IAEA's latest online courses cover spent nuclear fuel, waste management

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The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) recently launched a new series of e-learning modules to address the management of used nuclear fuel, radioactive waste and clean-up at former nuclear facilities.

The free comprehensive package will allow people to understand the approaches, responsibilities and technologies that are part of the “back end” of nuclear fuel cycles, which include preparing spent nuclear materials for disposal.

Using the new overview map, people can search for specific topics that most interest them under four principal subject categories: radioactive-waste management, spent-fuel management, environmental remediation and decommissioning. Radioactive waste management includes pre-disposal and disposal of waste, as well as managing disused sealed radioactive sources.

Each module includes one to four lectures, each of which lasts for approximately 30 minutes and includes short video clips, animation, illustrations, quizzes, narrative explanations and photos.

The interactive system includes a glossary to help users with industry language.