| Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management
- Fact Sheet
Japan’s Radioactive Waste Management Program
Low-level radioactive waste
Low-level solid radioactive waste generated by nuclear power plants has
been buried at Japan’s Rokkasho-mura facility since 1992. License application
for additional disposal was started in 1997.
Spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste
Spent nuclear fuel is stored at reactors in pools. High-level radioactive
waste is converted to a solid form (vitrified) and stored on-site for
30-50 years for cooling. It will eventually be transported to a deep geologic
disposal facility. At-reactor dry storage for spent nuclear fuel is currently
being developed. Dry storage for high-level radioactive waste is also
being developed at the Rokkasho-mura site.
Reprocessing spent nuclear fuel
Japan reprocesses its spent nuclear fuel to control the volume and maximize
its resources since all fuel must be imported. Spent nuclear fuel is currently
reprocessed by France and the United Kingdom and returned to Japan. Japan’s
first reprocessing plant is scheduled to open in 2007 in Rokkasho-mura.
Transporting radioactive waste
Most spent nuclear fuel is transported for reprocessing via ships, since
most of Japan’s spent nuclear fuel was reprocessed abroad, and many of
its nuclear power plants are located on the coast. Transportation to the
inland reprocessing plant at Tokai has been by truck.
Deep geologic disposal plans
In October 1998, Japan’s Nuclear Cycle Development Institute (JNC) submitted
a report to the Japanese government documenting Japan’s radioactive waste
disposal research and development activities since 1992. JNC’s primary
objective is to assess the technical reliability of geologic disposal
in the country.
In October 2000, Japan established the Nuclear Waste Management Organization
(NUMO) to implement geologic disposal in the country. Japan hopes to begin
site selection and characterization, followed by infrastructure creation
and site licensing. Construction of a repository in granite or sedimentary
rock is planned for the 2030s.
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management
Yucca Mountain Project
1551 Hillshire Drive
Las Vegas, NV 89134
1-800-225-6972
http://www.ocrwm.doe.gov
DOE/YMP-0413
June 2001 |