Background and project objective

In the sixties of the last century, the construction of a training facility equipped with nuclear reactors for training nuclear submarine crews was started at the Soviet Army Submariners Training Centre in Paldiski. Later, another, more modern reactor-equipped stand was added to the existing one. Both training facilities were located on the territory within the administrative boundaries of the present city of Paldiski, at Leetse tee 21, also known as the former Paldiski nuclear site. On the nuclear site there was a 208 m long, 40 m wide and 22 m high so-called "Paldiski nuclear power plant". The main building, under the roof of which were located the two teaching buildings and a number of various auxiliary buildings. Both nuclear reactors were used for educational purposes until the end of 1989. In accordance with the agreement between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Estonia, the dismantling of the stands started in 1994, during which the components not directly related to the reactors were dismantled, the reactor sections were hermetically sealed and enclosed in concrete sarcophaguses. In September 1995, the Republic of Estonia became full owner of the training centre. According to the Russian side, the measures they had taken should have ensured the safety and stability of the reactors for at least fifty years.

However, subsequent studies and assessments show that the storage conditions of the reactors at the former Paldiski site fall far short of internationally accepted safety criteria.

The aim of this project is to ensure the effective safe storage of reactors and radioactive waste for a period of at least 50 years, i.e. by rebuilding and/or upgrading the Main Building and the sarcophaguses and interim storage of radioactive waste.

The project is funded by the European Union (PHARE) and AS ALARA.

Major construction works

Contractor: AS Eviko, www.eviko.ee, project manager Matti Käärst, mobile 50 49 426, e-mail elmek.ou@neti.ee.

Owner-occupier: AS Telora-E, www.telora.ee, consultant Toomas Joonsaar, mobile 51 46 710, phone 6505 160; fax 6505 161, e-mail toomas.joonsaar@telora.ee.

The inauguration of the reconstructed main building took place on 11.10.2007. Representatives of the public authorities involved in the project, the main contractors and subcontractors, and journalists attended the ceremony, which was attended by about 70 people. The period for reporting deficiencies (the so-called "guarantee period") runs until 31.10.2008.

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To train submariners in the Soviet Union's Northern Fleet and Pacific Fleet, two military training reactors, similar to those used on nuclear submarines, were installed at a naval training centre on the northern tip of the Pakri Peninsula. The purpose of the training reactors was to (re)train the marines in conditions as close as possible to real conditions before they were sent to submarines.

Nuclear Reactor No 1 operated from April 1968 to January 1989 and was housed in a metal enclosure similar in shape and dimensions to a nuclear submarine. The reactor was of the PWR/VM-A type, with a thermal power of 70 MW. In 1980 the reactor was refuelled. The total operating time of reactor No 1 (at 20-40% load) was 20 821 hours (13 781 hours with the first fuel load and 7 040 hours with the second load).

Reactor No. 2 was of the PWR/BM-4 (LWR) type, with a thermal capacity of 90 MW, and operated from February 1983 to December 1989 with a load of approximately 30%. The reactor was not refuelled. The total operating time of reactor No 2 was 5 333 hours.

The fundamental decision to close the training centre, or the Paldiski site, for safety was made in 1991 after Estonia's independence was recognised by Russia and Russian troops were withdrawn from the area. Until 1995, the following work was carried out by the Russian authorities to ensure the long-term safety of the reactor sections:

• spent fuel was removed from the reactors and shipped to Russia;
• the auxiliary sections were dismantled;
• non-radioactive equipment was removed;
• reactors and primary containment piping were drained of as much liquid as possible and made airtight;
• the cooling water purification filters were drained;
• non-radioactive devices above the biological shield (a water column surrounding the reactor to capture neutrons) were removed;
• the support structures of the reactor sections were strengthened;
• reinforced concrete sarcophagi were constructed and several radiohazardous nodes and openings inside the reactor sections were filled with concrete.

According to the agreement concluded between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Estonia (30 July 1994), the training centre, together with the buildings of the training reactors and the nuclear waste storage facility, passed into the possession of the Republic of Estonia on 26 September 1995.

Between 1995 and 2011, extensive conservation, clean-up and reconstruction work was carried out at the former military site in Paldiski, because of the large amount of radioactive and non-radioactive residual contamination that was a threat to surface and groundwater and soil. Among other things, a number of buildings were cleaned up and demolished, and an interim storage site for radioactive waste was built in the main building.

As a result of the European Union (EU) project “Evaluation of Management Routes for the Paldiski Sarcopahagi”, carried out in 1999-2001, the project's expert committee found that from the point of view of radiation safety and waste storage, it is expedient to start the final decommissioning (deactivation and complete dismantling) of the reactor sections, which are the main source of residual contamination at the site, after 50 years of storage, i.e. in 2040.

In the framework of the EU PHARE project “Safe Long-Term Storage of the Paldiski Sarcophagi & Related Dismantling Activities”, which was carried out between 2005 and 2008, an air drying system was installed in the sarcophagi to improve corrosion resistance in order to improve the storage conditions, a monitoring system was installed in the reactor sections to detect possible contamination leaks and the main building surrounding the reactors was renovated to improve the weatherproofing of the building.

When making its decision, the expert committee of the project „Assessment of alternatives for the management of Paldiski reactor sections“ assumed that the radioactive waste generated during the decommissioning of the reactor sections starting in 2040 will be disposed of at the latest in the radioactive waste disposal site established by that time. The interim storage facility, which was built in 1997, has been designed to accommodate all the waste generated in Estonia (including the radioactive waste from the nuclear waste repository). The storage facility is designed to accommodate all radioactive waste generated in Estonia (including radioactive waste generated during the decommissioning of the Paldiski Nuclear Submarine Training Centre nuclear facility and waste removed from the Tammiku radioactive waste repository), with the exception of waste generated during the decommissioning of reactor sections. Therefore, the start of the environmental, technical, etc. analyses and studies necessary for the decommissioning of the reactor sections must be accompanied by the start of the environmental, technical, etc. analyses and studies necessary for the construction of the disposal site, as the results of the implementation of one activity will feed into the implementation of the other activity and vice versa. The aim of this project is to carry out the initial technical studies and to collect the necessary data to serve as a basis for the planning of further activities, for decision-making and for the initiation of environmental impact assessments.

Completion of the project will pave the way for the start of the environmental impact assessments for the decommissioning of the reactor assemblies and the construction of a radioactive waste disposal site. Following the environmental impact assessments, the design and construction of the disposal site and the decommissioning of the reactor sections can already start.

For more information on the history of the Paldiski site:

• “Historical Survey of Nuclear Non-Proliferation in Estonia, 1946-1955”
• Cover of the album “Paldiski former nuclear submarine training centre nuclear site - transfer to Estonia and decontamination”.
• Album “The nuclear site of the former Paldiski nuclear submarine training centre - transfer to Estonia and decontamination”
• Historical overview 1946-1995 “Problems of nuclear non-proliferation in Estonia”

The ex-ante activities are:

• Organisational activities of the project (seminars and reports)
• Data collection and overview of national and international requirements
• Identifying options for decommissioning reactor sections
• Identifying options for the disposal of radioactive waste
• Costs of treatment, decommissioning of reactor sections and disposal costs.
• Communication strategy

Preliminary studies will be carried out in the period from 23.09.2014 to 30.12.2015 by a consortium of JSC Eksortus (Lithuania) and R&D Company SOSNY (Russia), with the participation of FCNRS (Federal Center of Nuclear and Radiation Safety, Russia) and JSC Specialus Montazas-NTP (Lithuania) as subcontractors.

The preparatory studies will be financed by the Cohesion Fund of the European Union.

The Estonian partner of the project is AS A.L.A.R.A., which is responsible for the management and safety of the Paldiski site, whose contact person is Ivo Tatrik, phone 6741 366, mobile 51 51 111, e-mail ivo.tatrik@alara.ee.

Source

The short name of the project is RAJALA (radiioactive jäof laThe total cost of the project is EUR 8.355 million, of which the contribution from the EU Cohesion Fund is EUR 85% and the contribution from the Environmental Programme of the SA Environmental Investment Centre is EUR 15%. The project will be implemented in the period 2019 - 2023.

The aim of the project is to reduce the risks associated with radioactive waste and its management in order to prevent pollution of groundwater and surface water, which poses a threat to human health.

The project consists of five activities:

1. Investigating the impact of the establishment of a radioactive waste disposal site from different environmental and socio-economic perspectives. The activity will provide an accurate overview of the parameters, etc., of the possible locations of the disposal site, as an input to the planning and impact assessment.
2. Engineering and radiological studies for the decommissioning of the reactor sections at the former Paldiski nuclear site. The activities will provide the necessary technical baseline data for the safe execution of the decommissioning works, the proper management of the waste generated, etc., as input for the impact assessment.
3. Preparation for the management of radioactively contaminated metal waste for disposal at the former Paldiski nuclear site. Most of the metallic waste was contained in underground piping that connected the various facilities at the Paldiski site to the reactor sections in the main building, and through which radioactive liquid waste or radioactively contaminated air passed. Between 2024 and 2026, the metal waste is planned to be transported to a smelting plant outside Estonia, where it will be cleaned and smelted to reduce the volume of waste. Concentrated returnable radioactive waste will be transported to a treatment centre at the Paldiski site for further treatment, concreting and packaging for disposal. The waste will then be stored in an interim storage site until its final disposal in a final disposal facility to be constructed. This activity will provide for the acquisition of a concrete node for the management of the concentrated radioactive waste to be returned and concrete containers for the storage of the waste.
4. Planning and impact assessment activities for the siting of the final disposal site. The activities are partly cross-border, as Estonia is obliged to assess the cross-border impacts of the construction of a disposal site as part of the Strategic Environmental Assessment.
5. Communicating the activities and results supported by the project to the public.

As a result of the project, preconditions have been created for identifying the most suitable site for final disposal and for decommissioning the reactor sections. Planning and impact assessments have been initiated, and the public has been proactively and clearly informed about the project objectives, activities and their results. Radioactively contaminated metal waste from the former Paldiski nuclear site has also been managed for disposal and 1.18 hectares of land have been rehabilitated. As a result, the safety of the surrounding environment and human health has been better protected. The objectives of the National Action Plan on Radioactive Waste have been met in terms of the long-term safe management of radioactive waste and the reduction of radioactive waste generation.

The project is implemented by AS ALARA, whose contact person is Ivo Tatrik, phone 51 51 111, e-mail ivo.tatrik@alara.ee and Alari Kruusvall, phone 523 7126, e-mail alari.kruusvall@alara.ee

The project partner is the Ministry of Climate, whose contact person is Maria Leier, phone 5306 5651, e-mail maria.leier@kliimaministeerium.ee

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