Low-level radioactive waste regulation: Science, politics and fear

Book · Fri Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1988

OSTI ID:7127683

Burns, M E ^[1]

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1. ed.

An inevitable consequence of the use of radioactive materials is the generation of radioactive wastes and the public policy debate over how they will be managed. In 1980, Congress shifted responsibility for the disposal of low-level radioactive wastes from the federal government to the states. This act represented a sharp departure from more than 30 years of virtually absolute federal control over radioactive materials. Though this plan had the enthusiastic support of the states in 1980, it now appears to have been at best a chimera. Radioactive waste management has become an increasingly complicated and controversial issue for society in recent years. This book discusses only low-level wastes, however, because Congress decided for political reasons to treat them differently than high-level wastes. The book is based in part on three symposia sponsored by the division of Chemistry and the Law of the American Chemical Society. Each chapter is derived in full or in part from presentations made at these meetings, and includes: (1) Low-level radioactive wastes in the nuclear power industry; (2) Low-level radiation cancer risk assessment and government regulation to protect public health; and (3) Low-level radioactive waste: can new disposal sites be found.

• OSTI ID: 7127683
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

052000* -- Nuclear Fuels-- Waste Management
054000 -- Nuclear Fuels-- Health & Safety
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
290300 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Environment
Health
& Safety
CARCINOGENESIS
DISEASES
HAZARDS
HEALTH HAZARDS
INSTITUTIONAL FACTORS
LOW-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS
NEOPLASMS
PATHOGENESIS
POLITICAL ASPECTS
RADIATION HAZARDS
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
REGULATIONS
RISK ASSESSMENT
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES