Current status of Japanese geological disposal program, and NUMO's R and D strategy

The Nuclear Management Organization of Japan (NUMO) was established in October 2000. NUMO examined open solicitation and initiated an open to all Japanese municipalities, requesting volunteers to host a HLW repository. Last year, the Japanese government developed a program to enhance promotion of HLW disposal and support NUMO's activities. Subsequently, NUMO decided to become an implementer for TRU waste disposal, based on a recent amendment of 'The Specified Radioactive Waste Final disposal Act', which allocates particular TRU' waste for deep geological disposal. As a responsible implementer, NUMO wants to ensure that the repository project is safe and developed in an economically-sensible manner. In order to execute the volunteering siting approach and a challenging implementation time plan, NUMO must carefully structure siting process, and tailor generic designs and characterization plans to specific sites. Highest priority goals in the current R and D plan include development and validation of construction and operation phase technology, rigorous assessment of operational phase safety and the practicality of assuring quality of the constructed engineered barriers, defining requirements for closure and quality control to support the post-closure safety case. (author)