Support of the nuclear supervision as an expert consulted according to § 20 AtG in the field of assessment of issues relating to mining, ventilation and rope rope installations.

By planning approval decision (PFB) of 22.05.2002, the construction and operation of the Konrad mine in Salzgitter as a facility for the final disposal of solid or solidified radioactive waste with negligible heat generation was approved. The licence holder is the Federal Republic of Germany, which has entrusted the task of constructing and operating the repository to a third party, BGE mbH. The PFB therefore also applies for and against BGE mbH.

The supervision under nuclear law of the disposal facilities pursuant to § 9a (3) AtG and the Asse II mine regulated in § 19 (5) AtG is carried out by the Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Management (BASE).

The competence of the BASE results from § 23d sentence 1 no. 2 AtG. Within BASE, the Department of Nuclear Law Supervision (A 5) on the final repositories for radioactive waste is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the PFB by BGE mbH. In addition, numerous ancillary provisions of the PFB Konrad provide for an examination of the conformity with the approval before implementing concrete plans or a subsequent examination of compliance with requirements by the nuclear regulatory authority. For a large number of tests, the BASE is required to consult an expert.

The contractor or the employees designated by him for the fulfilment of the contract shall act as experts within the meaning of § 20 AtG. The object of the service to be provided is to advise the nuclear supervisory authority on technical issues and to carry out tests with regard to compliance with nuclear law requirements for the safety-relevant plant components and mine buildings of the Konrad repository.

Hauptseilfahrtanlage

The Konrad repository consists of the Konrad 1 and Konrad 2 shafts.Konrad 2 shaft is designed as an emplacement shaft. This is to be equipped with a new main rope transport system both for passenger transport (rope travel) and for the transport of waste containers underground. For the main rope travel facility, there are nuclear law requirements that go beyond the existing requirements under mining law.

The requirements for the Konrad 2 main rope rig are described in the approval document "System description storage system" (EU 208). These are derived from the accident analysis of the planning approval procedure (EU 324) and the mining regulations (BVOS, TAS, ElBergV etc.).

In order to monitor compliance with the requirements for the main rope travel system during construction, preliminary tests and acceptance tests must be carried out. The content and scope of the preliminary and acceptance tests under nuclear law are specified in the approval document "Component specification main rope travel system of the Konrad 2 shaft hoisting system" (EU 409). The task of the nuclear regulatory supervisory expert is to carry out the technical examinations required in accordance with EU 409 (Chapters 3 and 9), taking into account the ancillary provisions A.3 - 85 to A.3 - 88.

The tests on the nuclear requirements for the main rope rope rig are carried out on the basis of the preliminary test documents to be submitted by the BGE. Part of these preliminary test documents will be, among other things, an implementation plan pre-checked by a recognized expert in accordance with the provisions of BVOS. The results of the preliminary examination carried out in advance in accordance with mining law are to be taken as a basis for the preliminary examination under nuclear law. The preliminary examination of the implementation planning to be carried out here under nuclear law only assesses the additional requirements derived from nuclear law.

In shaft Konrad 2 a second rope ride system (medium rope rideway) is planned. From a nuclear law point of view, there are no additional requirements for these and therefore they are subject exclusively to the supervision of the competent mining authority.

Other plant parts, systems and components

In addition, the planning documents for the following other plant parts, systems and components must be professionally evaluated on behalf of nuclear supervision:

- Ventilation equipment: The entire ventilation technology with the ventilation locks, the ventilation bridges, the throttles, the weather doors, the auxiliary ventilation systems of the storage area, the main mine ventilator with exchangeable active part and the weather measuring instruments must be evaluated taking into account the ancillary provisions A.1 - 2 and A.3 - 33.

- Schachteinbauten

- Extension of pit spaces

- Mine water disposal: All facilities intended for mine water disposal in the controlled area (RJB)

- Own water supply underground, including extraction from the Konrad 2 shaft

The objective of the expert service to be provided is the evaluation of the implementation plans submitted by the operator with regard to compliance with the requirements prescribed by licensing law. Furthermore, programs created for the implementation of quality assurance measures during construction, functional and acceptance tests as well as programs for commissioning plant parts, systems and components must be checked for correctness and completeness.

In order to participate in functional and acceptance tests and commissioning, it may be necessary to drive through the plant. The client reserves the right to consult the expert for support in questions that require clarification on site. Therefore, journeys to the construction site are to be expected over the entire construction period.

The nuclear law requirements for the buildings were derived in the planning approval procedure, among other things, from the accident analyses. These are specified in the ancillary provisions as well as in the approval documents. The task of nuclear supervision is, among other things, to monitor compliance with these special requirements in the implementation of the PFB by the UBI.

Essentially, the contractor shall provide the following services:

- Support of nuclear supervision in the assessment of a change for its materiality within the meaning of § 9 para. 1 sentence 2 AtG

- Execution of technical examinations in connection with the preliminary examination of implementation plans

- Execution of technical tests of test programs, in particular on the construction-accompanying measures of quality assurance, on the acceptance and functional tests as well as on the commissioning tests

- Monitoring of acceptances and accompanying inspections, which are carried out by the client or the manufacturer

- Participation in on-site acceptances and commissioning

- Participation in technical discussions

In individual cases, the service includes the technical examination of documents and data submitted to the supervisory authority. The documents and data must be checked for their content, comprehensibility and technical accuracy. The results of the tests should be presented in an expert opinion. The respective form of the expert opinion (test report, statement, protocol, etc.) is coordinated with the client.

The client reserves the right to consult the expert for support in questions that require clarification on site. In particular, it is necessary to enter the Konrad repository in order to carry out accompanying inspections, acceptances, participation in inspections and periodic inspections.

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Further information can be found in the service description.