Abstract
D.Phil.
The existence of radioactive waste (or ‘radwaste’) has become a problem that afflicts the nuclear
industry worldwide. The search for a social consensus on radwaste management strategies is proving
to be one of the most complex challenges facing nuclear technological development. The categories of
radwastes that are currently of greatest concern are spent nuclear fuel (SF) that is discharged from
nuclear power reactors and high level waste (HLW) arising from reprocessing of SF, as they continue
to accumulate in storage facilities around the world and perceived to be without an end solution to
their existence. Like many other nuclear countries, South Africa too is facing major decisions about
future management of SF that is generated from its nuclear power and research reactors. It remains
undecided on which of the available spent fuel management (SFM) options it must adopt.
This research study seeks to produce a framework for evaluating SFM options that will identify and
characterise the elements or aspects to be analysed, and use it to evaluate the SFM options in order to
identify a preferred or optimum option for South Africa. The methodological approach to this study
involves the use of literature research, a case study on Eskom’s SFM approach and a questionnairebased
survey complemented by in-depth interviews with key stakeholders of nuclear power in South
Africa. These qualitative methods are used to verify and validate the SFM evaluation framework. To
complement the qualitative approach, a cost analysis of the options based on input from Eskom and
literature data as well as on assumed scenarios, is carried out. Both the qualitative and the cost analysis
lead to identification of a preferred SFM option for South Africa.
Three principal SFM options were identified and evaluated: the reprocessing and recycling (or closed
fuel cycle) option, the direct disposal (or once-through fuel cycle) option, and the indefinite storage (or
deferral-of-a-decision) option. There are at least nine categories of issues that have been identified as
factors affecting these SFM options: technology, safety, environmental impact, proliferation resistance,
physical security, economics, sociopolitical influence, ethical principles and institutional capability.
These formed the evaluation framework and were used as the criteria for the assessment of the SFM
options. Based on the analysis conducted in the study concerning the feasibility of the SFM options for
the South African context in terms of these criteria, it is concluded that the direct disposal option is the
most favourable option for implementation in the South African nuclear power programme. However,
all three options have their technical merits but are also contentious in various degrees both within the
nuclear industry and the public domain.