Decommissioning Nuclear Power Plants

Abstract

During the next three decade, over 300 nuclear power plants will be shut down. Eventually, the international nuclear community will have to dispose of more than 500 plants, including those currently under construction. Decommissioning is waste management on a new scale, in terms of both complexity and cost. Following plant closure, the company or agency responsible must first decide which of three courses to follow: decontaminate and dismantle the facility decay for 50-100 years before dismantling; or simply erect a permanent tomb. No one knows how much it will cost to decommission the hundreds of units in service or under construction around the world. Estimates range from $50 million to $3 billion per plant. The biggest stumbling block for all nations with nuclear plants is the lack of permanent disposal facilities for radioactive wastes. No country currently has the capability to permanently dispose of the high-level wastes now stored at a single reactor.