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Policy Document

IAEA Convention on Nuclear Safety

Policy Document

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Indicator Specification
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Nuclear energy and waste production The indicator measures spent nuclear fuel arising from nuclear electricity production in the Member States that had nuclear powered electricity production capacity between 1990 and 2009 (data for Bulgaria missing). It provides an indication of the situation of radioactive waste accumulation and storage. Original measurement units:                 Spent fuel: tonnes of heavy metal (tHM)                 Nuclear electricity generation: terawatt hours (TWh) According to the World Energy Council http://www.worldenergy.org nuclear waste falls into the following four broad categories: Very low-level waste (VLLW) contains negligible amounts of radioactivity, which can, depending on the clearance level, be disposed of in a dedicated surface site or with domestic refuse. Low-level waste (LLW) contains small amounts of radioactivity and negligible amounts of long-lived waste. Intermediate-level waste (ILW) contains higher amounts of radioactivity and does require shielding in the form of lead, concrete or water. It is further categorised into short-lived and long-lived. The former is dealt with in a similar way to LLW and the latter to HLW. High-level waste (HLW) is highly radioactive, contains long-lived radioactivity and generates a considerable amount of heat. HLW accounts for 10% by volume of radioactive waste generated and contains about 99% of the total radioactivity. This includes fission products and spent fuel.

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