Decommissioning a nuclear power plant

AFP English

The decommissioning of a nuclear power plant is a long, complex and costly process process which takes on average 20 years but also up to 100 years, depending on the type of nuclear reactor.  VIDEOGRAPHIC

Transcript

00:00After a nuclear power plant has stopped operating, the radioactive spent nuclear fuel is removed

00:12from the reactor core.

00:14It is transferred to a pool for storing spent fuel on-site or at another installation where

00:19it stays for several years while it becomes less radioactive before being treated.

00:25At the same time, the radioactive components of the plant are disconnected, often done

00:30remotely with the aid of robots to reduce the exposure to the human operators.

00:35To avoid the dispersion of radioactive particles, ventilation systems are installed comprising

00:40filters and physical barriers such as airlocks.

00:45Radioactive waste is provisionally stored pending final disposal, a complex solution

00:49criticized by opponents of nuclear power.

00:52A part of the non-radioactive buildings is sometimes demolished, then the site is cleaned

00:57for eventual reuse.

01:00Contaminated layers of soil and materials are removed then sent to the nuclear waste

01:04management and storage sector.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended