Ministry says committee appointed 35 experts for radioactive waste panels

The ministry said that the High-Level Radioactive Waste Management Committee had appointed 35 experts to four panels for expert review of high-level radioactive waste policy.

The panels are expert deliberative bodies established under the Special Act on the Management of High-Level Radioactive Waste to support policy expertise for what the ministry described as a national challenge.

The experts will be divided among panels covering siting, storage and transport, disposal and public communication. Candidates were recommended by 25 institutions, including relevant associations, academic societies, research institutes and civil-society groups. They were appointed to two-year terms after qualifications were verified.

The panels will hold their first meeting on Aug. 21 at Sangyeonjae in Jung-gu, Seoul, to examine a draft third basic plan for high-level radioactive waste management and proposed criteria for excluding unsuitable facility sites.

"The launch of the expert panels, composed of leading specialists in each field, will be an important foundation for securing public trust in policy through high-level expertise," Kim Hyun-kwon, the committee's chair, said. "Through thorough scientific verification and sincere communication, we will establish a high-level radioactive waste management system that the public can trust and feel confident in."

The panels will continue discussing site selection and support for surveyed and host regions, as well as Korean disposal technology development and acquisition and mid- and long-term public communication strategies.