Radioactive waste comes from various sources and poses health and environmental risks if not properly disposed of. There are different types of radioactive waste - low, intermediate, and high level - which are classified based on their radiation levels. While radioactive waste has historically come from nuclear power and weapons programs, it also originates from medical, industrial, and research applications. Safe disposal methods aim to isolate radioactive materials from the environment for long periods of time until they are no longer hazardous. Common approaches involve underground storage in stable geological formations or deep ocean and polar ice disposal sites. Proper management requires regulation and oversight from specialized agencies to protect human and ecological health.

1. RADIOACTIVE WASTE AND ITS
DISPOSAL

2. RADIOACTIVE WASTE AND ITS
DISPOSAL

3. What is Radioactive Waste?
Symbol of Radioactivity
Types of Radioactive Waste
Sources of Radioactive Waste
Natural Sources
Anthropogenic Sources
Quantifying Radioactive Waste.
Causes of concern
Disposal of Radioactive Waste.
Ill-effects of Exposure
Why is it still being used?
Management Agencies
Conclusion
References
CONTENTS

4. • Any waste that emits energy as rays, waves, or streams
of energetic particles.
• Useless radioactive materials that are left after some lab
or commercial process are completed.
• Final product of activities with radioactive materials is
Radio Active Waste.
• It is a waste material containing radioactive chemical
elements that does not have a practical purpose.
What is Radioactive Waste?

5. SYMBOL
RADURA SYMBOL.
Indicates that radioactivity is present.

6. TYPES OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE

7. LOW LEVEL WASTE (LLW) IS GENERATED FROM
HOSPITALS AND INDUSTRY, AS WELL AS THE NUCLEAR FUEL
CYCLE. IT COMPRISES PAPER, RAGS, TOOLS, CLOTHING,
FILTERS ETC. WHICH CONTAIN SMALL AMOUNTS OF MOSTLY
SHORT LIVED RADIOACTIVITY AND ONLY 3% OF LOW LEVEL
WASTE REQUIRE SHIELDING DURING HANDLING AND
TRANSPORT.

8. INTERMEDIATE LEVEL WASTE (ILW)
CONTAINS HIGHER AMOUNTS OF RADIOACTIVITY AND
SOME REQUIRES SHIELDING COMPRISES OF RESINS,
CHEMICAL, SLUDGES AND METAL FUEL CLADDING AND
CONTAMINATED MATERIALS FROM REACTORS.

9. • High Level Waste (HLW) –arises from the
use of uranium fuel in nuclear reactor and nuclear
weapon procession includes spent fuel. Liquid
Waste is highly radioactive and hot.
• Can be considered the ‘ ash’ from “burning”
uranium.
•Because of radioactivity, HLW must be handled
by remote control from behind protective shielding
to protect workers.

10. • Transuranic Waste- Without regard to source or form,
waste containing alpha-emitting isotopes with atomic
no.>92, having half lives> 5 years.
• Arises from weapons production, consists of clothing,
tools, rags, residues, debris and other such items
contaminated with small amounts of radioactive elements
mostly plutonium.
• Decays slowly and require long term isolation.
• Must be handled by remote control.

11. SOURCES OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE
Broadly classifying two types of sources of Radioactive
Waste:
• Naturally Occurring Radioactive material (NORM)
• Surprising that nature has been large producer of
radioactive waste.
• Over years, surface of Earth and terrestrial crust -an
enormous reservoir of primordial radioactivity.
• Small amounts of Radioactive materials are contained in
mineral springs, sand mounds and volcanic eruptions.
• No place on Earth i.e. free from natural radioactive
background, it may vary from place to place all the way
from low to high.

12. B) ANTHROPOGENIC SOURCE
• Following IInd World War and discovery of the fission
process, human activity added to radioactivity.
• There are three principal sources of radioactive waste, of
which first is the most important in terms of quantities.
• Reactors and chemical Process plants.
• Research establishments carrying out a wide
variety of investigations
• A number of other users, such as hospitals, research
institutions, universities, Research labs and Industries

13. • i.e. In general anthropogenic sources
constitute Waste from
• Industries- can contain alpha,beta,gamma
emitters.
• Nuclear Fuel Cycle- usually emitting waste
from the extraction of uranium often
contains radium and its decay products.
• Medical Waste- contains beta & gamma-
ray emitters.
• Mineral Process- waste can contain
natural radioactivity.
• Oil & Gas industry - contain radium and its daughters.
Coal- contains a small amount of radioactive nuclides such as Uranium
and thorium
• Nuclear Weapons Production- contains alpha emitting actinides such as
Pu-239 used in bombs and Weapon systems.

14. QUANTIFYING RADIO ACTIVE
WAVES-
• Level of radioactive waste is quoted in terms
of Volume ( in cubic meters) or in Tonnage
• In terms of Becquerel’s (Bq)
• 1 Becquerel= 1 disintegration/sec

15. CAUSES OF CONCERN
• Radioactive waste, whether natural or artificial is
a potential harbinger of radioactive exposure to
humans through many channels. The routes are
direct exposure to materials that are radioactive,
inhalation- when people breathe radioactive
material into the lungs e.g. Radon.
• Ingestion – when some one swallows radioactive
material.
• Quantum of exposure (dose x duration of
exposure) decides the deleterious effects that
may result.

16. DISPOSAL OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE
• Radioactive pollution poses a
serious threat to the
environment and future
generation, as these wastes
persist in the environment for a
long time.
• Solutions of this problem are
still debatable, both technically
and ethically. There are many
proposals for disposing nuclear
wastes. However, the favoured
solution for the disposal of this
waste is isolating radioactive
waste from man and biosphere
for a period of time so that any
possible subsequent release of
radionuclides from waste
repository will not result in
undue radiation exposure.

17. DEEP GEOLOGICAL FORMATIONS ON
LAND:
• It is a multiple barrier approach to disposing of waste.
• Geologic repository is built at a depth of between 300-1200 m.
Waste is placed in holes drilled in the rock of excavated
tunnels.
• Waste will be able to be retrieved for a period of 100 years.

18. A) SUB SEABED DISPOSAL
• 70% of earth is covered by the oceans & much of ocean
bottom is not considered for economic purposes.
• Method is based on the fact that there are some places on the
ocean floor at depth of 5 miles, where the sediment is very old
and deep in which waste could be placed safely.

19. ROCK MELT DISPOSAL
• It would require direct emplacement of
radioactive waste or slurries into underground
cavities.
• It is believed that after water has evaporated
from the initial transport phase, heat from
remaining radioactive waste would cause melting
of surrounding rocks, with later dissolution of the
waste and solidification would be completed in
about 1000 years.

20. ISLAND DISPOSAL
• Involves placing radioactive waste in deep, stable
geologic formations on island.
• Waste is transported to islands.
• Here oceans act as natural barriers.
• Estimated cost is twice as much as land repository.

21. D) ICE SHEET DISPOSAL-
• Involves placing waste into continental ice
masses in isolated area- Arctic & Antarctic
Region.
• Involves placing of waste into the ice at shallow
depths where it would melt its way down into ice
sheet.

22. SPACE DISPOSAL-
It was designed to permanently remove waste from
earth. Theoretically, waste package would be carried
by space shuttle to an orbit near earth from which it
would be sent into deep solar orbit by a transfer
rocket with supplementary solar orbit rocket which
will carry its pay load into solar orbit.

23. SUBDUCTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL METHOD
• Tectonic plate slides beneath another and is eventually
reabsorbed into the mantle.

24. IF LAND IS CONTAMINATED BY
RADIOACTIVE ELEMENTS, ALL LIVING
ORGANISMS INCLUDING PLANTS AND
ANIMALS ARE SUBJECTED TO
RADIATION.
A NUMBER OF RADIOACTIVE
ELEMENTS GET CONCENTRATED IN
THE FOOD CHAIN-BIOLOGICAL
MAGNIFICATION.
RADIOACTIVE CONTAMINATION OF
OCEANS HAS POSED A SERIOUS
THREAT TO AQUATIC LIFE.
I11 Effects

25. • Marine Organisms which are
filter feeders ingest the
radioisotopes directly. Thus
primary trophic level of food
chain is bypassed
• USA analysis has indicated that
radiation from radioactive
substances in soil may cause-
a) Killing of plants, trees and shrubs
b) Can cause reduction or permanent loss of
several plant species

26. C. MAY ALTER KEY POPULATION INTERACTIONS.
• Radiation from radioactive
substances pose threat to human
life causing skin cancer, deformity
in bones, leukemia, anaemia,
cataracts, mutations reduced or
abnormal reproduction.
• Hazards may be acute, chronic or
genetic damage

27. IN GENERAL, THESE RADIATIONS
AFFECTS ALL FORMS OF LIFE, PLANTS
AND INERT MATERIALS.

28. • Inspite of so many harms why it is still being used is
the question which arises
• We are confronted with a dilemma
• On one side, 50-100 years hence, our
• fossil fuel sources may be reaching the rock bottom
of availability and the renewable sources of energy
may not meet the demands of society.
• Till alternate energy sources are developed, the only
source available to mankind is nuclear power.
Why it is still being used?

29. • Disposal of Radio Active Waste is a complex issue not only
because of nature of waste. There are a variety of stake
holders affected and a number of regulatory entities
involved. Many of radioactive material is regulated by four
separate Federal Government agencies i.e
• Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Department of
Energy (DOE) and Department of Transportation).
• These agencies ensure the safety of public and protection
of environment by providing guidance on acquisition,
storage and transport.
Management

30. • Hazardous Waste (Management and Handling Rules) 1989
(enacted under Environmental protection Act- 1986)
• 1991- Public Liability Insurance Act & Rules and
Amendment -1992
• Many NGOs like Green Peace is also involved.

31. • Radioactive waste is not a single thing that can be
isolated and dealt with a magic bullet. It involves
numerous physical, political and cultural factors in a
dynamic, ongoing process.
• The stuff we are dealing with can not go away until it
decays. You can containerize it, solidify it, immobilize it
and move it, but you can not, make it go away
• James D Werner, Scientific American, May, 1996.
• The problems will not be solved by throwing unlimited
money at them. Some processes take their own time to
fructify….
Conclusion

32. • CurrentScience, Vol81, No.12. Dec.01.
• Brookings Douglas G Geochemical Aspects of Radioactive Waste Disposal,
P-140-156
• Amphlett C.B- Treatment & Disposal of Radioactive Wastes
(P-4-26, P 184-220)
• Sharma B.K. – Environmental Chemistry (Radioactive 1-88).
• www.physics.undel.edu
• www.ipcs.org
• www.blackhole.on.ca
• www.defencejournal.com
• www.epa.gov
• www.orcbs.msu.edu
• www.cs.virginia.edu
• www.ce.cmu.edu
• www.ccnr.org
• www.asu.edu
• www.dac.gov.in
• www.dbe.dc
• www.shef.ac.uk
• www.niagara.com
• www.cartoonstock.com
References