Status of WIPP (Waste Isolation Pilot Plant) compliance with EPA 40 CFR 191, December 1990
The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is developing the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), located in southeastern New Mexico, for disposal of transuranic wastes generated by defense programs. The DOE must first demonstrate compliance with the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Environmental Standards for the Management and Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel, High-Level and Transuranic Radioactive Wastes hereafter called the Standard. The Containment Requirements in Subpart B of the Standard set limits on the probability that cumulative radionuclide releases to the accessible environment during the 10,000 years following decommissioning of the repository will exceed certain limits. To comply with these requirements, performance assessments must construct a modeling system that can adequately simulate all realistic future states of the repository that might result in radionuclide releases. Because the regulatory limits are probabilistic, performance assessments must accurately reflect variability and uncertainty within all factors that contribute to the simulation, including variability and uncertainty within all factors that contribute to the simulation, including variability in material properties, probabilities of future human actions, and uncertainties inherent in the conceptual and numerical models that simulate reality. This paper describes conceptual and numerical improvements in the performance assessment methodology made during 1990, and summarizes the present status of WIPP performance assessment. All results to date are preliminary, and cannot be used to determine compliance or non-compliance. The DOE anticipates determining compliance after evaluating a final performance assessment in 1994. 11 refs., 3 figs.
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (USA)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- DOE/DP
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC04-76DP00789
- OSTI ID:
- 6149583
- Report Number(s):
- SAND-90-2424C; CONF-910435-9; ON: DE91000030; TRN: 91-004777
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: American Nuclear Society (ANS) international high level radioactive waste management conference, Las Vegas, NV (USA), 28 Apr - 3 May 1991
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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WIPP (Waste Isolation Pilot Plant) performance assessment: A 1990 snapshot of compliance with 40 CFR 191, Subpart B
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Related Subjects
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ALPHA-BEARING WASTES
UNDERGROUND DISPOSAL
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
SPENT FUELS
STANDARDS
COMPLIANCE
SUBSURFACE ENVIRONMENTS
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
SUBSURFACE STRUCTURES
WIPP
PERFORMANCE TESTING
HUMAN INTRUSION
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
MONTE CARLO METHOD
RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT
REGRESSION ANALYSIS
ENERGY SOURCES
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
FUELS
FUNCTIONAL MODELS
MANAGEMENT
MASS TRANSFER
MATERIALS
MATHEMATICS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
NUCLEAR FUELS
PILOT PLANTS
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTE FACILITIES
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
REACTOR MATERIALS
STATISTICS
TESTING
UNDERGROUND FACILITIES
US DOE
US ORGANIZATIONS
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES
052002* - Nuclear Fuels- Waste Disposal & Storage
540230 - Environment
Terrestrial- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)