Malaysian team studies Indonesian agency’s radioactive waste management

JAKARTA – A delegation from the Department of Atomic Energy, Malaysia, visited Indonesia to study the regulations and management of radioactive waste by the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), reported ANTARA news agency.

Director-general of Atom Malaysia, Noraishah Binti Pungut, in her statement on Thursday said that Malaysia has faced issues in developing the capabilities of regulatory bodies, including regarding nuclear waste.

"We visited so we can discuss and share information regarding waste processing in Indonesia, especially at BRIN," said Pungut.

Atom Malaysia is the body responsible for the regulation and supervision of nuclear energy activities in Malaysia.

On Oct 11, the Malaysian atomic delegation visited the B.J. Habibie Science and Technology Area (KST) in South Tangerang, Banten province.

The visit was part of a series of bilateral meetings and technical visits in connection with a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the governments of Malaysia and Indonesia.

Pungut said it is hoped that the visit will improve views on waste management, both in terms of supervision and regulation.

"This information will certainly enrich and strengthen Atom Malaysia's capacity as a supervisory body. We want to study how Indonesia manages radioactive waste," she added.

BRIN lead expert nuclear technology developer Suryantoro said that Indonesia currently has quite strict, broad, and comprehensive regulations regarding radioactive waste.

Indonesia already has relatively comprehensive regulations regarding radioactive waste management. The official body in charge of regulating the licensing and supervision of nuclear technology, including the protection of radioactive sources, is the Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency (Bapeten).

According to Suryantoro, BRIN already has centralised and controlled radioactive waste management facilities.

"To manage radioactive waste originating from the five large islands in Indonesia as well as from other islands throughout Indonesia, BRIN already has a centralised facility located in Serpong," he said.

"If a nuclear power plant (PLTN) is built in Indonesia, other waste management facilities can be built near the PLTN location," Suryantoro added. – Bernama-Antara, October 13, 2023

TAGS: Indonesia, Malaysia, BRIN, radioactive waste management