TBILISI, June 27 (AVN) - The construction of a repository for radiation wastes will start in autumn this year on the territory of the former Russian 137th military base in Vaziani, Kakha Chitaya, chairman of the Georgian parliament's committee on securing environment and natural resources, said on Wednesday.
The construction project is already co-ordinated with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) which is to allocate USD6m for that purpose, Chitaya told the Military News Agency. The construction will be observed by foreign specialists which is to guarantee its reliability and security.
The territory choice is backed by the fact that during the Soviet Union times one of the base's installations was used for stockpiling radiation substances and that is why its re-production into the modern repository would not be very expensive. The repository will be used for burying the radiation substances and radiation emission sources found in Georgia after the withdrawal of Soviet and Russian military units. The burial of nuclear wastes from outside Georgia is completely out of the question, Chitaya stressed.