Dismantling the storage facility for solid and liquid waste at the Rheinsberg nuclear power station. Concrete monolith

When the power plant was operational, the storage facility for solid and liquid waste at the Rheinsberg Nuclear Power Station was used to store low- and medium-radioactive solid and liquid processing waste. After these wastes were emptied out and disposed of, work began to dismantle the plant and demolish the building. In order to demolish the building, it first of all has to be stripped right down to the foundations. Because the storage chambers and containers are founded deep in the Earth, a correspondingly large amount of soil is created as the excavations pits are dug. This soil will be used to fill the pits again and must therefore be measured as being clear of radioactivity so that it can be used as infill material. Some of the surfaces of the building are severely contaminated so that the demolition work cannot be carried out in the open. To prevent contamination spreading to the surrounding area, the buildings must first be enclosed. Attaining a measurement that indicates the materials in the building are clear of contamination and the final lifting of controls on this section of the site present further problems. Here the aim is to remove the site of the storage facility from the controlled area and transfer it to the operational monitoring area. (orig.)