Value context and insight. lkm@koreatimes.co.kr
Korea urged to secure more nuclear waste disposal sites
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By Lee Kyung-min
By Lee Kyung-min
Korea should promptly outline plans to build a greater number of nuclear waste disposal facilities, in an immediate measure to fortify radioactive waste management capabilities, experts said Monday.
Propelling the urgent recommendation is the earlier-than-expected saturation of local radioactive waste storage, brought on in large part by the Yoon Suk Yeol administration's fostering of the previously demonized source of energy, which is more affordable and stable compared to renewables.
The country may not be able to operate nuclear reactors as early as 2030, they say, since storage facilities will be full by then. This is why experts are pushing for the construction of on-site storage sites at nuclear reactors, as soon as possible, because it takes at least seven years to help guarantee the safe construction and operation of these types of sites.
The government first began commercial operation of a nuclear reactor in 1978, and nine attempts to select disposal sites have since failed.
Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province was selected as a site in 2005 to store mid- and low-level radioactive waste. But the high-stakes decision to choose a site for the high-level waste has been pushed back indefinitely since 2009, when government efforts to seek public consensus through hearings and discussions were met by the fierce protests of local residents.
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“The key is in the pending bill at the National Assembly,” said Lee Jong-ho, a senior researcher at the Nuclear Research Institute for Future Technology Policy (NIFTEP) associated with Seoul National University.
He is the former head of Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power's (KHNP) technology and engineering division.
The bill introduced by two of the ruling People Power Party and one of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea seeks to determine the facility's site, construction period, methods of management and responsibilities of the government and other related authorities thereafter concerning the decades-old issue.
The pace of the development on this issue will be set by whether the lawmakers and the energy and science ministries can reach an agreement to establish an organization separate from the state-run Korea Radioactive Waste Agency, the current overseer of radioactive waste disposal.
“The issue is likely to drag on, I'm afraid, because the government and lawmakers have yet to make progress on which organization should do the job,” he said. “Whether and how fast the National Assembly can pass the bill will set the course for the rest of the discussion.”
Meanwhile, the issue is the latest development in the government's efforts to better operate and manage nuclear energy systems.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy began the construction of the country's first nuclear power plant decommissioning research institute in Ulsan, in October of last year. About 313 billion won ($241 million) will be spent to build the institute in 2026 in Ulju County in Ulsan.
It will develop technologies to ensure the safe and permanent decommissioning of nuclear power plants and function as a comprehensive platform to advance radioactive waste analysis.