Modeling Radiation Exposure from Normal Release of 137Cs Radionuclide to Groundwater for Post-Closure Assessment of Serpong Near Surface Disposal Demo Facility

Abstract

Near-surface disposal (NSD) has been applied in several countries to dispose of low-level radioactive waste. The demo plant of this disposal type is planned to be constructed in Serpong Nuclear Area, Banten. An assessment of radiation exposure is necessary to ensure the safety requirement of the facility in order to support this program. This study aims to estimate radionuclide migration from the proposed NSD demo facility to the environment and the corresponding total human dose using AMBER mathematical modeling. The representative radionuclide,137Cs, was selected because of its high mobility in the environment and the relatively long half-life in the low-level waste inventory. The scenario considered in the modeling was the normal release to the environment through groundwater. Parameters such as initial radionuclide concentration, soil physical parameters of the study site, and disposal design were entered into AMBER software to be calculated using mathematical formulas. The results show that the radionuclide concentration value in the environment is below the safe limit recommended by the Environmental Supervisory Agency. Likewise, the maximum dose received by the community around the facility is 7.40×10-11 mSv/y, 550 years after the post-closure of the facility, which is also below the regulatory limit of 1 mSv/y for the public.