Status of the decommissioning of nuclear facilities around the world

At the end of their useful life, nuclear facilities of all types must be decommissioned to render them safe and to remove and dispose of any associated material that could harm present and future generations. At this time, the first generation of nuclear power plants is gradually being taken out of service and decommissioned. Similarly, many of the research reactors around the world are being closed down and are candidates for decommissioning. The present report has been produced in order to evaluate the magnitude of the worldwide decommissioning task. Its scope extends beyond consideration of nuclear power plants and research reactors to include all facilities that use radioactive material. The report reviews and summarizes the decommissioning activities that have been performed to date, those currently under way and those that will need to be performed in the future. An attempt is made to quantify the costs associated with implementing the necessary decommissioning activities. These cost estimates provide an indication of the level of effort that will be needed to safely effect decommissioning activities. The IAEA has prepared a number of safety standards and technical reports pertaining to decommissioning. These publications can be used as a basis for developing a regulatory infrastructure and implementing a decommissioning programme