KINS is providing technical support to the Korean Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC) in its review of the construction permit and operating licence application submitted by the Korea Radioactive Waste Agency (KORAD) for the Wolsong Low and Intermediate Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Centre (WLDC). As part of its review process, KINS is conducting an independent safety assessment from the regulatory point of view. Nevertheless, KINS recognises the value of undertaking an independent implementation of the safety assessment calculations in a different software tool to that used by the implementer; this approach has already been adopted in other countries including Sweden and Belgium. Gaining the ability to undertake an independent implementation is a key reason why KINS purchased an AMBER licence and attended a bespoke training course.

The AMBER training course focussed on the use of the software for post-closure ‘total system’ safety assessment. The course was structured around international guidance on safety assessment and its contribution to the wider safety case for radioactive waste disposal. The training included a mixture of theory, hands-on and collaborative discussion sessions.

The participants gained experience in developing and justifying post-closure safety assessment models, as well as expert support in implementing those models in the 3D spatial, fully-transparent and auditable approach that is facilitated by AMBER. The training included advanced sessions concerning time dependency, uncertainty and confidence building and included examples of AMBER’s application to the Canadian Deep Geologic Repository (DGR) for low and intermediate-level radioactive waste and to the Dounreay shaft post closure environmental safety case.