Conventional waste management

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The great part of waste resulted from the decommissioning and safe maintenance activities of Caorso nuclear plant is conventional; this type of waste undergoes radiological checks and, after being proved releasable, it is removed from the site to be recovered and recycled. This waste includes, for example, ferrous materials (pipes, valves, components and dismantled electromechanical devices) and concrete which are later reused in further productive cycles, thus reducing the mount of waste produced during decommissioning.

Conventional waste management involves several actions: storage in a temporary repository, classification according to the European Waste Code (EWC), update and registration according to law and removal from the plant through authorised transport for ordinary operations of recovery or disposal. Sogin ensures the traceability of materials, from disassembly or demolition to the recovery or disposal facility.
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Trino Nuclear Power Plant – Destination of materials

About 198,000 (93%) out of 214,000 total tonnes of materials resulted from Trino decommissioning operations, will be recovered and recycled; these materials mainly consist of metals and concrete. In 2016-2017, for example, the adaptation of the Test Tank to a temporary buffer repository for radioactive waste, resulted in about 5 tonnes of metallic materials and about 850 tonnes of (non-radioactive) concrete; such materials were partly turned into secondary raw materials used to fill the excavation pits and partly sent to external disposal facilities. 

The decommissioning activities of the site, so far, resulted in the removal of 8,200 tonnes of metallic materials, among which more than 97.5% (8,410 tonnes) were removed from the site as conventional waste and sent to recovery facilities. 

This is an example of the sustainable approach adopted by Sogin in managing radioactive waste; an approach that reflects the principles of circular economy​.​