School of Geological Disposal
Siting, site investigations and site characterisation
| Level | 2 |
| Target group | The site investigation management of a waste disposal organisation, especially those for scientifically based investigations of the soil, bedrock and ground surface. Trainees are people already working in the field of radioactive waste disposal. |
| Purpose | Give the trainees both a broad and fairly deep insight to the processes of siting, site investigation and site characterisation of a site for radioactive waste disposal. Learn about methods and measures needed to understand the properties of the geological media properties at (the) site(s) considered suitable for the location of a repository for nuclear waste. |
| Lecturer | Peter Wikberg, Site investigation manager Assen Simeonov, Senior geologist, investigations and modelling Ulrik Kautsky, Coordinator of Biosphere program Magnus Odén, Hydrogeologist and modelling Kent Werner, Hydrogeologist Martin Löfgren, Expert on radionuclide migration (test and modelling) Cecilia Berg, Hydrogeochemist Anny Höglund, Geologist Lino Nilsson, Hydrogeochemist |
| Type | Online course with presentation modules and four live streamed events. Opportunity to ask questions to lecturers who will give answers during the course. |
| Prerequisite | Basic to expert understanding of the processes of siting/site investigation/site characterisation. |
| Extent | Nine presentation modules with lengths around 60 to 90 minutes each. |
| Examination | Short exercises are included in the course. |
| Date | Q2 2025 |
| Contact person | Erik Thurner (erik.thurner@skb.se) |
Course description
This course is intended for those working with siting and investigations to identify and assess a geological disposal facility for a nuclear waste disposal programme. It covers all aspects related to the needs of a safety assessment and technical developments of a repository.
It does not include the licensing process which is governed by the national regulations and acceptance. Those issues are to be covered by a separate course.
The material is based on the experiences from the Swedish Nuclear waste disposal programme. It is mainly concentrated to the so called KBS-3 concept for disposal of spent nuclear fuel. However, site investigations for other type of nuclear waste (low and intermediate level) are also included.
The purpose of the course is to give the trainees a good understanding of the different areas that need to be covered during the site investigation of a nuclear waste disposal site. It is most useful for persons who have already been working for a few years in the field and who are involved in the siting, site investigation or site characterisation processes.
Preliminary contents
Ten different presentations are available, each of them listed below:
- Identification, location and selection of a geological disposal site
- Planning of the investigations
- Execution of the investigations
- Discipline specific investigations and evaluation
- Geology including rock mechanics
- Hydrogeology
- Hydrogeochemistry
- Surface ecology including surface hydrology
- Radionuclide transport specific investigations
- Site descriptive modelling to integrate all disciplines for the assessment of long-term safety of a repository at the site.
What we offer
If you have interest in this course please register your interest here.