Radionuclide migration at sites of temporary storage of SNF and RW in North-West Russia - Contribution to regulatory development

Two technical bases of the Northern Fleet were created in the Russian northwest in the 1960s at Andreeva in the Kola Bay and Gremikha village on the coast of the Barents Sea. They maintained nuclear submarines, performing receipt and storage of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel. No further stored material was received after 1985. These technical bases have since been re-categorised as sites of temporary storage. It is necessary to note that, during the storage of RW and SNF, certain conditions arose which resulted in failure of the storage barrier system, resulting in release of radionuclides. Remediation activities at the site focus on reduction of major risks associated with most hazardous radioactive source terms. In addition, the long term management of the sites includes consideration of how to remediate contaminated areas, not only because they affect continuing work at the site, but also because this work will influence final radiological status of the sites. The optimum approach to remediation will be affected by how quickly radionuclides could move, both during the remediation works and, so far as any residual activity is concerned, after the works are completed. Present investigations reported here are directed to determination of sorption-desorption parameters of radionuclides in the studied areas, which will affect their underground migration, with the purpose of accounting for regional peculiarities in optimization process of the STSs remediation. The work is being carried out by the TSO State Research Centre - Institute of Biophysics, of Russian Federation, with assistance from western experts. The work forms part of a regulatory collaboration programme on-going between the Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority and the Federal Medical-Biological Agency which is designed to support the development of norms and standards to be applied in the remediation of these sites of temporary storage. (author)