Safe handling of natural radioactivity

On Thursday 14 June, Jarlsberg Avis was able to report that the Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority has given NOAH permission to deposit radioactive masses on the island. This permission was granted in December 2017, and is publicly available and is also published here on NOAH's website.

About the permission from the Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority

The permit from the Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority states that up to 100.000 tonnes of alum slate can be deposited in a landfill for ordinary waste per year. Until June 2018, NOAH has received 11.500 tonnes of alum slate, most of which is from the Oslo area. In 2017, no alum slate was deposited.

In the company's application to the Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority, NOAH expresses that we are concerned that established emission limits must be fully justified from an environmental point of view. Measurements of the radioactivity in the discharge water from Langøya in the years 2016 and 2017 show emissions that are well within the limits specified in previous permits. These measurements are published on NOAH's website.

The new permit also states that the Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority "considers the risk of radiation from the landfills and leakage of radioactive substances into the environment to be low, both during operation and after operation has ended". It is further stated in the permit that the emissions of radioactive substances from the business will have "minimal impacts" on the seawater.

What is alum slate and how is it handled? Langøya?

Alum schist is the rock on which large amounts of the inner Oslofjord are built. For example, the building site in the Regjeringskvartalet mainly consists of alum slate, and all over Norway houses are built on this rock.

When alum shale comes into contact with oxygen, chemical processes are set in motion that cause the shale to swell and form sulfuric acid, which means that it is defined as an "acid-forming shale". The shale also contains heavy metals, such as uranium, a very common element in the earth's crust, which emits radon when it decays.

Much of the ordinary waste is received by NOAH Langøya is well suited for stabilizing alum slate. We cover the alum slate with basic masses so that oxygen from air and water does not reach the waste. The sealing layers we place around the alum slate ensure that the waste is not allowed to develop sulfuric acid and that the radiation dose on the surface is reduced to virtually zero.

NOAH will only receive alum shale and other possibly acid-forming rocks with low and natural radioactivity.

NOAH's prerequisite for operating Langøya

NOAH is an industrial company that protects the environment and people against hazardous waste ending up astray. A prerequisite for the operation of Langøya is that we should not cause any serious damage to people or the environment. We can prove that we have been able to do this for the past 25 years, all the while under close monitoring and control from the environmental authorities.

If anyone would like more information about the disposal of alum slate at Langøya or have other questions, we encourage you to contact the company. This applies to residents, politicians, journalists and others who may be interested in our activities. We will respond to the best of our ability. Our contact information is openly available here on our website.