SAPIERR: Support action : pilot initiative for European regional repositories

• Research unit: EU RFP
• Project number: 03.0061

Key words (English)

Regional repository safety trans-national governance

Alternative project number (English)

EU project number: 509071

Research programs (English)

EU-programme: 6. Frame Research Programme - 5.2 Nuclear fission safety

Short description (English)

See abstract

Abstract (English)

Some small nuclear power programmes in the expanded EU may not have the resources or the full range of expertise to build their own repositories for long-lived radioactive wastes. Even for countries that could potentially implement national projects, there are environmental and economic advantages in co-operation. The prospect that countries could work together to explore regional solutions is raised in the EC radioactive waste Directive. Such solutions raise new trans-national issues of safety and governance, nuclear security, national & European public acceptability, trans-boundary transport and national & European economics and law.
SAPIERR is a pilot initiative to help the EC to begin to establish the boundaries of the issue, collating and integrating information in sufficient depth to allow potential regional options to be identified and the new RTD needs to be scoped. Possible future programme components and structures will be suggested. The work will:
- develop a collaboration framework and a comprehensive database for regional waste management in the EU
- identify amounts, types & times of arising of relevant wastes, including spent sealed sources
- identify possible concepts for European regional storage & disposal
- identify the main safety & governance implications raised by these concepts
- examine whether there are new, trans-national RTD requirements
- develop strategy options to explore the concept/options further
- propose mechanisms for developing strategy options & RTD needs in future EU programmes:
The work will involve a working group of interested countries and will be reported also at an international
seminar and to the EC. A commitment to participate in the working group has already been signalled by organisations from some EU Member States and from numerous Candidate Countries. Regional repositories are also of interest outside Europe and SAPIERR will put the EU in a leading position to provide advice and services to other countries.

References in databases (English)

Swiss Database: Euro-DB of the
State Secretariat for Education and Research
Hallwylstrasse 4
CH-3003 Berne, Switzerland
Tel. [phone]
Swiss Project-Number: 03.0061