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South Korea dedicated part of its first nuclear waste repository in Gyeongju on Friday, which is expected to help the country better handle its spent radioactive materials.
The first phase of the repository, which cost 1.54 trillion won ($1.31 billion), has six underground silos that can hold some 100,000 drums of low- and intermediate-level radioactive by-products from laboratories, hospitals and atomic power plants.
Each drum can hold 200 liters of waste material, while the heavily reinforced silo is built 130 meters underground and is connected to the surface by a 1,415-meter service tunnel. The six silos are expected to be filled in 10 years.
According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the key facilities are all earthquake-proof, with the shutter doors of the service tunnel even being designed to withstand a tsunami. The repository is located close to the East Sea so nuclear waste can be brought in by ship from other parts of the country.
Over the past year, the Korea Radioactive Waste Agency, the repository's operator, has secured various permits and conducted numerous tests and trial runs to make certain it is safe to move and store nuclear waste on the 2.14-million-square-meter site. The repository started to temporarily house nuclear waste in 2010.
Highlighting the importance of safety, Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn said at the dedication ceremony that the utmost attention will be paid to safety.
"There will be no compromises when it comes to safety issues," he said, expressing gratitude to Gyeongju citizens for agreeing to host the repository. The project had been held up repeatedly due to opposition from residents who did not want a radioactive waste site near their homes.
Gyeongju, a historic city 371 kilometers southeast of Seoul, has been promised over 3.22 trillion won in compensation from 2007 to 2035 for hosting the repository, with 1.71 trillion won having been provided as of 2014.
Work on the repository began in July 2007, with major construction being completed in June last year.
After the opening of the first part of the repository, the government will now seek permission to start the second phase, which can accommodate another 125,000 drums of nuclear waste, the ministry said.
These facilities are to be built on the surface and should be completed by December 2019, although it could be delayed.
South Korea, which relies heavily on nuclear power, has been hard pressed to find storage space for its nuclear waste. The nation now operates 24 nuclear reactors, which generate about a third of the electricity for Asia's fourth-largest economy.
The country has yet to resolve what it will do with its high level radioactive waste coming from nuclear power plants. At present, such wastes are held in temporary holding areas at nuclear power plants, but such facilities are nearing full capacity. (Yonhap)
The first phase of the repository, which cost 1.54 trillion won ($1.31 billion), has six underground silos that can hold some 100,000 drums of low- and intermediate-level radioactive by-products from laboratories, hospitals and atomic power plants.
Each drum can hold 200 liters of waste material, while the heavily reinforced silo is built 130 meters underground and is connected to the surface by a 1,415-meter service tunnel. The six silos are expected to be filled in 10 years.
According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the key facilities are all earthquake-proof, with the shutter doors of the service tunnel even being designed to withstand a tsunami. The repository is located close to the East Sea so nuclear waste can be brought in by ship from other parts of the country.
Over the past year, the Korea Radioactive Waste Agency, the repository's operator, has secured various permits and conducted numerous tests and trial runs to make certain it is safe to move and store nuclear waste on the 2.14-million-square-meter site. The repository started to temporarily house nuclear waste in 2010.
Highlighting the importance of safety, Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn said at the dedication ceremony that the utmost attention will be paid to safety.
"There will be no compromises when it comes to safety issues," he said, expressing gratitude to Gyeongju citizens for agreeing to host the repository. The project had been held up repeatedly due to opposition from residents who did not want a radioactive waste site near their homes.
Gyeongju, a historic city 371 kilometers southeast of Seoul, has been promised over 3.22 trillion won in compensation from 2007 to 2035 for hosting the repository, with 1.71 trillion won having been provided as of 2014.
Work on the repository began in July 2007, with major construction being completed in June last year.
After the opening of the first part of the repository, the government will now seek permission to start the second phase, which can accommodate another 125,000 drums of nuclear waste, the ministry said.
These facilities are to be built on the surface and should be completed by December 2019, although it could be delayed.
South Korea, which relies heavily on nuclear power, has been hard pressed to find storage space for its nuclear waste. The nation now operates 24 nuclear reactors, which generate about a third of the electricity for Asia's fourth-largest economy.
The country has yet to resolve what it will do with its high level radioactive waste coming from nuclear power plants. At present, such wastes are held in temporary holding areas at nuclear power plants, but such facilities are nearing full capacity. (Yonhap)
