Nuclear and radiation safety in Belarus: international and national assessment
Belarusian nuclear power plant in for another complex inspection in October 2015
This year’s second complex inspection of the Belarusian nuclear power plant will take place in October, BelTA learned from Olga Lugovskaya, Head of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department (Gosatomnadzor) of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry, during the press conference held in BelTA’s press center on 17 June to highlight the international and domestic evaluation of nuclear and radiation safety in Belarus.
“The second complex inspection of the Belarusian nuclear power plant is expected to take place in October. We are now preparing the list of questions,” remarked Olga Lugovskaya.
The official stressed that the list would still be routinely adjusted. “All the oversight agencies operate in a constant monitoring mode since February 2015. We are constantly present at the construction site: Gosatomnadzor inspectors in essence work at the construction site every day,” explained Olga Lugovskaya.
The first complex inspection to verify safety measures during the construction of the first and second power-generating units of the Belarusian nuclear power plant took place on 12-29 May. The inspection was supervised by Gosatomnadzor First Deputy Head Leonid Rydlevsky and involved representatives of the Emergencies Ministry, the State Standardization Committee, the Healthcare Ministry, the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Ministry, the Energy Ministry, the Interior Ministry, the Labor and Social Protection Ministry. Russian specialists — employees of the federal enterprise FSUE VO Safety — took part in the inspection as consultants.
As a result of the inspection Gosatomnadzor prepared and forwarded an inspection certificate to the enterprise Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant as well as a letter of order, which fulfillment will be closely monitored.
The Belarusian nuclear power plant is a project to build an AES-2006 type nuclear power plant 18km away from Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast. The Belarusian nuclear power plant will have two power-generating units with the total output capacity of up to 2,400MW (2x1,200MW). In line with the general contract for building the nuclear power plant the first power-generating unit is scheduled for commissioning in 2018, with the second one to go online in 2020.
Belarusian nuclear power plant to store radioactive waste for at most ten years
Radioactive waste will be stored at the Belarusian nuclear power plant for up to ten years. The information was released by Grigory Astashko, Deputy Head of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department (Gosatomnadzor) of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry, during a press conference held in BelTA’s press center on 17 June.
Grigory Astashko reminded that the government had recently adopted a strategy to handle radioactive waste of the Belarusian nuclear power plant. In accordance with the document radioactive waste will be stored at the Belarusian nuclear power plant for a definite period of time. “The process is limited to ten years,” remarked the official. After that it is necessary to decide on building a radioactive waste disposal facility.
The handling of the Belarusian nuclear power plant’s radioactive waste is taken into account as part of the licensing process. “The handling of waste is considered within the framework of the general license for building the nuclear power plant and it has been done already. As far as the construction of the radioactive waste disposal facility and other relevant issues are concerned, we have yet to work on it,” explained Grigory Astashko.
In turn, Gosatomnadzor Head Olga Lugovskaya added that licensing is quite a lengthy, science-intensive and labor-intensive process. “For the sake of expert evaluation of safety parameters the operating organization (the potential licensee) has to submit a set of documents also known as the safety substantiation report to the regulating agency. Among other things the report contains special sections concerning radioactive waste generated by the nuclear power plant,” explained the official.
Thus, as a condition for getting the license the enterprise Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant has to submit information about the classification of radioactive waste, its volume, and the strategy for handling it to the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry. The Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant has been granted the full license for building two power-generating units. A corrected variant of the safety substantiation report has to be prepared for the sake of getting the next license. All the matters concerning radioactive waste are thoroughly looked into as part of the licensing procedure, stressed Olga Lugovskaya.
The strategy for handling radioactive waste of the Belarusian nuclear power plant has been put together taking into account radioactive waste treatment guidelines of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The document provides for an acceptable level of protection of the nuclear power plant personnel, the population and the environment from radiation impact. Attention will be focused on preventing emergencies with radioactive consequences.
The implementation of the strategy to handle radioactive waste of the Belarusian nuclear power plant will contribute to the improvement of the system designed to handle this type of waste. It will minimize waste generation as part of the nuclear power plant’s operation and reduce operational costs involved in servicing the radioactive waste treatment system. In the future the strategy is supposed to reduce the financial burden relating to the need to maintain the safety of facilities of the radioactive waste treatment system for future generations.
The Belarusian nuclear power plant is a project to build an AES-2006 type nuclear power plant 18km away from Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast. The Belarusian nuclear power plant will have two power-generating units with the total output capacity of up to 2,400MW (2x1,200MW). In line with the general contract for building the nuclear power plant the first power-generating unit is scheduled for commissioning in 2018, with the second one to go online in 2020.
No complaints during inspections of BelNPP
No complaints were made during the integrated inspections of the Belarusian nuclear power plant (BelNPP), head of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department at the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry (Gosatomnadzor) Olga Lugovskaya said during the briefing “Nuclear and Radiation Safety in Belarus: International and National Evaluation” hosted by BelTA's press center on 17 June.
“As for the permanent supervision at the BelNPP, we constantly verify the compliance with the requirements put forward after the previous inspections. The plant fulfills all the requirements within the established time frames. Until now we have received no complaints,” Olga Lugovskaya stressed.
In her words, many organizations are involved in the construction of the BelNPP, so there are some matters that do not fall within Gosatomnadzor’s competence. “There were some complaints related to the construction works in general, like for example the preparation of documents. However, all these remarks are not repetitive. After every inspection, we draw up a report and submit it to the operating organization. Some of the problems are fixed during the same inspection,” Olga Lugovskaya noted.
The first integrated inspection of safety measures taken during the construction of the first and second power-generating units of the BelNPP was held from 12 to 29 May. The inspection was led by Gosatomnadzor's First Deputy Head Leonid Rydlevsky with the participation of divisions of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry, the State Committee for Standardization, the Healthcare Ministry, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection, the Energy Ministry, the Interior Ministry, and the Ministry of Labor and Social Security. Russian specialists from the federal state unitary enterprise Safety took part in the inspection in the capacity of consultants.
Gosatomnadzor prepared and presented to the enterprise Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant an inspection report and a list of instructions. BelNPP's compliance with these instructions will be strictly monitored.
The Belarusian nuclear power plant is being built near Ostrovets. The BelNPP will have two power-generating units with the total output capacity of up to 2,400MW (2x1,200MW). The first power-generating unit of the nuclear power plant is scheduled for launch in 2018, the second one in 2020.
Reactor vessel of Belarusian nuclear power plant in for acceptance inspection in late 2015
An acceptance inspection of a reactor vessel of the Belarusian nuclear power plant is scheduled to take place in late 2015. The information was released by Sergei Zaitsev, Head of the Office for Safety Assessment of Systems and Equipment of Nuclear Installations of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department (Gosatomnadzor) of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry, during a press conference held in BelTA’s press center on 17 June.
“Next week Gosatomnadzor representatives together with specialists of the enterprise Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant will visit the Volgodonsk-based enterprise Atommash where a reactor vessel for the Belarusian nuclear power plant is being manufactured. An acceptance inspection of the reactor vessel is scheduled for late 2015,” said the official.
The reactor is a vertical cylinder with an elliptical bottom. The reactor core and the internal components will be located inside. The reactor is hermetically sealed by a lid that also bears the actuators and mechanisms meant to regulate the process and protect the reactor. The lid also contains pipe sleeves that will be used to feed cables from internal reactor control sensors.
The Volgodonsk-based enterprise Atommash is a branch of AEM Technologies, which is part of Atomenergomash, the mechanical engineering division of the Russian nuclear industry corporation Rosatom.
The Belarusian nuclear power plant is a project to build an AES-2006 type nuclear power plant 18km away from Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast. The Belarusian nuclear power plant will have two power-generating units with the total output capacity of up to 2,400MW (2x1,200MW). In line with the general contract for building the nuclear power plant the first power-generating unit is scheduled for commissioning in 2018, with the second one to go online in 2020.
Belarus interested in Finland’s experience of developing regulations for nuclear power plants
Belarus is interested in Finland’s experience regarding the development of regulatory documents for nuclear power plants, BelTA learned from Olga Lugovskaya, Head of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department (Gosatomnadzor) of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry, during the press conference held in BelTA’s press center on 17 June to highlight the international and domestic evaluation of nuclear and radiation safety in Belarus.
“Representatives of nuclear and radiation safety regulating agencies of Finland, Sweden and Norway visited Belarus in May. These countries have good regulatory systems. Apart from that, two of the countries — Finland and Sweden — operate nuclear power plants. We are interested in their experience. In particular, Finland boasts extensive experience of the development of regulatory documents and requirements,” explained the official.
Olga Lugovskaya reminded that Finland had decided to build a new nuclear power plant using the AES-2006 design. “The same design is used to build the nuclear power plant in Ostrovets, this is why it is very important for them and us to establish cooperation,” she stressed.
BelTA reported earlier that Belarus, Norway, Finland, and Sweden have stated their intention to sign a memorandum of understanding between nuclear and radiation safety regulating agencies. The idea was discussed when representatives of nuclear and radiation safety regulating agencies of Finland, Sweden and Norway visited Belarus on 27-29 May. The visit focused on preparedness for emergencies and responses to nuclear and radioactive emergencies. While in Belarus specialists from Norway, Finland, and Sweden met with representatives of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry. The Belarusian and foreign specialists exchanged experience and discussed preparedness for emergencies and responses to nuclear and radioactive emergencies. Members of the delegation were interested in Belarus’ experience of developing a radiation control and monitoring system in view of the construction of the nuclear power plant. The specialists also visited the construction site of the Belarusian nuclear power plant near Ostrovets and the nuclear power plant’s information center.
The Belarusian nuclear power plant is a project to build an AES-2006 type nuclear power plant 18km away from Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast. The Belarusian nuclear power plant will have two power-generating units with the total output capacity of up to 2,400MW (2x1,200MW). The Russian merged company OAO NIAEP – ZAO ASE is the general designer and the general contractor of the project. In line with the general contract for building the nuclear power plant the first power-generating unit is scheduled for commissioning in 2018, with the second one to go online in 2020.
Gosatomnadzor hails discussion of Belarus National Report with Lithuania as constructive
The discussion with Lithuania of the 5th Belarus National Report on the implementation of the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management at the IAEA headquarters was constructive, Grigory Astashko, Deputy Head of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department (Gosatomnadzor) at the Emergencies Ministry of Belarus, told the press briefing at the BelTA press center.
The review meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management was held at the IAEA headquarters in Vienna in May, with participation of 60 countries.
According to the IAEA established procedure, in the course of the preparation for the meeting, national reports are subject to the peer review. A total of 69 questions were submitted in the course of the peer review of Belarus National Report. The greatest interest in the document was shown by Germany, Lithuania, the United States, Ukraine, France and South Africa.
Belarus received 14 questions from Lithuania. "The Belarus-Lithuania discussion was very constructive, and we too had the opportunity to ask Lithuania our questions," said Grigory Astashko.
The questions were mainly about the legislative and regulatory infrastructure, activities of the special-purpose enterprise ECORES, the Chernobyl waste treatment system, the safety of the radioactive waste storage facilities at the Soviet Union military units, and the waste treatment strategy for the Belarusian nuclear power plant. Detailed answers were given to each of the questions. In addition, another 10 additional questions were asked during the meeting at the IAEA headquarters. Detailed responses were given to each of the questions.
Particular interest was shown in the treatment of spent nuclear fuel of the Belarusian nuclear power plant, including its possible return, the terms of the approval of the BelNPP radioactive waste management strategy (to date, the strategy has been approved by the Government, at the time of the meeting document was under consideration).
Experts praise Belarus’ presentation of spent fuel, radioactive waste management report in IAEA
The summary report on the 5th Belarus National Report on the implementation of the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management were positive, Grigory Astashko, Deputy Head of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department (Gosatomnadzor) at the Emergencies Ministry of Belarus, told the press briefing at the BelTA press center.
“The 5th Belarus National Report on the implementation of the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management was presented at the IAEA headquarters in Vienna. International experts were appointed, and they conducted the work of this meeting. Their task was to gather all the questions and all the information, which was voiced, analyzed and discussed and make their findings. The report on the situation in Belarus has positive connotations,” he said.
Grigory Astashko stressed that the Belarus National Report aroused great interest. “Our presentation was attended by IAEA Deputy Director General Denis Flory. A total of 69 questions were asked during the peer review. Great attention to our report was shown by the neighboring countries. For example, the Republic of Lithuania asked 14 questions. The surprise came from the representatives of the Republic of South Africa who asked us 25 questions,” he said. The interest in the document was also shown by Germany, the United States, Ukraine, and France. The questions were about the legislative and regulatory infrastructure, activities of the special-purpose enterprise ECORES, the Chernobyl waste treatment system, the safety of the radioactive waste storage facilities at the Soviet Union military units, and the waste treatment strategy for the Belarusian nuclear power plant. Detailed answers were given to each of the questions. In addition, another 10 additional questions were asked during the meeting at the IAEA headquarters.
Particular interest was shown in the treatment of spent nuclear fuel of the Belarusian nuclear power plant, including its possible return, the terms of the approval of the BelNPP radioactive waste management strategy (to date, the strategy has been approved by the Government, at the time of the meeting document was under consideration).
The Fifth National Report was prepared in 2014. It was officially presented at the IAEA, posted at the websites of the IAEA and Gosatomnadzor. The report contains a list of spent fuel and radioactive waste treatment facilities in Belarus, the information about the state policy and practices in this field, the legislation, implementation of the recommendations issued following the previous report and other information. The document contains the information on the developments in 2012-2014. The document was prepared by Gosatomnadzor, in cooperation with other interested bodies of public administration.
Belarusian nuclear power plant’s equipment properly stored
Requirements for storing the equipment of the Belarusian nuclear power plant are rigorously observed. The information was released by Sergei Zaitsev, Head of the Office for Safety Assessment of Systems and Equipment of Nuclear Installations of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department (Gosatomnadzor) of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry, during a press conference held in BelTA’s press center on 17 June.
Equipment storage conditions were checked among other things during the complex inspection of the construction of the Belarusian nuclear power plant in May. “As far as storage is concerned, I would like to note that the hangars built for this purpose are indeed clean and dry. The equipment is kept in very good conditions. Requirements for storing equipment of the Belarusian nuclear power plant are observed. Access to the equipment is restricted. There were no complaints about the matter,” said the official.
According to the source, the production of equipment for the Belarusian nuclear power plant is permanently monitored. The quality is checked twice — at premises of the manufacturing enterprise and right before the equipment is put into storage. “All the documents are checked at premises of the manufacturing enterprise. As a rule, the work takes several days or weeks. Inspection certificates and equipment trial certificates are particularly closely examined,” explained Sergei Zaitsev. After that the equipment is delivered to the construction site of the Belarusian nuclear power plant to undergo yet another thorough examination. Thus, the equipment is examined even after transportation, explained the specialist. It prevents equipment deformation, loss of documents and so on. The conformance of equipment with design documents is also checked during installation and commissioning operations.
A complex inspection to verify safety measures during the construction of the first and second power-generating units of the Belarusian nuclear power plant took place on 12-29 May. The inspection involved representatives of the Emergencies Ministry, the State Standardization Committee, the Healthcare Ministry, the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Ministry, the Energy Ministry, the Interior Ministry, the Labor and Social Protection Ministry. Russian specialists — employees of the federal enterprise FSUE VO Safety — took part in the inspection as consultants.
As a result of the inspection Gosatomnadzor prepared and forwarded an inspection certificate to the enterprise Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant as well as a letter of order, which fulfillment will be closely monitored. This year’s second complex inspection of the Belarusian nuclear power plant will take place in October.
The Belarusian nuclear power plant is a project to build an AES-2006 type nuclear power plant 18km away from Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast. The Belarusian nuclear power plant will have two power-generating units with the total output capacity of up to 2,400MW (2x1,200MW). The Russian merged company OAO NIAEP – ZAO ASE is the general designer and the general contractor of the project. In line with the general contract for building the nuclear power plant the first power-generating unit is scheduled for commissioning in 2018, with the second one to go online in 2020.