Federal facilities for storing spent nuclear fuel: are they needed

Technical Report · Wed Jun 27 04:00:00 EDT 1979

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/6362934· OSTI ID:6362934

In late 1977, the Department of Energy announced a policy to accept and take title to spent nuclear fuel accumulating at reactor sites. The intent was to remove uncertainty facing utilities caused by storing ever increasing quantities of spent fuel indefinitely. The Department said it would need both interim and permanent spent-fuel storage facilities. GAO found that the commercial nuclear industry is technically capable of providing needed interim spent-fuel storage capacity. Options are available for both on- and off-site storage which utilities and the nuclear industry have yet to fully explore. The Department's policy to provide interim spent-fuel storage has caused uncertainties, and even delays and cancellations in industry plans to provide its own increased storage capacity. GAO concludes, therefore, that the Department should not develop an interim spent-fuel storage program. Instead, it should concentrate its efforts on getting resolution to the question of whether commercial spent fuel will be processed and how and where spent fuel will be permanently stored.

• Research Organization: General Accounting Office, Washington, DC (USA)
• OSTI ID: 6362934
• Report Number(s): EMD-79-82
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

050900* -- Nuclear Fuels-- Transport
Handling
& Storage
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
290600 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Nuclear Energy
GOVERNMENT POLICIES
INDUSTRY
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUCLEAR INDUSTRY
RECOMMENDATIONS
SPENT FUEL STORAGE
STORAGE FACILITIES
US DOE
US ORGANIZATIONS