America's nuclear waste backlog
This report discusses three topics: concern and controversy relating to nuclear waste; high-level waste storage and politics of waste disposal. The most pressing waste disposal problem concerns spent fuel assemblies from commercial nuclear power plants. It was expected that commercial spent fuel would be sent to commercial reprocessing plants. The feasibility of commercial reprocessing in the United States is contingent on the expansion of the nuclear power industry. The current high-level liquid waste inventory is about 77 million gallons. These are stored at Richland, Washington; Aiken, South Carolina; and Idaho Falls, Idaho. The only commercial high-level wastes ever produced are stored at the defunct reprocessing facility at West Valley, New York. A high-level waste repository must be capable of isolating wastes that will remain dangerous for thousands of years. Salt has long been considered the most suitable medium for high-level and transuranic waste disposal. The timetable for opening a deep geological repository is one of the issues that will have to be dealt with by Congress. The 97th Congress appears ready to act on high-level nuclear waste legislation. Even opponents of nuclear expansion admit the necessity of legislation. Even if Congress gets its act together, it does not mean that the nuclear waste issue is gone. There are still unknowns - future of reprocessing, the needs and demands of the military; the health of the nuclear power industry; the objections of residents in potential site areas; the possibility of a state veto, and the unsolved technological problems in geologic site selection. (DP)
- OSTI ID:
- 5863084
- Journal Information:
- Ed. Res. Rep.; (United States), Vol. 11:21
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
98 NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT, SAFEGUARDS, AND PHYSICAL PROTECTION
RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL
POLITICAL ASPECTS
USA
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
LEGISLATION
RADIOACTIVE WASTE FACILITIES
RADIOACTIVE WASTE STORAGE
SALT DEPOSITS
SITE SELECTION
SPENT FUEL STORAGE
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
INSTITUTIONAL FACTORS
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS
NORTH AMERICA
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
STORAGE
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE STORAGE
WASTES
052002* - Nuclear Fuels- Waste Disposal & Storage
055002 - Nuclear Fuels- Safeguards
Inspection
& Accountability- Nontechnical Aspects