Streamlined Approach to Waste Management at CRL

Abstract

Radioactive, mixed, hazardous and non-hazardous wastes have been and continue to be generated at Chalk River Laboratories (CRL) as a result of research and development activities and operations since the 1940s. Over the years, the wastes produced as a byproduct of activities delivering the core missions of the CRL site have been of many types, and today, over thirty distinct waste streams have been identified, all requiring efficient management. With the commencement of decommissioning of the legacy created as part of the development of the Canadian nuclear industry, the volumes and range of wastes to be managed have been increasing in the near term, and this trend will continue into the future. The development of a streamlined approach to waste management is a key to successful waste management at CRL.

Waste management guidelines that address all of the requirements have become complex, and so have the various waste management groups receiving waste, with their many different processes and capabilities. This has led to difficulties for waste generators in understanding all of the requirements to be satisfied for the various CRL waste receivers, whose primary concerns are to be safe and in compliance with their acceptance criteria and license conditions. As a result, waste movement on site can often be very slow, especially for non-routine waste types.

Recognizing an opportunity for improvement, the Waste Management organization at CRL has implemented a more streamlined approach with emphasis on early identification of waste type and possible disposition path. This paper presents a streamlined approach to waste identification and waste management at CRL, the implementation methodology applied and the early results achieved from this process improvement.