Preliminary safety analysis report for the Baita Bihor low-level radioactive waste repository

Quintessa has been awarded a contract under EuropeAid's PHARE programme to produce a preliminary safety analysis report (PSAR) for the Baita Bihor low-level radioactive waste repository in Romania.

The Baita Bihor repository is located in the north-western part of the Carpathian Mountains in a disused uranium mine. It has been receiving institutional radioactive waste since 1985 and now contains approximately 1500 m3 of short and long-lived waste. The repository is owned and operated by the Horia Hulubei National Institute for Physics and Nuclear Engineering (IFIN-HH), which is under the direction of the Ministry of Education and Research (MEC).

There is an ongoing programme of work to ensure that activities related to the Baita Bihor repository conform to European Union and international best practice. As part of this programme, Quintessa will be producing a PSAR consisting of an in-depth analysis of the operational and post-closure radiological safety of the repository, including the identification and quantification of the uncertainties underlying the assessed doses. Other key aspects of the project will be the provision to Romania of the skills and tools required to undertake future safety analysis work and the definition of a forward programme of targeted site characterisation and experimental work to improve the knowledge of the site and reduce uncertainties.

Quintessa with be supported by a team of sub-contractors including: the Subsidiary of Technology and Engineering for Nuclear Projects (SITON) (Romania); Mike Thorne and Associates Limited (UK); Geo Prospect S.R.L. (Romania); and IC Consultants Limited (UK).

For more information, please contact Richard Little.

Project financed by EUROPEAN UNION The European Union supports Romania with expertise and financial resources in view of accession preparation, through three specific programmes: Phare, Ispa and Sapard. The beneficiary sectors vary from regional development and SME support, to investments in transport and environmental infrastructure and rural development. The total annual amount of funds allocated to Romania through the three pre-accession programmes is increasing from about 660 MEURO in 2003 to well over 1 billion in 2006. The management of these funds is done by the Romanian authorities, under the coordination of the Ministry for Public Finance.