Background radiation monitoring in Belarus never stops

MINSK, 8 December (BelTA) – Radiation levels in Belarus are monitored constantly and according to a plan. Director of the Nuclear Energy Department of the Energy Ministry Aleksei Derbin made the statement in BelTA's press center on 8 December.

Aleksei Derbin said: “Ecological monitoring never stops. Posts have been installed at the Belarusian nuclear power plant site and around it in order to monitor atmospheric air. Samples of water and soil are collected periodically. The work is smoothly organized and proceeds according to a plan. IAEA international missions, which periodically visit Belarus, inspect the quality of this work among other things.”

A strategy on managing spent nuclear fuel of the Belarusian nuclear power plant and radioactive waste has been worked out in Belarus. The Energy Ministry representative noted: “Radioactive waste will be stored at the nuclear power plant site for ten years. Once the time is up, it will be handed over to a specialized organization. Presidential decree No.427 was signed last year. It provides for creating a radioactive waste management system and for choosing a national operator.”

BelTA reported earlier that a strategy on managing radioactive waste has been drafted in Belarus. An interagency team worked on the document. It included representatives of organizations of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry (Gosatomnadzor), the Healthcare Ministry, the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Ministry, the Energy Ministry, the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, and members of the parliament. The document was worked out in tight interaction with colleagues from Russia – the country that supplies nuclear technologies. TVEL Fuel Company, which is the basic CIS organization in charge of radioactive waste management, helped develop the draft strategy. The document has passed public hearings.