A two-day Scientific Forum during the IAEA's annual General Conference emphasized the need for a comprehensive, integrated, cradle-to-grave approach for management of radioactive waste.
IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano closed the event on Wednesday, 24 September 2014, by highlighting that anyone using any form of nuclear technology should start with the end of the fuel cycle in mind. "All Member States should embrace, from the start, their responsibility for radioactive waste management," he said. "It is imperative that each country establish a comprehensive plan for waste disposal as soon as they begin to use nuclear technologies." He added that the issue of radioactive waste disposal was a very important one, and that the IAEA has a role to play in disseminating information and accelerating research.
At the closing high-level panel of this year's Forum, entitled Radioactive Waste: Meeting the Challenge - Science and Technology for Safe and Sustainable Solutions, Director General Amano was joined by Mr. David Huizenga, President of the 5th Review Meeting of the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel, and Mr. Massimo Garribba, Director of the European Commission (EC) Directorate for Nuclear Safety and Fuel Cycle of the Directorate General for Energy.
More than 300 participants attended the event at the IAEA Headquarters, and included in the audience were waste management experts, as well as diplomats and journalists. Overall, 29 speakers took part in the four sessions and three panels that followed a journey metaphor: Getting Started; Along the Journey; Destination; and the Path Ahead.
From Hungary, Mr. Bálin Nős, Director of Strategy and Technology of the Public Limited Company for Radioactive Waste Management (PURAM) gave a presentation entitled "Disposal Solutions Implemented for Low Level Waste"