Integrated waste management in a small programme Original Research Article

The Finnish nuclear waste management programme consists of handling, intermediate storage and final disposal of the spent fuel and operating waste as well as decommissioning of nuclear power plants and disposal of waste from dismantling. There are two final repositories for low- and intermediate-level operating waste, one of which is in operation at Olkiluoto and the other will be commissioned at Loviisa in 1997. A new company, Posiva, takes care of the necessary research, and later, will oversee construction and operation of the disposal facility for spent fuel. The next main target of the programme for spent fuel disposal is selection of a site in the year 2000. Construction of the final disposal facility should start during the 2010s and operation begin around 2020.