Investment Portal of the Arctic Zone of the Russian Federation
Key conclusions
Common interests for international cooperation in radiation safety
“Within the Arctic Council, a key format for applied cooperation on this issue is the radiation expert group, which operates within the Council’s working group on preventing, preparing for, and responding to emergencies. The group’s priorities specifically include identifying the levels of radiation risks in the Arctic states and analysing existing gaps and opportunities for reducing them. In particular, we can note the RADSAR project, which is being carried out jointly with the search and rescue expert group and aims to share experience in search and rescue operations in the event of a possible radiation accident at sea,” said Nikolay Korchunov, Chairman of the Arctic Senior Officials and Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“All the environmental issues, including the issue that is the theme of the conference – the raising of submerged objects and vessels – resolving all these issues is in the interests of the widest range of states. The raising and disposal of submerged objects is an extremely important issue for the entire Arctic basin, not just for the Murmansk Region,” said Konstantin Dolgov, Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council’s Committee on Economic Policy (Murmansk Region) and Member of the Council for the Development of the Far East, Arctic, and Antarctica at the Federation Council.
“The laws of physics are the same both abroad and here. There is nothing supernatural in the foreign experience of raising submerged objects. We need to look at the boldness and beauty of the idea and the ability to use what you have,” said Andrey Kramorenko, Doctor of Technical Sciences at the Rescue and Underwater Technologies Research Institute of the Naval Academy Military Educational and Scientific Centre.
Infrastructure and nuclear safety are major challenges for modern Russia
“At the end of the last century, the Russian Federation faced a rather difficult situation with how to ensure the nuclear and radiation safety of the north-western region and the country as a whole. The reasons for this were the large number of decommissioned nuclear submarines and radioisotope thermal power generators, the lack of infrastructure to handle them, the large amount of all types of nuclear fuel and radioactive waste that had accumulated (from low-level to high-level), the presence of emergency submarines, and emergency nuclear fuel. In terms of quantitative indicators, the total activity of all accumulated nuclear materials was about 20 million Curies. The total weight of the radioactive structural materials that had to be disposed of was around 150,000 tonnes. The total weight of the submarine metal that had to be cut was roughly 1.5 million tonnes. These indicators were unattainable at that time in order to secure the appropriate funding,” said Anatoly Grigoryev, Director of International Technical Assistance Projects at Rosatom State Corporation.
“The experience of recent years shows that State Programme 22 ‘Development of the Nuclear Power Industry’ is the most effective of all the state programmes. This programme is filled up with new topics. It has been given very important new assignments from the country’s leadership, such as the Northern Sea Route, the development of the Arctic, as well as the management of first and second class waste,” said Gennady Sklyar, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma’s Committee on Industry and Trade.
“The plant is systematically developing the existing and creating new infrastructure, which has resulted in the enterprise successfully resolving all the tasks that have been assigned and implementing some rather unique projects. As of 2022, the plant has completely decommissioned 46 nuclear submarines of various designs and modifications, nine floating multi-compartment nuclear submarine units, three six-compartment nuclear submarine units, and 50 floating units of previously dismantled nuclear submarines. The plant has put together and transferred for long-term storage 77 single-compartment reactor compartments from previously dismantled nuclear submarines, of which 29 are based on contracts with foreign customers,” said Viktor Shitukhin, Director of the Nerpa Ship Repair Branch of Zvezdochka Ship Repair Centre.
Radiation monitoring: one of the key pillars for ensuring the safety of nature and people
“Roshydromet [the Russian Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring] has been operating in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation for a long time. Now this region has come under close scrutiny due to the fact that we are actively developing the Northern Sea Route and these territories. An enormous nuclear legacy has been accumulated there, which they are planning to raise from the bottom of the Arctic seas, so the role of radiation monitoring can hardly be underestimated. Roshydromet’s Radiation Monitoring Network has been conducting regular observations in the Arctic for a long time. Regular observations of the radiation situation are being carried out there,” said Margarita Katkova, Director of Roshydromet’s NPO Typhoon Laboratory.
“The average AEDR values on the territory of Kildin Island and Teriberka village do not exceed the average annual value for the Murmansk Region of 0.10–0.13 microsieverts per hour. The technogenic radionuclide content in the surrounding terrestrial environment and the coastal marine area is at the level of global fallout. The external exposure dose is due to sources of natural exposure (the technogenic exposure contributes 0.7%). The internal exposure dose from food consumption is 1.3 microsieverts per year,” said Vitaly Starinsky, Researcher at the Burnazyan State Medical Research Centre of the Russian Federal Medical-Biological Agency.
Resolving the issue of submerged nuclear submarines is one of Russia’s top priorities
“A radiation survey of the nuclear submarine K-27 and an assessment of the radiation situation near K-27 were conducted. The initial survey showed that the ME is at a distance of 1–2. From the light hull of the nuclear submarine K-27, it’s no more than 8.3 nanosieverts per hour, which is much less than the average radiation background values on the land surface (taking into account water shielding). A rather positive assessment has been given of the work results. The expedition’s scientific programme has been completed in full,” said Nikolay Knivel, Deputy Director of the Department of Non-proliferation and Physical Protection at Kurchatov Institute National Research Centre.
“There are three main possible options for handling the submerged nuclear submarines K-27 and B-159. They are ‘Monitoring the condition of the nuclear submarine’, ‘Burial’ (‘Sarcophagus’), and ‘Raising’. Monitoring the nuclear submarines is mandatory, starting from the stage when handling operations are launched, but does not solve the problems with the nuclear submarines and is a starting point for making a decision on subsequent handling options. Burial (sarcophagus) localizes a possible area of the contamination of the water area, but does not provide a guaranteed solution to the contamination problem since it is impossible to prevent leaks and guarantee the creation of a sealed shelter in the event of a spontaneous chain reaction in the nuclear submarine’s reactor plant. Raising them is a difficult task technically and technologically, depending on the state of the nuclear submarine’s hull structures and reactor plant element, but solves the problem of preventing contamination and the spread of contamination in the water areas and ports of Murmansk and Arkhangelsk,” said Oleg Vlasov, Chief Project Designer at Malachite St. Petersburg Marine Engineering Office.
“It’s important to acknowledge the results of work to dismantle nuclear submarines and nuclear service vessels. As of 25 July 2022, 134 units have been prepared and are in storage, including 123 units of nuclear submarine reactor compartments,” said Sergey Alekminsky, Director of the North-West Centre of SevRAO, a Branch of Federal Environmental Operator.
Problems
The destructive position of Western countries is hindering solutions to global environmental problems
“As you know, at present, Western countries have basically boycotted Russia within the Arctic Council. Of course, this is bound to cause concern. All these important issues for all countries of the region, including environmental protection and security, have now receded to the shadows, but remain important. I’d like to stress that eliminating the environmental damage that has accumulated, including the raising of radioactive and dangerous objects, remains our steadfast priority […] This issue is becoming increasingly relevant each year as the economic development of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation continues, including the development of the Northern Sea Route, along which the intensity of shipping will only increase,” said Nikolay Korchunov, Chairman of the Arctic Senior Officials and Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“Radioactive waste has been dumped in the Atlantic in different years and in different volumes (based on the extent to which the mass of the dumping increased) by: Italy, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, the USA, and the UK (mainly in the North Atlantic, the English Channel, the Bay of Biscay, and near the East Coast). However, not all the sources pose a radioecological hazard. The danger of the failure of the protective barriers of the submerged objects containing SNF is increasing over time […] The rehabilitation of the Arctic waters is a crucial task,” said Oleg Muratov, Member of the Public Council of Rosatom State Corporation.
Developing the Northern Sea Route requires solving a wide range of problems in the region
“The Northern Sea Route cannot be developed and transformed into a global transport corridor that will effectively work for the country and the whole world without solving all the problems that have accumulated over the years. This includes raising our nuclear submarines, however the Rosatom corporation will not only have to create a new icebreaking and accompanying fleet and not only manage the Northern Sea Route. The corporation will also have to build infrastructure for people to work and live on the coast and a new communication system. Such problems cannot be solved without uniting the efforts of agencies and financial institutions,” said Gennady Sklyar, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma’s Committee on Industry and Trade.
“Estimates show that there are more than 100 submerged objects in the coastal strip and waters of Kola Bay. The total area of submerged vessels of other designs at the bottom of Kola Bay is around 3,000 hectares. There are submerged vessels that have fuel, including nuclear materials [...] Clearing out submerged vessels from Kola Bay and the entire water area of the Barents Sea and the northern basin will also solve issues related to fish migration (Kola Bay is a water body with a high degree of fisheries sensitivity), help to promote domestic tourism, and solve environmental issues and many other issues that are extremely important in a broad international context […] There are many issues that are not fully regulated by existing Russian legislation regarding submerged objects in inland sea waters,” said Konstantin Dolgov, Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council’s Committee on Economic Policy (Murmansk Region) and Member of the Council for the Development of the Far East, Arctic, and Antarctica at the Federation Council.
“The main sources of the radioactive contamination of Russia’s Arctic zone and the Novaya Zemlya archipelago are: nuclear tests in 1945–1990 on the Novaya Zemlya archipelago; the Chernobyl accident in 1986; Western European nuclear fuel processing plants; the radiochemical enterprises of Russia; the Kola and Bilibino NPPs; radioisotope thermoelectric generators (Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) and Wrangel Island); underground nuclear explosions; and elevated levels of natural radionuclides during offshore oil and gas production,” said Margarita Katkova, Director of Roshydromet’s NPO Typhoon Laboratory.
“To rehabilitate Russia’s Arctic zone from submerged nuclear and radiation hazardous objects and constantly monitor the radiation situation in the Arctic, we need to conduct a series of specialized expeditions, which will require the creation of a unique range of scientific and technological support to prepare for this work,” said Alexey Kazennov, Laboratory Director at the Kurchatov Institute National Research Centre.
The problem of raising hazardous objects in the Arctic Ocean needs to be solved jointly
“The problem has spread beyond the borders of the Russian Federation. It has become a subject of discussion by the international community and the governments of countries. In 2002, at a meeting that our president attended, a declaration was signed on the Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction. The appropriate intergovernmental agreements were adopted both on a bilateral and multilateral basis within this framework. At present, they exist and remain in effect. In principle, they could be put to use, but most of the countries with which we have collaborated and are ready to cooperate have refused to deal with this issue. To determine priorities in this matter, a comprehensive hazard assessment and ranking was carried out with the involvement of [Russian] scientists and the international community, and experts developed integral assessments of radiation hazards. Objects located on the shore represented the greatest danger. This includes the facilities of the coastal technical base in Andreyev Bay, Gremikha Bay, the Lepse floating technical base, and support vessels,” said Anatoly Grigoriev, Director of International Technical Assistance Projects at Rosatom State Corporation.
The most hazardous objects need to be identified and classified
“The number one objective that should have been solved was the preparation of initial data for further analysis. The main array of initial data was taken from the register of potentially hazardous underwater objects, which was created and maintained by the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations. This data was analysed, corrected, and supplemented, where necessary. The next task was to identify the most radiologically hazardous objects by ranking them according to radiation factors […] Six units were identified as the most hazardous objects, all of which contain nuclear fuel on board. For each of these facilities, an analysis was conducted on possible accident scenarios with the release of radioactivity into the environment,” said Mikhail Kobrinsky, Candidate of Physical and Mathematical Sciences and a Senior Researcher and Deputy Department Director at the Nuclear Safety Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
“All nuclear objects are hazardous. There are no exceptions […] Radiation effects are possible. The condition of the nuclear submarines K-27 and B-159 is unknown. Self-sustaining chain reactions are possible when water enters the core of the reactor plant. It was assumed that certain volumes of water could enter there. For example, coolant contracts by 1.8% when it is cooled, which is 3 litres for the entire core,” said Ivan Savelyev, Laboratory Director at the Leipunsky Physics and Energy Institute State Scientific Centre of the Russian Federation.
“Based on our estimates, we believe that accidents during the raising of the B-159, if there is no self-sustaining chain reaction, will result in the release of radionuclides into the environment, but its radiation impact on personnel, the public, and the environment will not exceed permissible levels if appropriate measures are taken,” said Andrey Glukhov, Chief Design Engineer of the Power Engineering Research and Design Institute.
“The lifting plans, organization, and device for raising the K-27 and B-159 nuclear submarines have been repeatedly discussed and considered since 2003. To date, it was only in 2021 that we wrote regulations, and rules appeared. Does this mean I think these vessels are safe? We’re not talking about safety. Here we’re talking about minimizing the nuances that will arise with this vessel regardless. We have to understand this and focus precisely on this when preparing the design documents that were discussed earlier [...] Malachite St. Petersburg Marine Engineering Office is the designer of this vessel. We are responsible for signing the documents that should lead to this vessel being raised. I have a whole team working with me. This team needs tools and data that we are lacking. The data that Roshydromet spoke about today – this is the first time I saw it today. This data exists, but we have a disparate picture across the country of where it is accumulated, processed, and coordinated,” said Oleg Vlasov, Chief Project Designer at Malachite St. Petersburg Marine Engineering Office.
Solutions
Russia needs to rely on its own resources to ensure nuclear and radiation safety in the Arctic
“Prior to February 2022, Rosatom, along with the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East, had worked out ways to implement projects as part of the Nuclear Window of the Northern Dimension Environmental Partnership (NDEP) for the rehabilitation of territories in the Arctic zone where submerged and sunken objects with spent nuclear fuel are located. However, on 8 March, the European Commission, Iceland, and Norway issued a joint statement on the suspension of cooperation with Russia through the Northern Dimension. Today, cooperation through the NDEP has been frozen, which, of course, can only cause regret. I would like note that in the current situation, we, for our part, remain open to dialogue with the Council’s partner countries on ways to ensure environmental security in the region [...] At the same time, we intend to develop cooperation and are already doing this, not only with Arctic countries, but also with non-Arctic states that share our approaches to the sustainable development of the Arctic region [...] Obviously, in the current conditions, we must rely on the expertise we have and continue to develop and improve it. This will enable us to successfully fulfil the relevant assignments given by the Russian president in the strategy for the development of the Arctic zone until 2035,” said Nikolay Korchunov, Chairman of the Arctic Senior Officials and Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“The task that we are discussing today, in the new conditions, must primarily be fulfilled by consolidating our own resources within the country. Of course, we also need to develop international cooperation with friendly countries. If this is a strategic task and it’s in the country’s interests, then we need to raise the issue with our large raw material corporations, particularly the ones interested in developing the Arctic and the Northern Sea Route, and tell them ‘hey guys – get involved’. It shouldn’t just be the federal budget, the federal programme, and the president’s decisions. Serious work is needed to find partners who will solve this problem together with us,” said Gennady Sklyar, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma’s Committee on Industry and Trade.
“We are actively working with our colleagues – senators and State Duma deputies – to improve our legislation [...] We don’t have any rules on how to account for ownerless vessels within the internal sea waters of the Russian Federation that are similar to the rules for accounting for ownerless vessels on the country’s inland waterways [...] We need to create an authorized body that would be responsible for establishing the owner of submerged property in internal sea waters, and so on […] It would be absolutely impossible to solve such particularly sensitive issues as raising ships that contain nuclear materials without the scientific and expert potential of our corporation Rosatom,” said Konstantin Dolgov, Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council’s Committee on Economic Policy (Murmansk Region) and Member of the Council for the Development of the Far East, Arctic, and Antarctica at the Federation Council.
“Now we can happily note that we have created supporting infrastructure that can handle nuclear fuel and radioactive waste on the territory of radiation and nuclear hazardous facilities in the Murmansk Region. Each facility is building its own production programme, for which the appropriate financial resources are being allocated. As part of this arrangement, certain results are obtained annually that reduce the radiation potential of the Murmansk Region [...] In an effort to reduce the nuclear potential of the Murmansk Region, we had to make the appropriate decision, develop technology, and introduce it in the Urals. When we were considering approaches, we didn’t know how to deal with such fuels as uranium-zirconium or uranium-beryllium. We managed to establish a production base at Gremikha, where uranium-beryllium fuel is dismantled and sent to Mayak Production Association with the involvement of Atomflot […] Now, the branch of the Federal Ecological Operator has mastered the collection technology. At present, 123 reactor compartments from 120 submarines are in storage. The technology of dismantling support vessels has also been mastered. The technology for dismantling vessels is no less complicated ships than it is for submarines. Unique technologies exist for the disposal of reactor compartments using a submersible vessel […] The onshore complex for handling radioactive waste in Sayda is being put into operation. The Northern Sea Route has been cleared of radioisotope thermogenerators. The results are that the active potential has decreased by more than 50%, the problems of nuclear objects on the coast are steadily declining, and now we can turn our attention to solving problems at sea (the potential for the activity of offshore objects is estimated at 1 million Ci),” said Anatoly Grigoryev, Director of International Technical Assistance Projects at Rosatom State Corporation.
“The desire for long-term monitoring – its effectiveness will be much greater if the appropriate models are developed that predict the risk of depressurization of the protective barriers that exist today and, secondly, an emergency response plan is developed in case of such an emergency event to minimize and prevent such a situation,” said Mikhail Kobrinsky, Candidate of Physical and Mathematical Sciences and a Senior Researcher and Deputy Department Director at the Nuclear Safety Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
“Roshydromet conducted expedition surveys of the Arctic seas together with other interested organizations. Some of the measures were carried out as part of international cooperation with our Norwegian colleagues. Now Roshydromet is working on expeditionary surveys of the bays of Novaya Zemlya as part of the Environmental Protection state program, and the main purpose of these surveys is to monitor radiation in places where there are sunken, submerged nuclear submarines [...] The focuses for the development of the Roshydromet network include: the technical modernization of observation points, radiometric laboratories, and groups; expanding the network of observations to components of the natural environment; marine scientific research in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation – next year we are going to Kildin Island (K-159) – as well as the development of methods to assess the quality of the environment in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation,” said Margarita Katkova, Director of Roshydromet’s NPO Typhoon Laboratory.
Russia’s priority is the safe handling of submerged nuclear submarines in the Arctic
“Knowing what we are dealing with and how to work with it, the [Physics and Energy Institute] in 2021 developed a regulation to ensure nuclear and radiation safety when handling the K-27 and B-159 nuclear submarines. This document defines the following concepts: project documentation, normal and safe operation modes, their conditions and limits, nuclear hazardous zones, nuclear backscattering, nuclear hazardous sites, work areas, the participants in the work (the main executor of the work, organization of the scientific leader, state commission, operational personnel, emergency rescue teams, group of experts, etc.), their functions and responsibilities, etc. This document sets out the principles for ensuring safety, sets quantitative safety criteria based on the maximum possible self-sustaining chain reaction, sets safe distances for calculating nuclear hazardous zones and work areas (based on possible radiation consequences, which were evaluated),” said Ivan Savelyev, Laboratory Director at the Leipunsky Physics and Energy Institute State Scientific Centre of the Russian Federation.
“When developing design documents to raise the B-159 nuclear submarine, it’s crucial to take into account the risks of emergency situations occurring or developing, work out their possible scenarios, and also perform calculations to justify nuclear safety. Special requirements also need to be developed to ensure nuclear safety when raising the B-159 nuclear submarine, transporting the vessel to its place of disposal, and disposing of it at the ship repair enterprise, taking into account possible emergency situation scenarios,” said Andrey Glukhov, Chief Design Engineer of the Power Engineering Research and Design Institute.
“I would like for today’s conference to bring all the initial data to a single place and analysed, and for two directions to be developed, which should then should converge like two roads. [These directions] are nuclear and radiation safety, and the items that we need to analyse [...] We need to take a comprehensive approach and revise the results of previous work, taking into account the time that has passed and the new proven methods of vessel recovery and new technical equipment […] Malachite St. Petersburg Marine Engineering Office, as the designer of the B-159 and K-27 nuclear submarines, suggests considering the Rise option as a priority for handling nuclear submarines, while cooperating with all interested organizations,” said Oleg Vlasov, Chief Project Designer at Malachite St. Petersburg Marine Engineering Office.
“When determining modern approaches to selecting a technology to raise large submerged objects, it is crucial to factor in that the technology should provide for the use of a ship-lifting complex that most closely matches the conditions for raising the particular submerged object. The ship-lifting complex should be comprised of technical elements that actually exist, have already been mastered by the operating personnel, and […] have already been tested in ship-lifting practice. In doing so, the submerged object will be raised on time, at a minimal cost and, most importantly, safely,” said Andrey Kramorenko, Doctor of Technical Sciences at the Rescue and Underwater Technologies Research Institute of the Naval Academy Military Educational and Scientific Centre.
“We propose incorporating the following proposals into the K-27 nuclear submarine dismantlement concept: consider the feasibility of dividing the nuclear submarine into three parts before raising it: the fore end, the three-compartment block, and the aft end. After raising it, transfer the three-compartment block with unloaded SNF to the coastal shelter of Ustrichny [long-term reactor compartment storage facilities]. The fore end and aft end, depending on the radiation situation, should be transferred for disposal to the enterprises of North-West of Russia (Nerpa Ship Repair Branch),” said Rinat Nizamutdinov, Department Director, Onega Research Design and Technological Office.
“A regulatory document is being prepared to rehabilitate the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation from the flooded and submerged nuclear submarines K-27 and B-159 with spent nuclear fuel. Collaboration has been established with 13 federal executive authorities and organizations in order to prepare a long-term programme for the rehabilitation of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation. Rosatom State Corporation has been appointed as the organizer and coordinator for the raising and dismantlement of the K-27 and B-159 nuclear submarines. At present, a detailed feasibility study needs to be prepared for the Russian government,” said Anatoly Grigoryev, Director of International Technical Assistance Projects at Rosatom State Corporation.
The national nuclear safety and radiation monitoring system needs to be taken to a new level
“It’s important to develop a conceptual design of a special vessel that is designed to work with underwater and surface nuclear and radiation hazardous objects. This vessel should be equipped with a specialized complex that has unique means to search for underwater objects and study radioactive fields in the marine environment, which would be in high demand both in work to rehabilitate the Arctic from its ‘nuclear legacy’, and in future work to ensure nuclear and radiation safety,” said Alexey Kazennov, Laboratory Director at the Kurchatov Institute National Research Centre.
“One important issue is a proposal to create a subsystem for radioecological monitoring and prompt response on the Northern Sea Route. The prerequisites for creating the subsystem are as follows: the growth in transportation along the Northern Sea Route using nuclear icebreakers, the increased transportation of radioactive materials, and the presence of flooded nuclear and radiation hazardous objects in the Arctic region. Another important point is to have constant radiation monitoring as an essential element in ensuring nuclear and radiation safety along the NSR, taking into account its global strategic role. Finally, it’s an important factor to ensure the appropriate scientifically based informing of the authorities, the public, and the media about any situation on the NSR related to the radiation factor in 24/7 mode,” said Sergey Krasnoperov, Department Director at the Nuclear Safety Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences.