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Title: A method for specifying a human intrusion rate for performance assessments of geologic disposal

Conference · · Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States)
OSTI ID:6962068
 [1]
  1. Environmental Evaluation Group, Albuquerque, NM (United States)

To demonstrate the safety of a nuclear waste repository, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires consideration of inadvertent human intrusion in performance assessments. The specification of a rate of such intrusion for 10,000 yr is a difficult task. Hitherto there have been two approaches. The EPA has provided [open quotes]guidance[close quotes] on this rate of intrusion from 3 to 30 boreholes/km 2 for 10 000 yr. For the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, intended to demonstrate the safe disposal of defense-generated transuranic waste, the U.S. Department of Energy has chosen to predict the rate of intrusion using subjective judgment. Hora et al. elicited judgments of future states of society, probability of markers surviving, and probability of markers deterring inadvertent intrusion to obtain a time-dependent intrusion rate.

OSTI ID:
6962068
Report Number(s):
CONF-931160-; CODEN: TANSAO
Journal Information:
Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States), Vol. 69; Conference: American Nuclear Society (ANS) winter meeting, San Francisco, CA (United States), 14-18 Nov 1993; ISSN 0003-018X
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English