Treatment and conditioning of institutional waste in Brazil

An important condition for the expansion of electricity generation from nuclear reactors in the next future is the control of the nuclear fuel cycle. A quite important branch of this cycle is played by the management of radioactive waste. In Brazil there are one nuclear power plant in operation (626 MWe); mining and milling industry, a fuel fabrication plant; three nuclear research institutes including a radioisotope production facility; some accelerators and about 2000 institutions (medicine, industry, agriculture, research centers etc) widespread throughout the country utilizing radionuclides on a large scale. In Brazil there is not a defined final repository to receive the radioactive waste produced in the country. Instead, all radioactive wastes produced must be treated insuch a way that: - The volume of the waste is minimized as much as possible - The release of radionuclides into the environment is as low as possible - The radioactive materials are immobilized for storage over long periods safely and preventing them to contact the biocycle. Discussions are made concerning the brazilian policy and the waste treatment research program carried out by the Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN), scientific branch of the National Comission of Nuclear Energy (CNEN). (author)