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FIRST TEST CASE // The department for Nuclear Support Tasks, branch ‘Dismantling’, of Belgoprocess started with the decommissioning of Eurochemic in 1989 with the demolition of two Eurochemic buildings for the storage of finished products of reprocessing of nuclear fuel. The demolition was a pilot project to familiarise the operators with dismantling techniques. It took over two years to decontaminate and dismantle these buildings. Still, this test case was crucial in more than one respect for the further dismantling of the reprocessing plant. Belgoprocess showed nuclear inspection organisations, such as the AVN and the FANC, that it possessed the knowledge and skills: the company was able to fully decontaminate and demolish a nuclear structure within the stringent safety procedures and rules. The test also enabled an estimate to be made of the cost and time needed for full decommissioning. But the main thing was that Belgoprocess was able to develop a specific decommissioning strategy. From the very beginning, the company sought maximum decontamination of the materials, mainly metals and concrete, found in the reprocessing plant. In this way, Belgoprocess intended to systematically reduce the remaining radioactive waste fraction and thus minimise the cost of its removal. |
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