioned above, exist for the storage of spent fuel. The closure of the high flux reactor (HFR) would have dramatic consequences on the supply of radiopharmaceuticals to hospitals and medical centres, because the HFR production covers more than 50 % of Community needs. Of course, the closure of the HFR would also mean the termination of the boron neutron capture therapy project.