SMART - An Enabler to Delivering Sustainable Decommissioning - 23746

As nuclear decommissioning activities increase significant technical, economic, social, environmental and cultural challenges lay ahead for our industry. By embedding sustainability into the nuclear back-end management, benefits will be wide ranging for stakeholders including our communities, local workers/employers, as well as ensuring that assets are suitably recovered and waste is programmatically minimised. As reactors are shut down and decommissioned there can be a disruptive impact on communities and environmental impacts associated with undertaking the dismantling activities and waste handling. As an industry it is therefore important to deliver decommissioning sustainably and consider the legacy we leave behind. The Springfields Melter for Advanced Recycling and Treatment (SMART) is a new state of the art facility to be built at Westinghouse's Springfields site in the UK. In 2025 it will be operational and deliver safe, sustainable waste treatment solutions. The metal treatment process and associated infrastructure is based on the significant operational experience provided by Studsvik which will incorporate their 30+ years of experience, proven technology and underpinning process expertise. SMART will provide the capability to treat 4,500 tonnes per annum of radioactive metallic waste including miscellaneous containerised scrap from nuclear decommissioning projects, redundant nuclear transport flasks and large components such as turbines, high pressure heaters, steam convertors and boilers from nuclear facilities. Approximately 90% of the metal treated will be suitable for recycling allowing waste from decommissioning to become an asset. SMART is part of a wider proposed Nuclear Material Management Hub (NMM) based at Springfields supporting a long-term strategy for the site through the diversification of business. It will be positioned on a part of site previously decommissioned, repurposing existing nuclear industry assets. The Hub will support continued employment across nuclear professional disciplines, supporting the surrounding community and external stakeholders such as supply chain. This paper outlines how sustainability principles are being embedded in SMART and identifies the potential benefits which can be realised. (authors)