WNU Summer Institute - Transport › old_media › UserFiles › File › public... · 2014-04-25 · 2 WORLD NUCLEAR TRANSPORT INSTITUTE Warning and Take-away • Presentation not

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WORLD NUCLEAR TRANSPORT INSTITUTE

World Nuclear UniversitySummer Institute 2008

Transport of Radioactive Materials

Michel HartensteinTN International (AREVA group)

Ottawa, July 18, 2008

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Warning and Take-away

• Presentation not for specialists• Not complete : exposure only

1. Transport is vital and must remain available2. Transport within the current, stringent

regulations is safe as can be3. Transport organisation is for specialists4. Security is an issue : there are no fences

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RAM Transport : where (everywhere)

• mines and mills• conversion• enrichment• fuel• power reactors• reprocessing• recycling• waste storage

and also...• research reactors• hospitals• factories• building sites• homes

No nuclear without transport"Nuclear renaissance" means more transports

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RAM Transport

• the number of parcels is guestimated at 20 million per year worldwide

• definition : package, transport, shipment...

• estimate for France : 400,000 packages/year

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The Nuclear Fuel Cycle

StorageWaste

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Front End transports

– 4 to 6,000 transports/year– yellow cake, U3O8, natural and depleted UF6,

enriched UF6, fresh fuel– ∼50,000 UF6 cylinders worldwide– Thousands of fresh fuel casks– (! UF6 is also corrosive)

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Sweden

FranceSpain

United States

Russia and former USSR Republics

Germany

Belgium

Japan

Great Britain

Netherlands

naturalUF6

enrichedUF6

The Front End

UO2 fuel assemblyyellow cake

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Back End transports

• Mostly linked to reprocessing/recycling, some to storage– More than 200 transports per year of spent fuel (France,

Europe, Japan) and vitrified residues (Europe and Japan)– More than 200 Pu and MOX fuel transports (Europe)– Domestic transports to fuel storage sites (Sweden,

Japan, Switzerland, Germany, China...)– Since 1971, over 20,000 shipments of used fuel and

HLW (>50,000 tons, >30 million km) without any release

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Back End transports

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Research Reactors and Laboratories Transports

• Materials transported:– Low-enriched and high-enriched Uranium– Fresh MTR and Triga fuel elements– Irradiated MTR and Triga fuel elements– Sources, fresh and irradiated samples,…

• On-going retrieval of HEU fuel by the USA and Russia ("gap material")

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Research Reactors

USA

Canada

Mexico

Venezuela

Peru

Chile

Japan

Uruguay

South Africa

Philippines

Indonesia

Finland

Sweden

Portugal

Spain

Greece

Thailand

Malaysia

Brazil

South Korea

Argentina

ColumbiaZaire

Taiwan

Iran

Pakistan

United Kingdom

AustriaItaly

France

Belgium

NetherlandsRomania

Russian Federation

Kazakhstan

Vietnam

China

Hungary

Libya

Egypt

FormerYugoslavia

Belarus Ukraine

Bulgaria

Latvia

Poland

Morocco

Algeria

Jamaica

Jordan

Czech RepublicSlovenia

Turkey

Switzerland

Germany

North Korea

India

Australia

DenmarkFinland

Ghana

Indonesia

Bangladesh

Congo

Syria

Uzbekistan

Iraq

Nigeria

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RAM Transport

medical• radioisotopes : large numbers,

short half-life, urgent transport by air and road

• sources for sterilization or radiotherapy

• many small incidents and cases of denial, delay

industry• radiography of welds,

measurement...• ... smoke detectors...

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A Stringent Regulatory Framework

• UN Orange Book deals with transport of Dangerous Goods, in the form of model regulations; radioactive materials is Class 7, out of 9.

• IAEA is in charge of issuing specific regulations for Class 7• modal regulations are derived for each mode of transport :

road, rail, air, sea, inland waterways. These generally cover all classes.

• regulations must be implemented/enforced in national laws

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Regulatory development process

RECOMMENDATIONS

CODES, RECOMMANDATIONS

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INTERNAL LAW

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REGULATIONS,AGREEMENTS,

CONVENTIONS..

Legal value :Compulsory text

Legal value : optional text

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• modal regulations are prepared by international Bodies : International Maritime Organisation, ICAO/IATA (air), RID (rail in Europe), ADR (road in Europe)...

• States are member to those Bodies out of expediency more than any other consideration or affiliation. Some countries stand alone (US, Japan...)

• IAEA performs audits to verify implementation in volontarymember States. Such TranSAS missions in Panama, Brazil, Turkey, United Kingdom, France, Japan have shown high levels of excellence.

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• The « Safety in Depth » principle results from a consensus reached by the international community within IAEA's 144 Member States : package performance, compliance to requirements, emergency response

• Whenever possible, multiple barriers are engineered between the material and the environment

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• Additional rules apply against proliferation (IAEA’s INFCIRC 225 rev. 4, as enforced by national/regional laws)

• Maritime transport has specifics such as the INF Code• Radiation protection rules apply for workers and for the

general public• Further restrictions may apply, such as the European

Directive for the transport of radioactive waste• Usual transport regulations also apply• There are segregation rules for storage and transport with

other dangerous goods, also for passengers, films... • Any changes can be costly

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contamination checks4 Bq/cm² βγ

dose rate measurement2mSv at the surface

0,1 mSv at 2 m

RAM Transport : inspection beforedeparture, in transit and on arrival

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RAM Transport : package types(packaging aka. cask aka. flask = the'box' ;package = includes contents)

• According to the nature, activity, physical state of the radioactive material, its fissile nature, several types of package are prescribed by IAEA regulations :– excepted (typical: medical isotopes through the post) – industrial (typical: natural U3O8 and UF6)– type A (typical: fresh UO2 fuel)– type B (typical: spent fuel, high-level waste)– type C (intended for air, no known concept)

(additional regs

for fissile materials)

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RAM Transport : TI and CSI; segregation

• Packages have to be segregated from other packages, from other dangerous goods, from undeveloped films, from passengers... (Check with a specialist !)

• Transport Index (TI) is used to prevent radiation exposure; it appears on a label affixed to the package (or the container)

• Criticality Safety Index is used to prevent any unsafe accumulation of fissile packages. It appears on a label affixed to the package (or the container).

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Labels 7C and 7E (details)

7C / category III - yellow

7

CRITICALITY SAFETY INDEX

FISSILE

7E / fissile :label to affix next to 7A (or 7B or 7C) on the sides of the pakage

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Orange placards front and rear ends(UN number added if single number applies

and exclusive use)(side placards may be required)

7D placards on both sides and rear end

Placarding of vehicles

N.B. : no placards if all packages are excepted

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RAM Transport : packaging functions

– Containment of material, even after accident

– Prevention of criticality– Biological protection– Thermal dissipation

and of course– maximum payload– mass and dimensions

compatible withinstallations and conveyances

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Safety in depth : type B package tests

fire test

drop tests

200 meters

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Safety in depth : meeting regulations, and more

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RAM Transport : conveyances

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Safety in depth: purpose-built ships

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Safety in Depth: Permanent tracking of Sensitive Materials Transports

Transport Company

GroundStation

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RAM transport : strictly reserved to specialists

Shipping RAM will entail inter alia:– planning with shipper and consignee– securing the right packaging, checking/obtaining its approval

and validations, checking maintenance status and ancillary equipment

– finding a route and carriers, checking lifting/transfer means, making bookings, arranging port etc. assistance, escorts...

– obtaining all clearances, insurance, customs... for the planned dates, notifying all official bodies in due time

– managing all disturbancesBut you can help ! or you will be sorry :

– design installations with doors, cranes, space, roads...

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Crisis management: appropriate resources mobilisation

• Emergency preparedness is a requirement of the regulations: plans/procedures, organisation, technical means

• This is usually country-specific; responsibilities for response vary (State taking over the incident site and response, or industry tasked to recovery and reinstatement...)

• Nation-wide crisis exercises essential

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RAM Transport : liability and insurance

• International Conventions (Vienna, Paris, and Brussels for maritime transport), but also Price Anderson Act etc.

• Channeling of strict 'no fault' liability to the Nuclear Operator

• Generally no nuclear liability for the carrier• For transports under the Paris Convention, liability is

limited to ~23 M€, soon to become a minimum of 80M€• In spot cases, higher insurance may be imposed• (Claims are always possible under civil laws)

• ? do such high amounts reassure or frighten carriers?• ? is the insurance capacity enough for the renaissance?

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RAM Transport : opposition

Opponents to nuclear have identified RAM transport as Achilles' heel of nuclear– transport is the blood system of the fuel cycle :

stop transport, and everything grinds to a halt– transport comes close to the public : fears are

easy to create, with security the latest scarecrow

– there are no fences : transport is fairly easy to block

– image: floating Chernobyl, Chernobyl on wheels

– easy target ? Much depends on Authorities... who will/can help only a flawless transport industry

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RAM Transport : opposition

• Coastal States– as opposed to Shipping States– sometimes grouped in regional associations – express concerns about shipments passing off their

coastline, claiming risks for fishing, tourism– many possess a nuclear research reactor and are also

Shipping States...– nonetheless, these States' concerns are to be addressed

(Japan-Europe transports, San Onofre reactor vessel), directly or in fora

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RAM Transport : lobbying

• WNTI (www.wnti.co.uk)– created in 1998, 44 members– dedicated exclusively to the safe, efficient and reliable

transport of RAM– observer status at IAEA, IMO– publishes information brochures on RAM transport– very active ad-hoc working groups– visits of nuclear sites for officials– input, cooperation much valued by major Competent

Authorities• FORATOM (transport task force) for the EU• WNA (transport task force)

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RAM Transport : Global Acceptance, industry actions

• «Keep the routes open» : enable transports to be completed without opposition from States, media or the public, by implementing a transport Global Acceptance policy

• Coordinate government and industry information actions

• Prepare language and documents to counter disinformation actions

• Present transports to selected stakeholders the world over, organise site visits... Make contact, inform, reassure and demystify

• Manage the communication in a crisis context

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Information missions implemented in Coastal States

Portugal

Australia

Afriquedu Sud

Canal de Panama

Bahamas

Jamaique

République DominicainePorto-Rico

AntiguaSainte Lucie

Barbade

Guyana

Chili Argentine

Espagne

Australie

États Fédérés deMicronésie

NauruVanuatu

Papouasie Nouvelle Guinée

Nouvelle Zélande

Iles Salomon

Trinité & Tobago

République desÎles Marshall

Nouvelle CalédonieFiji

Uruguay

Brésil

25 countries visited, plus repeats

Fruitful contacts with most of the coastal States and regional organisations

Equateur

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RAM Transport : current issues

• denial and delay of shipment (WNTI action)– low volumes, high complications, perception of risks– who decides: dock workers, railwaymen, unions; facilities'

and carriers' managers?– airline pilots– waivers / preferential treatment for medical– database collated– IAEA established a Steering Committee, with WNTI as a

member

– is information given by industry useful or scaring?– is competition in nuclear transport a risk?

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• security– security vs transport (complexity, payload...)– security and safety (mixed regulations) – security vs transparency– heightened security vs carriers' anxiety– megaport initiative

• legal action by opponents– France (foreign spent fuel, waste), US (Eurofab, YM)

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• stability of regulations (WNTI action)– regulations are revised for no real benefit to safety– IAEA 'revision cycle' now changed to 'review cycle'

• harmonisation of regulations (WNTI action)– countries add their own requirements beyond international

agreements– competent authorities have different approaches to package

approval study– validations/additional approvals are required even for

'unilateral' approvals– hope: mutual recognition of major competent authorities, as

started by France, UK and Germany, US and Canada

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RAM Transport : impending issues

• Yucca Mountain (report from the National Academies)– social acceptance is the biggest issue– second is the response to security, to long-duration fires

• the case for dedicated vessels, aircrafts– key to mobility or easy targets?

• volumes will augment with the "nuclear renaissance", with the opening of repositories, with the revival of reprocessing. – Socially sustainable?– Renewed activist actions?

• No other option than perfection

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This is the end

Thank you for your attention

Documents

WNU Summer Institute - Transport › old_media › UserFiles › File › public... · 2014-04-25 · 2 WORLD NUCLEAR TRANSPORT INSTITUTE Warning and Take-away • Presentation not