RADIOECOLOGICAL PROBLEMS OF SUBSURFACE USE IN THE REGIONS WITH NON-REMOVABLE RW — PNE SITES

The article discusses the problems relevant for the sites of peaceful nuclear explosions (PNE) considered as disposal facilities for non-removable radioactive waste. Out of a total of 80 PNE existing in Russia, more than 50 are to some extent related to the fuel and energy industry and the associated subsurface use. The paper overviews the key steps required to provide their radioecological safety and the conditions for their implementation at hydrocarbon deposits within the PNE areas. It also summarizes the inconsistencies in the regulatory framework, issues associated with licensing, monitoring, environmental cleanup, regulations governing their operation and decommissioning, the need for establishing appropriate protection zones at the subsurface and the surface level, etc.

Keywords: peaceful nuclear explosion facilities, radiological situation, radionuclides, radioactive waste, hydrocarbon deposits, non-removable radioactive waste, radiation safety strategy, monitoring, radioactive waste disposal, decommissioning

Kasatkin A. V., Kamnev E. N., Kasatkin V. V., Sedov N. S., Domoroschina T. S., Povtareiko A. A. Radioecological problems of subsurface use in the regions with non-removable RW — PNE sites. Radioactive Waste, 2024, no. 3 (28), pp. 96—100. DOI: 10.25283/2587-9707-2024-3-96-100. (In Russian).