Approaches to characterization of radioactive waste in Ukraine at interrelated steps of their management

A key point for safety assessments at different steps of radioactive waste (RW) management is the knowledge of all the relevant properties of materials that are to be disposed of as RW or cleared from regulatory control (immediately or after a certain period of time for decay storage). Characterization is the basis for the determination of radiological and non-radiological hazards of the radioactive materials and waste. This paper considers approaches for a systemized characterization of radioactive waste at all steps of its management from generation to disposal. These approaches ensure safe radioactive waste management at each step and the compliance of the final radioactive waste product with the established requirements. The provided information is based on the “Guideline for characterization, accounting and control of radioactive waste”, which was developed jointly by experts from SSTC NRS and RISKAUDIT.