The Study on Domestic and Foreign Cases for Decommissioning of DPRK Nuclear Facilities

This study was able to analyze domestic and foreign cases, and collect data on the approximate amount of waste and time required time; however, data on applied technology, input manpower, required cost, and waste disposal method was insufficient. DPRK activities such as nuclear weapon development or nuclear testing not only threaten our country's security but also have an adverse effect on nuclear nonproliferation and security in the international society. Therefore, denuclearization of the DPRK is prior task that is essential to peace on the Korean Peninsula. The fundamental purpose of denuclearization of the DPRK is to safely decommission facilities related to developing nuclear weapons and to depose related radioactive waste and nuclear materials. Understanding descriptive references and physical properties of the facility and its purpose important for decommissioning nuclear facilities. Although it was impossible to collect data on DPRK nuclear facilities to perform complete decommissioning, we were able to understand the process used at DPRK nuclear facilities with open source data. This study has been conducted to establish overall measures for decommissioning DPRK nuclear facilities. DPRK nuclear facilities in this study include a IRT- 2000 type nuclear research reactor, a 5 MWe graphite moderated reactor, nuclear fuel fabrication facility, and a nuclear fuel reprocessing facility, which are considered as facilities that produce or manufacture nuclear materials needed for nuclear weapons or related to such activities.