Ground-water sampling of the NNWSI (Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigation) water table test wells surrounding Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matuska, N.A.

1988-12-01

The US Geological Survey (USGS), as part of the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigation (NNWSI) study of the water table in the vicinity of Yucca Mountain, completed 16 test holes on the Nevada Test Site and Bureau of Land Management-administered lands surrounding Yucca Mountain. These 16 wells are monitored by the USGS for water-level data; however, they had not been sampled for ground-water chemistry or isotropic composition. As part of the review of the proposed Yucca Mountain high-level nuclear waste repository, the Desert Research Institute (DRI) sampled six of these wells. The goal of this sampling program was to measure field-dependent parameters of the water such as electrical conductivity, pH, temperature and dissolved oxygen, and to collect samples for major and minor element chemistry and isotopic analysis. This information will be used as part of a program to geochemically model the flow direction between the volcanic tuff aquifers and the underlying regional carbonate aquifer

A compound power-law model for volcanic eruptions: Implications for risk assessment of volcanism at the proposed nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ho, Chih-Hsiang

1994-01-01

Much of the ongoing debate on the use of nuclear power plants in U.S.A. centers on the safe disposal of the radioactive waste. Congress, aware of the importance of the waste issue, passed the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, requiring the federal government to develop a geologic repository for the permanent disposal of high level radioactive wastes from civilian nuclear power plants. The Department of Energy (DOE) established the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) in 1983 to identify potential sites. When OCRWM had selected three potential sites to study, Congress enacted the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987, which directed the DOE to characterize only one of those sites, Yucca Mountain, in southern Nevada. For a site to be acceptable, theses studies must demonstrate that the site could comply with regulations and guidelines established by the federal agencies that will be responsible for licensing, regulating, and managing the waste facility. Advocates and critics disagree on the significance and interpretation of critical geological features which bear on the safety and suitability of Yucca Mountain as a site for the construction of a high-level radioactive waste repository. Recent volcanism in the vicinity of Yucca Mountain is readily recognized as an important factor in determining future public and environmental safety because of the possibility of direct disruption of a repository site by volcanism. In particular, basaltic volcanism is regarded as direct and unequivocal evidence of deep-seated geologic instability. In this paper, statistical analysis of volcanic hazard assessment at the Yucca Mountain site is discussed, taking into account some significant geological factors raised by experts. Three types of models are considered in the data analysis. The first model assumes that both past and future volcanic activities follow a homogeneous Poisson process (HPP)

Nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-01-01

The Department of Energy has proposed a draft plan for investigating the Yucca Mountain, Nevada, site to determine if it suitable for a waste repository. This fact sheet provides information on the status of DOE's and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's efforts to streamline what NRC expects will be the largest and most complex nuclear-licensing proceeding in history, including the development of an electronic information management system called the Licensing Support System

Nuclear waste: Quarterly report on DOE's nuclear waste program as of March 31, 1988

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-01-01

As part of the Department of Energy's implementation of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, DOE is required to investigate a site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada and, if it determines that the site is suitable, recommended to the President its selection for a nuclear waste repository. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission, in considering development of the plan, issued five objections, one of which is DOE's failure to recognize the range of alternative conceptual models of the Yucca Mountain site that can be supported by the limited existing technical data. At the end of the quarter DOE directed its project offices in Washington and Texas to begin an orderly phase-out of all site-specific repository activities. Costs for this phase-out are $53 million of the Deaf Smith site and $85 million for the Hanford site

Nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-01-01

The Privacy Act of 1974 restricts both the type of information on private individuals that federal agencies may maintain in their records and the conditions under which such information may be disclosed. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which must approve DOE plans to build a nuclear waste repository at the Yucca Mountain site in Nevada, requires a quality assurance program to guarantee that studies of the site are done by qualified employees. Under such a program, the training and qualifications of DOE and contractor employees would be verified. This report reviews DOE's efforts to identify and resolve the implications of the Privacy Act for DOE's quality assurance program and how the delay in resolving Privacy Act issues may have affected preliminary work on the Yucca Mountain project

Draft environmental assessment: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada. Nuclear Waste Policy Act (Section 112)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-12-01

In February 1983, the US Department of Energy (DOE) identified the Yucca Mountain site in Nevada as one of nine potentially acceptable sites for a mined geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. To determine their suitability, the Yucca Mountain site and the eight other potentially acceptable sites have been evaluated in accordance with the DOE's General Guidelines for the Recommendation of Sites for Nuclear Waste Repositories. These evaluations are reported in this draft environmental assessment (EA), which is being issued for public review and comment. The DOE findings and determinations that are based on these evaluations are preliminary and subject to public review and comment. A final EA will be prepared after considering the comments received on the draft EA. The Yucca Mountain site is located in the Great Basin, one of five distinct geohydrologic settings that are being considered for the first repository. On the basis of the evaluations reported in this draft EA, the DOE has found that the Yucca Mountain site is not disqualified under the guidelines. The DOE has also found that it is suitable for site characterization because the evidence does not support a conclusion that the site will not be able to meet each of the qualifying conditions specified in the guidelines. On the basis of these findings, the DOE is proposing to nominate the Yucca Mountain site as one of five sites suitable for characterization. Furthermore, having performed a comparative evaluation of the five sites proposed for nomination, the DOE has determined that the Yucca Mountain site is one of three sites preferred for site characterization

Environmental program planning for the proposed high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-08-01

This report was prepared to illustrate the policy and actions that the State of Nevada believe are required to assure that the quality of the environment is adequately considered during the course of the DOE work at the proposed high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. The report describes the DOE environmental program and the studies planned by NWPO to reflect the State's position toward environmental protection. 41 refs., 2 figs., 11 tabs

Selection of candidate container materials for the conceptual waste package design for a potential high level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Van Konynenburg, R.A.; Halsey, W.G.; McCright, R.D.; Clarke, W.L. Jr. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (United States); Gdowski, G.E. [KMI, Inc., Albuquerque, NM (United States)

1993-02-01

Preliminary selection criteria have been developed, peer-reviewed, and applied to a field of 41 candidate materials to choose three alloys for further consideration during the advanced conceptual design phase of waste package development for a potential high level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. These three alloys are titanium grade 12, Alloy C-4, and Alloy 825. These selections are specific to the particular conceptual design outlined in the Site Characterization Plan. Other design concepts that may be considered in the advanced conceptual design phase may favor other materials choices.

Selection of candidate container materials for the conceptual waste package design for a potential high level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Konynenburg, R.A.; Halsey, W.G.; McCright, R.D.; Clarke, W.L. Jr.; Gdowski, G.E.

1993-02-01

Preliminary selection criteria have been developed, peer-reviewed, and applied to a field of 41 candidate materials to choose three alloys for further consideration during the advanced conceptual design phase of waste package development for a potential high level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. These three alloys are titanium grade 12, Alloy C-4, and Alloy 825. These selections are specific to the particular conceptual design outlined in the Site Characterization Plan. Other design concepts that may be considered in the advanced conceptual design phase may favor other materials choices

Is Yucca Mountain a long-term solution for disposing of US spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste?

Science.gov (United States)

Thorne, M C

2012-06-01

On 26 January 2012, the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future released a report addressing, amongst other matters, options for the managing and disposal of high-level waste and spent fuel. The Blue Ribbon Commission was not chartered as a siting commission. Accordingly, it did not evaluate Yucca Mountain or any other location as a potential site for the storage or disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste. Nevertheless, if the Commission's recommendations are followed, it is clear that any future proposals to develop a repository at Yucca Mountain would require an extended period of consultation with local communities, tribes and the State of Nevada. Furthermore, there would be a need to develop generally applicable regulations for disposal of spent fuel and high-level radioactive waste, so that the Yucca Mountain site could be properly compared with alternative sites that would be expected to be identified in the initial phase of the site-selection process. Based on what is now known of the conditions existing at Yucca Mountain and the large number of safety, environmental and legal issues that have been raised in relation to the DOE Licence Application, it is suggested that it would be imprudent to include Yucca Mountain in a list of candidate sites for future evaluation in a consent-based process for site selection. Even if there were a desire at the local, tribal and state levels to act as hosts for such a repository, there would be enormous difficulties in attempting to develop an adequate post-closure safety case for such a facility, and in showing why this unsaturated environment should be preferred over other geological contexts that exist in the USA and that are more akin to those being studied and developed in other countries.

YUCCA MOUNTAIN PROJECT RECOMMENDATION BY THE SECRETARY OF ENERGY REGARDING THE SUITABILITY OF THE YUCCA MOUNTAIN SITE FOR A REPOSITORY UNDER THE NUCLEAR WASTE POLICY ACT OF 1982

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NA

2002-03-26

For more than half a century, since nuclear science helped us win World War II and ring in the Atomic Age, scientists have known that !he Nation would need a secure, permanent facility in which to dispose of radioactive wastes. Twenty years ago, when Congress adopted the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (NWPA or ''the Act''), it recognized the overwhelming consensus in the scientific community that the best option for such a facility would be a deep underground repository. Fifteen years ago, Congress directed the Secretary of Energy to investigate and recommend to the President whether such a repository could be located safely at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Since then, our country has spent billions of dollars and millions of hours of research endeavoring to answer this question. I have carefully reviewed the product of this study. In my judgment, it constitutes sound science and shows that a safe repository can be sited there. I also believe that compelling national interests counsel in favor of proceeding with this project. Accordingly, consistent with my responsibilities under the NWPA, today I am recommending that Yucca Mountain be developed as the site for an underground repository for spent fuel and other radioactive wastes. The first consideration in my decision was whether the Yucca Mountain site will safeguard the health and safety of the people, in Nevada and across the country, and will be effective in containing at minimum risk the material it is designed to hold. Substantial evidence shows that it will. Yucca Mountain is far and away the most thoroughly researched site of its kind in the world. It is a geologically stable site, in a closed groundwater basin, isolated on thousands of acres of Federal land, and farther from any metropolitan area than the great majority of less secure, temporary nuclear waste storage sites that exist in the country today. This point bears emphasis. We are not confronting a hypothetical problem. We have a

YUCCA MOUNTAIN PROJECT RECOMMENDATION BY THE SECRETARY OF ENERGY REGARDING THE SUITABILITY OF THE YUCCA MOUNTAIN SITE FOR A REPOSITORY UNDER THE NUCLEAR WASTE POLICY ACT OF 1982

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

For more than half a century, since nuclear science helped us win World War II and ring in the Atomic Age, scientists have known that the Nation would need a secure, permanent facility in which to dispose of radioactive wastes. Twenty years ago, when Congress adopted the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (NWPA or ''the Act''), it recognized the overwhelming consensus in the scientific community that the best option for such a facility would be a deep underground repository. Fifteen years ago, Congress directed the Secretary of Energy to investigate and recommend to the President whether such a repository could be located safely at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Since then, our country has spent billions of dollars and millions of hours of research endeavoring to answer this question. I have carefully reviewed the product of this study. In my judgment, it constitutes sound science and shows that a safe repository can be sited there. I also believe that compelling national interests counsel in favor of proceeding with this project. Accordingly, consistent with my responsibilities under the NWPA, today I am recommending that Yucca Mountain be developed as the site for an underground repository for spent fuel and other radioactive wastes. The first consideration in my decision was whether the Yucca Mountain site will safeguard the health and safety of the people, in Nevada and across the country, and will be effective in containing at minimum risk the material it is designed to hold. Substantial evidence shows that it will. Yucca Mountain is far and away the most thoroughly researched site of its kind in the world. It is a geologically stable site, in a closed groundwater basin, isolated on thousands of acres of Federal land, and farther from any metropolitan area than the great majority of less secure, temporary nuclear waste storage sites that exist in the country today. This point bears emphasis. We are not confronting a hypothetical problem. We have a staggering amount of

For Sale: Nuclear Waste Sites--Anyone Buying?

Science.gov (United States)

Hancock, Don

1992-01-01

Explores why the United States Nuclear Waste Program has been unable to find a volunteer state to host either a nuclear waste repository or monitored retrieval storage facility. Discusses the Department of Energy's plans for Nevada's Yucca Mountain as a repository and state and tribal responses to the plan. (21 references) (MCO)

Fabrication and closure development of nuclear waste disposal containers for the Yucca Mountain Project: Status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Domian, H.A.; Robitz, E.S.; Conrardy, C.C.; LaCount, D.F.; McAninch, M.D.; Fish, R.L.; Russell, E.W.

1991-09-01

In GFY 89, a project was underway to determine and demonstrate a suitable method for fabricating thin-walled monolithic waste containers for service within the potential repository at Yucca Mountain. A concurrent project was underway to determine and demonstrate a suitable closure process for these containers after they have been filled with high-level nuclear waste. Phase 1 for both the fabrication and closure projects was a screening phase in which candidate processes were selected for further laboratory testing in Phase 2. This report describes the final results of the Phase 1 efforts. It also describes the preliminary results of Phase 2 efforts

YUCCA MOUNTAIN PROJECT - A BRIEFING -

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2003-01-01

This report has the following articles: Nuclear waste--a long-term national problem; Spent nuclear fuel; High-level radioactive waste; Radioactivity and the environment; Current storage methods; Disposal options; U.S. policy on nuclear waste; The focus on Yucca Mountain; The purpose and scope of the Yucca Mountain Project; The approach for permanently disposing of waste; The scientific studies at Yucca Mountain; The proposed design for a repository at Yucca Mountain; Natural and engineered barriers would work together to isolate waste; Meticulous science and technology to protect people and the environment; Licensing a repository; Transporting waste to a permanent repository; The Environmental Impact Statement for a repository; Current status of the Yucca Mountain Project; and Further information available on the Internet

A geologic scenario for catastrophic failure of the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McMackin, M.R.

1993-01-01

A plausible combination of geologic factors leading to failure can be hypothesized for the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository. The scenarios is constructed using elementary fault mechanics combined with geologic observations of exhumed faults and published information describing the repository site. The proposed repository site is located in the Basin and Range Province, a region of active crustal deformation demonstrated by widespread seismicity. The Yucca Mountain area has been characterized as tectonically quiet, which in the context of active crustal deformation may indicate the accumulation of the stresses approaching the levels required for fault slip, essentially stick-slip faulting. Simultaneously, dissolution of carbonate rocks in underlying karst aquifers is lowering the bulk strength of the rock that supports the repository site. Rising levels of hydrostatic stress concurrent with a climatically-driven rise in the water table could trigger faulting by decreasing the effective normal stress that currently retards fault slip. Water expelled from collapsing caverns in the underlying carbonate aquifer could migrate upward with sufficient pressure to open existing fractures or create new fractures by hydrofracturing. Water migrating through fractures could reach the repository in sufficient volume to react with heated rock and waste perhaps creating steam explosions that would further enhance fracture permeability. Closure of conduits in the underlying carbonate aquifer could lead to the elevation of the saturated zone above the level of the repository resulting in sustained saturation of radioactive waste in the repository and contamination of through-flowing groundwater

Assessment of the important radionuclides in nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kerrisk, J.F.

1985-10-01

The relative importance of the various radionuclides contained in nuclear waste has been assessed by consideration of (1) the quantity of each radionuclide present, (2) the Environmental Protection Agency's release limits for radionuclides, (3) how retardation processes such as solubility and sorption affect radionuclie transport, and (4) the physical and chemical forms of radionuclides in the waste. Three types of waste were reviewed: spent fuel, high-level waste, and defense high-level waste. Conditions specific to the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations project potential site at Yucca Mountain were used to describe radionuclide transport. The actinides Am, Pu, Np, and U were identified as the waste elements for which solubility and sorption data were most urgently needed. Other important waste elements were identified as Sr, Cs, C, Ni, Zr, Tc, Th, Ra, and Sn. Under some conditions, radionuclides of three elements (C, Tc, and I) may have high solubility and negligible sorption. The potential for transport of some waste elements (C and I) in the gas phase must also be evaluated for the Yucca Mountain Site. 12 refs., 17 tabs

Conflict, location, and politics: Siting a nuclear waste repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jacob, G.R.

1988-01-01

Nuclear power and the management of high-level radioactive waste is examined with the goal of explaining the forces driving the formulation of the 1982 Nuclear Waste Policy Act and a subsequent decision to site a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. The study draws upon geographic, political, economic, and organizational factors to examine the commitment to dispose of spent fuel in a geologic repository located in Nevada or in Utah, Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, or at Hanford Washington. Special attention is given to the impact of location, science and technology on the definition of the nuclear waste problem and political agendas, public participation, and the power of the nuclear establishment. The study finds that the choice of a Yucca Mountain Nevada as the preferred site for a repository was based more on technological precedent and political-economic expediency than on the demonstrated superiority of that site's geology. Conflict over a repository location is interpreted as a symptom of more fundamental conflicts concerning: the credibility of nuclear science, the legitimacy of federal authority and administration, and the priorities of environmental protection and a nuclear economy

Environmental program overview for a high-level radioactive waste repository at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-12-01

The United States plans to begin operating the first repository for the permanent disposal of high-level nuclear waste early in the next century. In February 1983, the US Department of Energy (DOE) identified Yucca Mountain, in Nevada, as one of nine potentially acceptable sites for a repository. To determine its suitability, the DOE evaluated the Yucca Mountain site, along with eight other potentially acceptable sites, in accordance with the DOE's General Guidelines for the Recommendation of Sites for the Nuclear Waste Repositories. The purpose of the Environmental Program Overview (EPO) for the Yucca Mountain site is to provide an overview of the overall, comprehensive approach being used to satisfy the environmental requirements applicable to sitting a repository at Yucca Mountain. The EPO states how the DOE will address the following environmental areas: aesthetics, air quality, cultural resources (archaeological and Native American components), noise, radiological studies, soils, terrestrial ecosystems, and water resources. This EPO describes the environmental program being developed for the sitting of a repository at Yucca Mountain. 1 fig., 3 tabs

Chemical variability of zeolites at a potential nuclear waste repository, Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Broxton, D.E.

1985-01-01

The compositions of clinoptilolites and their host tuffs have been examined by electron microprobe and x-ray fluorescence, respectively, to determine their variability at a potential nuclear waste repository, Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Because of their sorptive properties, these zeolites could provide important geologic barriers to radionuclide migration. Variations in clinoptilolite composition can strongly affect the mineral's thermal and ion-exchange properties, thus influencing its behavior in the repository environment. Clinoptilolites and heulandites closest to the proposed repository have calcium-rich compositions (60 to 90 mol. % Ca) and silica-to-aluminum ratios that concentrate between 4.0 and 4.6. In contrast, clinoptilolites and their host tuffs deeper in the volcanic sequence have highly variable compositions that vary vertically and laterally. Deeper-occurring clinoptilolites in the eastern part of Yucca Mountain are characterized by calcic-potassic compositions and tend to become more calcium-rich with depth. Clinoptilolites at equivalent stratigraphic levels on the western side of Yucca Mountain have sodic-potassic compositions and tend to become more sodium-rich with depth. Despite their differences in exchangeable cation compositions these two deeper-occurring compositional suites have similar silica-to-aluminum ratios, concentrating between 4.4 and 5.0. The chemical variability of clinoptilolites and their host tuffs at Yucca Mountain suggest that their physical and chemical properties will also vary. Compositionally-dependent clinoptilolite properties important for repository performance assessment include expansion/contraction behavior, hydration/dehydration behavior, and ion-exchange properties

Assessing microbiologically induced corrosion of waste package materials in the Yucca Mountain repository

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Horn, J. M., LLNL

1998-01-01

The contribution of bacterial activities to corrosion of nuclear waste package materials must be determined to predict the adequacy of containment for a potential nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain (YM), NV. The program to evaluate potential microbially induced corrosion (MIC) of candidate waste container materials includes characterization of bacteria in the post-construction YM environment, determination of their required growth conditions and growth rates, quantitative assessment of the biochemical contribution to metal corrosion, and evaluation of overall MIC rates on candidate waste package materials.

Nuclear waste: Status of DOE's nuclear waste site characterization activities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-01-01

Three potential nuclear waste repository sites have been selected to carry out characterization activities-the detailed geological testing to determine the suitability of each site as a repository. The sites are Hanford in south-central Washington State, Yucca Mountain in southern Nevada, and Deaf Smith in the Texas Panhandle. Two key issues affecting the total program are the estimations of the site characterization completion data and costs and DOE's relationship with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission which has been limited and its relations with affected states and Indian tribes which continue to be difficult

The Geopolitics of Nuclear Waste.

Science.gov (United States)

Marshall, Eliot

1991-01-01

The controversy surrounding the potential storage of nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, is discussed. Arguments about the stability of the site and the groundwater situation are summarized. The role of the U.S. Department of Energy and other political considerations are described. (CW)

Draft Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1999-01-01

The Proposed Action addressed in this EIS is to construct, operate and monitor, and eventually close a geologic repository at Yucca Mountain in southern Nevada for the disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste currently in storage at 72 commercial and 5 DOE sites across the United States. The EIS evaluates (1) projected impacts on the Yucca Mountain environment of the construction, operation and monitoring, and eventual closure of the geologic repository; (2) the potential long-term impacts of repository disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste; (3) the potential impacts of transporting these materials nationally and in the State of Nevada; and (4) the potential impacts of not proceeding with the Proposed Action

OCRWM International Cooperation in Nuclear Waste Management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jackson, R.; Levich, R.; Strahl, J.

2002-01-01

With the implementation of nuclear power as a major energy source, the United States is increasingly faced with the challenges of safely managing its inventory of spent nuclear materials. In 2002, with 438 nuclear power facilities generating electrical energy in 31 nations around the world, the management of radioactive material including spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste, is an international concern. Most of the world's nuclear nations maintain radioactive waste management programs and have generally accepted deep geologic repositories as the long-term solution for disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Similarly, the United States is evaluating the feasibility of deep geologic disposal at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. This project is directed by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM), which has responsibility for managing the disposition of spent nuclear fuel produced by commercial nuclear power facilities along with U.S. government-owned spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Much of the world class science conducted through the OCRWM program was enhanced through collaboration with other nations and international organizations focused on resolving issues associated with the disposition of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste

Studies of Corrosion Resistant Materials Being Considered for High-Level Nuclear Waste Containment in Yucca Mountain Relevant Environments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McCright, R.D.; Ilevbare, G.; Estill, J.; Rebak, R.

2001-01-01

Containment of spent nuclear fuel and vitrified forms of high level nuclear waste require use of materials that are highly corrosion resistant to all of the anticipated environmental scenarios that can occur in a geological repository. Ni-Cr-Mo Alloy 22 (UNS N60622) is proposed for the corrosion resistant outer barrier of a two-layer waste package container at the potential repository site at Yucca Mountain. A range of water compositions that may contact the outer barrier is under consideration, and a testing program is underway to characterize the forms of corrosion and to quantify the corrosion rates. Results from the testing support models for long term prediction of the performance of the container. Results obtained to date indicate a very low general corrosion rate for Alloy 22 and very high resistance to all forms of localized and environmentally assisted cracking in environments tested to date

Effects of the deviation characteristics of nuclear waste emplacement boreholes on borehole liner stresses; Yucca Mountain Project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Glowka, D.A.

1990-09-01

This report investigates the effects of borehole deviation on the useability of lined boreholes for the disposal of high-level nuclear waste at the proposed Yucca Mountain Repository in Nevada. Items that lead to constraints on borehole deviation include excessive stresses that could cause liner failure and possible binding of a waste container inside the liner during waste emplacement and retrieval operations. Liner stress models are developed for two general borehole configurations, one for boreholes drilled with a steerable bit and one for boreholes drilled with a non-steerable bit. Procedures are developed for calculating liner stresses that arise both during insertion of the liner into a borehole and during the thermal expansion process that follows waste emplacement. The effects of borehole curvature on the ability of the waste container to pass freely inside the liner without binding are also examined. Based on the results, specifications on borehole deviation allowances are developed for specific vertical and horizontal borehole configurations of current interest. 11 refs., 22 figs., 4 tabs.

Milestones for Selection, Characterization, and Analysis of the Performance of a Repository for Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rechard, Robert P.

2014-02-01

This report presents a concise history in tabular form of events leading up to site identification in 1978, site selection in 1987, subsequent characterization, and ongoing analysis through 2008 of the performance of a repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste at Yucca Mountain in southern Nevada. The tabulated events generally occurred in five periods: (1) commitment to mined geologic disposal and identification of sites; (2) site selection and analysis, based on regional geologic characterization through literature and analogous data; (3) feasibility analysis demonstrating calculation procedures and importance of system components, based on rough measures of performance using surface exploration, waste process knowledge, and general laboratory experiments; (4) suitability analysis demonstrating viability of disposal system, based on environment-specific laboratory experiments, in-situ experiments, and underground disposal system characterization; and (5) compliance analysis, based on completed site-specific characterization. Because the relationship is important to understanding the evolution of the Yucca Mountain Project, the tabulation also shows the interaction between four broad categories of political bodies and government agencies/institutions: (a) technical milestones of the implementing institutions, (b) development of the regulatory requirements and related federal policy in laws and court decisions, (c) Presidential and agency directives and decisions, and (d) critiques of the Yucca Mountain Project and pertinent national and world events related to nuclear energy and radioactive waste.

Investigations of natural groundwater hazards at the proposed Yucca Mountain high level nuclear waste repository. Part A: Geology at Yucca Mountain. Part B: Modeling of hydro-tectonic phenomena relevant to Yucca Mountain. Annual report - Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Szymanski, J.S.; Schluter, C.M.; Livingston, D.E.

1993-05-01

This document is an annual report describing investigations of natural groundwater hazards at the proposed Yucca Mountain, Nevada High-Level Nuclear Waste Repository.This document describes research studies of the origin of near surface calcite/silica deposits at Yucca Mountain. The origin of these deposits is controversial and the authors have extended and strengthened the basis of their arguments for epigenetic, metasomatic alteration of the tuffs at Yucca Mountain. This report includes stratigraphic, mineralogical, and geochronological information along with geochemical data to support the conclusions described by Livingston and Szymanski, and others. As part of their first annual report, they take this opportunity to clarify the technical basis of their concerns and summarize the critical geological field evidence and related information. Selected papers are indexed separately for inclusion in the Energy Science and Technology Database

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act: Volume 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-01-01

The Yucca Mountain site in Nevada is one of three candidate sites for the first geologic repository for radioactive waste. On May 28, 1986, it was recommended for detailed study in a program of site characterization. This site characterization plan (SCP) has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act to summarize the information collected to date about the geologic conditions at the site; to describe the conceptual designs for the repository and the waste package and to present the plans for obtaining the geologic information necessary to demonstrate the suitability of the site for a repository, to design the repository and the waste package, to prepare an environmental impact statement, and to obtain from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) an authorization to construct the repository. Chapter 3 summarizes present knowledge of the regional and site hydrologic systems. The purpose of the information presented is to (1) describe the hydrology based on available literature and preliminary site-exploration activities that have been or are being performed and (2) provide information to be used to develop the hydrologic aspects of the planned site characterization program. Chapter 4 contains geochemical information about the Yucca Mountain site. The chapter references plan for continued collection of geochemical data as a part of the site characterization program. Chapter 4 describes and evaluates data on the existing climate and site meterology, and outlines the suggested procedures to be used in developing and validating methods to predict future climatic variation. 534 refs., 100 figs., 72 tabs

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act: Volume 2

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1988-01-01

The Yucca Mountain site in Nevada is one of three candidate sites for the first geologic repository for radioactive waste. On May 28, 1986, it was recommended for detailed study in a program of site characterization. This site characterization plan (SCP) has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act to summarize the information collected to date about the geologic conditions at the site; to describe the conceptual designs for the repository and the waste package and to present the plans for obtaining the geologic information necessary to demonstrate the suitability of the site for a repository, to design the repository and the waste package, to prepare an environmental impact statement, and to obtain from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) an authorization to construct the repository. Chapter 3 summarizes present knowledge of the regional and site hydrologic systems. The purpose of the information presented is to (1) describe the hydrology based on available literature and preliminary site-exploration activities that have been or are being performed and (2) provide information to be used to develop the hydrologic aspects of the planned site characterization program. Chapter 4 contains geochemical information about the Yucca Mountain site. The chapter references plan for continued collection of geochemical data as a part of the site characterization program. Chapter 4 describes and evaluates data on the existing climate and site meterology, and outlines the suggested procedures to be used in developing and validating methods to predict future climatic variation. 534 refs., 100 figs., 72 tabs.

Characterizing the proposed geologic repository for high-level radioactive waste at Yucca Mountain, Nevada: hydrology and geochemistry

Science.gov (United States)

Stuckless, John S.; Levich, Robert A.

2012-01-01

This hydrology and geochemistry volume is a companion volume to the 2007 Geological Society of America Memoir 199, The Geology and Climatology of Yucca Mountain and Vicinity, Southern Nevada and California, edited by Stuckless and Levich. The work in both volumes was originally reported in the U.S. Department of Energy regulatory document Yucca Mountain Site Description, for the site characterization study of Yucca Mountain, Nevada, as the proposed U.S. geologic repository for high-level radioactive waste. The selection of Yucca Mountain resulted from a nationwide search and numerous committee studies during a period of more than 40 yr. The waste, largely from commercial nuclear power reactors and the government's nuclear weapons programs, is characterized by intense penetrating radiation and high heat production, and, therefore, it must be isolated from the biosphere for tens of thousands of years. The extensive, unique, and often innovative geoscience investigations conducted at Yucca Mountain for more than 20 yr make it one of the most thoroughly studied geologic features on Earth. The results of these investigations contribute extensive knowledge to the hydrologic and geochemical aspects of radioactive waste disposal in the unsaturated zone. The science, analyses, and interpretations are important not only to Yucca Mountain, but also to the assessment of other sites or alternative processes that may be considered for waste disposal in the future. Groundwater conditions, processes, and geochemistry, especially in combination with the heat from radionuclide decay, are integral to the ability of a repository to isolate waste. Hydrology and geochemistry are discussed here in chapters on unsaturated zone hydrology, saturated zone hydrology, paleohydrology, hydrochemistry, radionuclide transport, and thermally driven coupled processes affecting long-term waste isolation. This introductory chapter reviews some of the reasons for choosing to study Yucca Mountain as a

Characterizing the proposed geologic repository for high-level radioactive waste at Yucca Mountain, Nevada--hydrology and geochemistry

Science.gov (United States)

Stuckless, John S.; Levich, Robert A.

2012-01-01

This hydrology and geochemistry volume is a companion volume to the 2007 Geological Society of America Memoir 199, The Geology and Climatology of Yucca Mountain and Vicinity, Southern Nevada and California, edited by Stuckless and Levich. The work in both volumes was originally reported in the U.S. Department of Energy regulatory document Yucca Mountain Site Description, for the site characterization study of Yucca Mountain, Nevada, as the proposed U.S. geologic repository for high-level radioactive waste. The selection of Yucca Mountain resulted from a nationwide search and numerous committee studies during a period of more than 40 yr. The waste, largely from commercial nuclear power reactors and the government's nuclear weapons programs, is characterized by intense penetrating radiation and high heat production, and, therefore, it must be isolated from the biosphere for tens of thousands of years. The extensive, unique, and often innovative geoscience investigations conducted at Yucca Mountain for more than 20 yr make it one of the most thoroughly studied geologic features on Earth. The results of these investigations contribute extensive knowledge to the hydrologic and geochemical aspects of radioactive waste disposal in the unsaturated zone. The science, analyses, and interpretations are important not only to Yucca Mountain, but also to the assessment of other sites or alternative processes that may be considered for waste disposal in the future. Groundwater conditions, processes, and geochemistry, especially in combination with the heat from radionuclide decay, are integral to the ability of a repository to isolate waste. Hydrology and geochemistry are discussed here in chapters on unsaturated zone hydrology, saturated zone hydrology, paleohydrology, hydrochemistry, radionuclide transport, and thermally driven coupled processes affecting long-term waste isolation. This introductory chapter reviews some of the reasons for choosing to study Yucca Mountain as a

Can shale safely host US nuclear waste?

Science.gov (United States)

Neuzil, C.E.

2013-01-01

"Even as cleanup efforts after Japan’s Fukushima disaster offer a stark reminder of the spent nuclear fuel (SNF) stored at nuclear plants worldwide, the decision in 2009 to scrap Yucca Mountain as a permanent disposal site has dimmed hope for a repository for SNF and other high-level nuclear waste (HLW) in the United States anytime soon. About 70,000 metric tons of SNF are now in pool or dry cask storage at 75 sites across the United States [Government Accountability Office, 2012], and uncertainty about its fate is hobbling future development of nuclear power, increasing costs for utilities, and creating a liability for American taxpayers [Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future, 2012].However, abandoning Yucca Mountain could also result in broadening geologic options for hosting America’s nuclear waste. Shales and other argillaceous formations (mudrocks, clays, and similar clay-rich media) have been absent from the U.S. repository program. In contrast, France, Switzerland, and Belgium are now planning repositories in argillaceous formations after extensive research in underground laboratories on the safety and feasibility of such an approach [Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future, 2012; Nationale Genossenschaft für die Lagerung radioaktiver Abfälle (NAGRA), 2010; Organisme national des déchets radioactifs et des matières fissiles enrichies, 2011]. Other nations, notably Japan, Canada, and the United Kingdom, are studying argillaceous formations or may consider them in their siting programs [Japan Atomic Energy Agency, 2012; Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO), (2011a); Powell et al., 2010]."

Whither nuclear waste disposal?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cotton, T A [JK Research Associates, Silver Spring, MD (United States)

1990-07-01

With respect to the argument that geologic disposal has failed, I do not believe that the evidence is yet sufficient to support that conclusion. It is certainly true that the repository program is not progressing as hoped when the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 established a 1998 deadline for initial operation of the first repository. The Department of Energy (DOE) now expects the repository to be available by 2010, and tat date depends upon a finding that the Yucca Mountain site - the only site that DOE is allowed by law to evaluate - is in fact suitable for use. Furthermore, scientific evaluation of the site to determine its suitability is stopped pending resolution of two lawsuits. However, I believe it is premature to conclude that the legal obstacles are insuperable, since DOE just won the first of the two lawsuits, and chances are good it will win the second. The concept of geologic disposal is still broadly supported. A recent report by the Board on Radioactive Waste Management of the National Research Council noted that 'There is a worldwide scientific consensus that deep geological disposal, the approach being followed in the United States, is the best option for disposing of high-level radioactive waste'. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC) recently implicitly endorsed this view in adopting an updated Waste Confidence position that found confidence that a repository could be available in the first quarter of the next century - sufficient time to allow for rejection of Yucca Mountain and evaluation of a new site.

Whither nuclear waste disposal?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cotton, T.A.

1990-01-01

With respect to the argument that geologic disposal has failed, I do not believe that the evidence is yet sufficient to support that conclusion. It is certainly true that the repository program is not progressing as hoped when the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 established a 1998 deadline for initial operation of the first repository. The Department of Energy (DOE) now expects the repository to be available by 2010, and tat date depends upon a finding that the Yucca Mountain site - the only site that DOE is allowed by law to evaluate - is in fact suitable for use. Furthermore, scientific evaluation of the site to determine its suitability is stopped pending resolution of two lawsuits. However, I believe it is premature to conclude that the legal obstacles are insuperable, since DOE just won the first of the two lawsuits, and chances are good it will win the second. The concept of geologic disposal is still broadly supported. A recent report by the Board on Radioactive Waste Management of the National Research Council noted that 'There is a worldwide scientific consensus that deep geological disposal, the approach being followed in the United States, is the best option for disposing of high-level radioactive waste'. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC) recently implicitly endorsed this view in adopting an updated Waste Confidence position that found confidence that a repository could be available in the first quarter of the next century - sufficient time to allow for rejection of Yucca Mountain and evaluation of a new site

Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations: Exploratory Shaft Facility fluids and materials evaluation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

West, K.A.

1988-11-01

The objective of this study was to determine if any fluids or materials used in the Exploratory Shaft Facility (ESF) of Yucca Mountain will make the mountain unsuitable for future construction of a nuclear waste repository. Yucca Mountain, an area on and adjacent to the Nevada Test Site in southern Nevada, USA, is a candidate site for permanent disposal of high-level radioactive waste from commercial nuclear power and defense nuclear activities. To properly characterize Yucca Mountain, it will be necessary to construct an underground test facility, in which in situ site characterization tests can be conducted. The candidate repository horizon at Yucca Mountain, however, could potentially be compromised by fluids and materials used in the site characterization tests. To minimize this possibility, Los Alamos National Laboratory was directed to evaluate the kinds of fluids and materials that will be used and their potential impacts on the site. A secondary objective was to identify fluids and materials, if any, that should be prohibited from, or controlled in, the underground. 56 refs., 19 figs., 11 tabs.

Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations: Exploratory Shaft Facility fluids and materials evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

West, K.A.

1988-11-01

The objective of this study was to determine if any fluids or materials used in the Exploratory Shaft Facility (ESF) of Yucca Mountain will make the mountain unsuitable for future construction of a nuclear waste repository. Yucca Mountain, an area on and adjacent to the Nevada Test Site in southern Nevada, USA, is a candidate site for permanent disposal of high-level radioactive waste from commercial nuclear power and defense nuclear activities. To properly characterize Yucca Mountain, it will be necessary to construct an underground test facility, in which in situ site characterization tests can be conducted. The candidate repository horizon at Yucca Mountain, however, could potentially be compromised by fluids and materials used in the site characterization tests. To minimize this possibility, Los Alamos National Laboratory was directed to evaluate the kinds of fluids and materials that will be used and their potential impacts on the site. A secondary objective was to identify fluids and materials, if any, that should be prohibited from, or controlled in, the underground. 56 refs., 19 figs., 11 tabs

Supplemental Performance Analyses for Igneous Activity and Human Intrusion at the Potential High-Level Nuclear Waste Repository at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Swift, P.; Gaither, K.; Freeze, G.; McCord, J.; Kalinich, D.; Saulnier, G.; Statham, W.

2002-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is considering the possible recommendation of a site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, for the potential development of a geologic repository for the disposal of high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel. Consequences of hypothetical disruption of the Yucca Mountain site by igneous activity or human intrusion have been evaluated in the Yucca Mountain Science and Engineering Report (S and ER) (1), which presents technical information supporting the consideration of the possible site recommendation. Since completion of the S and ER, supplemental analyses have examined possible impacts of new information and alternative assumptions on the estimates of the consequences of these events. Specifically, analyses of the consequences of igneous disruption address uncertainty regarding: (1) the impacts of changes in the repository footprint and waste package spacing on the probability of disruption; (2) impacts of alternative assumptions about the appropriate distribution of future wind speeds to use in the analysis; (3) effects of alternative assumptions about waste particle sizes; and (4) alternative assumptions about the number of waste packages damaged by igneous intrusion; and (5) alternative assumptions about the exposure pathways and the biosphere dose conversion factors used in the analysis. Additional supplemental analyses, supporting the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), have examined the results for both igneous disruption and human intrusion, recalculated for a receptor group located 18 kilometers (km) from the repository (the location specified in 40 CFR 197), rather than at the 20 km distance used in the S and ER analyses

Equity and nuclear waste disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shrader-Frechette, K.

1994-01-01

Following the recommendations of the US National Academy of Sciences and the mandates of the 1987 Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act, the US Department of Energy has proposed Yucca Mountain, Nevada as the site of the world's first permanent repository for high-level nuclear waste. The main justification for permanent disposal (as opposed to above-ground storage) is that it guarantees safety by means of waste isolation. This essay argues, however, that considerations of equity (safer for whom?) undercut the safety rationale. The article surveys some prima facie arguments for equity in the distribution of radwaste risks and then evaluates four objections that are based, respectively, on practicality, compensation for risks, scepticism about duties to future generations, and the uranium criterion. The conclusion is that, at least under existing regulations and policies, permanent waste disposal is highly questionable, in part, because it fails to distribute risk equitably or to compensate, in full, for this inequity

Yucca Mountain digital database

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Daudt, C.R.; Hinze, W.J.

1992-01-01

This paper discusses the Yucca Mountain Digital Database (DDB) which is a digital, PC-based geographical database of geoscience-related characteristics of the proposed high-level waste (HLW) repository site of Yucca Mountain, Nevada. It was created to provide the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) Advisory Committee on Nuclear Waste (ACNW) and its staff with a visual perspective of geological, geophysical, and hydrological features at the Yucca Mountain site as discussed in the Department of Energy's (DOE) pre-licensing reports

Total system performance predictions (TSPA-1995) for the potential high-level waste repository at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sevougian, S.D.; Andrews, R.W.; McNeish, J.A.

1996-01-01

The management and operating contractor for the potential high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, has been recently completed a new performance assessment of the ability of the repository to isolate and contain nuclear waste for long time periods (up to 1,000,000 years). Sensitivity analyses determine the most important physical parameters and processes, using the most current information and models

Waste management outlook for mountain regions: Sources and solutions.

Science.gov (United States)

Semernya, Larisa; Ramola, Aditi; Alfthan, Björn; Giacovelli, Claudia

2017-09-01

Following the release of the global waste management outlook in 2015, the United Nations Environment Programme (UN Environment), through its International Environmental Technology Centre, is elaborating a series of region-specific and thematic waste management outlooks that provide policy recommendations and solutions based on current practices in developing and developed countries. The Waste Management Outlook for Mountain Regions is the first report in this series. Mountain regions present unique challenges to waste management; while remoteness is often associated with costly and difficult transport of waste, the potential impact of waste pollutants is higher owing to the steep terrain and rivers transporting waste downstream. The Outlook shows that waste management in mountain regions is a cross-sectoral issue of global concern that deserves immediate attention. Noting that there is no 'one solution fits all', there is a need for a more landscape-type specific and regional research on waste management, the enhancement of policy and regulatory frameworks, and increased stakeholder engagement and awareness to achieve sustainable waste management in mountain areas. This short communication provides an overview of the key findings of the Outlook and highlights aspects that need further research. These are grouped per source of waste: Mountain communities, tourism, and mining. Issues such as waste crime, plastic pollution, and the linkages between exposure to natural disasters and waste are also presented.

Death Valley Lower Carbonate Aquifer Monitoring Program Wells Down gradient of the Proposed Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Inyo County

2006-01-01

Inyo County has participated in oversight activities associated with the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository since 1987. The overall goal of these studies are the evaluation of far-field issues related to potential transport, by ground water, or radionuclides into Inyo County, including Death Valley, and the evaluation of a connection between the Lower Carbonate Aquifer (LCA) and the biosphere. Our oversight and completed Cooperative Agreement research, and a number of other investigators research indicate that there is groundwater flow between the alluvial and carbonate aquifers both at Yucca Mountain and in Inyo County. In addition to the potential of radionuclide transport through the LCA, Czarnecki (1997), with the US Geological Survey, research indicate potential radionuclide transport through the shallower Tertiary-age aquifer materials with ultimate discharge into the Franklin Lake Playa in Inyo County. The specific purpose of this Cooperative Agreement drilling program was to acquire geological, subsurface geology, and hydrologic data to: (1) establish the existence of inter-basin flow between the Amargosa Basin and Death Valley Basin; (2) characterize groundwater flow paths in the LCA through Southern Funeral Mountain Range, and (3) Evaluation the hydraulic connection between the Yucca Mountain repository and the major springs in Death Valley through the LCA

Second generation waste package design and storage concept for the Yucca Mountain Repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Armijo, Joseph Sam; Kar, Piyush; Misra, Manoranjan

2006-01-01

The reference waste package design and operating mode to be used in the Yucca Mountain Repository is reviewed. An alternate (second generation) operating concept and waste package design is proposed to reduce the risk of localized corrosion of waste packages and to reduce repository costs. The second generation waste package design and storage concept is proposed for implementation after the initial licensing and operation of the reference repository design. Implementation of the second generation concept at Yucca Mountain would follow regulatory processes analogous to those used successfully to extend the design life and uprate the power of commercial light water nuclear reactors in the United States. The second generation concept utilizes the benefits of hot dry storage to minimize the potential for localized corrosion of the waste package by liquid electrolytes. The second generation concept permits major reductions in repository costs by increasing the number of fuel assemblies stored in each waste package, by eliminating the need for titanium drip shields and by fabricating the outer container from corrosion resistant low alloy carbon steel

State of Nevada, Agency for Nuclear Projects/Nuclear Waste Project Office narrative report, January 1992

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

The Agency for Nuclear Projects/Nuclear Waste Project Office (NWPO) is the State of Nevada agency designated by State law to monitor and oversee US Department of Energy (DOE) activities relative to the possible siting, construction, operation and closure of a high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain and to carry out the State of Nevada's responsibilities under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982. During the reporting period the NWPO continued to work toward the five objectives designed to implement the Agency's oversight responsibilities: (1) Assure that the health and safety of Nevada's citizens are adequately protected with regard to any federal high-level radioactive waste program within the State; (2) Take the responsibilities and perform the duties of the State of Nevada as described in the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (Public Law 97-425) and the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987; (3) Advise the Governor, the State Commission on Nuclear Projects and the Nevada State Legislature on matters concerning the potential disposal of high-level radioactive waste in the State; (4) Work closely and consult with affected local governments and State agencies; (5) Monitor and evaluate federal planning and activities regarding high-level radioactive waste disposal. Plan and conduct independent State studies regarding the proposed repository

Nuclear wastes and public trust

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Flynn, J.; Slovic, P.

1993-01-01

Citing public fear and mistrust, strong opposition to the proposed Yucca Mountain repository site, and less-than-exemplary performance by the Department of Energy (DOE), two private researchers believe present high-level radioactive waste-disposal plans may have to be scrapped. Government and the nuclear industry may have to start over. Policy makers should seek to develop new relationships with communities and states where suitable disposal sites exist. These relationships may require that citizen groups and local institutions be given unprecedented authority in locating and operating such facilities. Contrary to popular impressions, there is still time to take a new approach. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission says present on-site storage arrangements offer a safe alternative for 100 years or more. The sense of immediate crisis and cries for immediate solutions should be calmed and a more considered strategy brought to the public debate. For starters, the researchers propose that the problems of defense waste be separated from the problems of commercial waste. They also suggest that DOE be assigned responsibility for defense waste and a new agency be created to handle high-level commercial waste

Waste form performance assessment in the YUCCA Mountain engineered barrier system, American Nuclear Society

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morris, E. E.; Fanning, T. H.; Wigeland, R. A.

2000-01-01

This work demonstrates a technique for comparing the performance of waste forms in a repository environment when one or more of the waste forms constitute a small part of the total amount of waste planned for the repository. In applying the technique, it is important to identify radionuclides that are highly soluble in the transport fluid since it is only for these that the release is controlled by the dissolution rate of the waste form matrix. The techniques presented here have been applied to an evaluation of the performance of waste forms from the electrometallurgical treatment of spent fuel in the proposed Yucca Mountain Repository Engineered Barrier System (EBS)

Preliminary selection criteria for the Yucca Mountain Project waste package container material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Halsey, W.G.

1991-01-01

The Department of Energy's Yucca Mountain Project (YMP) is evaluating a site at Yucca Mountain in Nevada for construction of a geologic repository for the storage of high-level nuclear waste. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's (LLNL) Nuclear Waste Management Project (NWMP) has the responsibility for design, testing, and performance analysis of the waste packages. The design is performed in an iterative manner in three sequential phases (conceptual design, advanced conceptual design, and license application design). An important input to the start of the advanced conceptual design is the selection of the material for the waste containers. The container material is referred to as the 'metal barrier' portion of the waste package, and is the responsibility of the Metal Barrier Selection and Testing task at LLNL. The selection will consist of several steps. First, preliminary, material-independent selection criteria will be established based on the performance goals for the container. Second, a variety of engineering materials will be evaluated against these criteria in a screening process to identify candidate materials. Third, information will be obtained on the performance of the candidate materials, and final selection criteria and quantitative weighting factors will be established based on the waste package design requirements. Finally, the candidate materials will be ranked against these criteria to determine whether they meet the mandated performance requirements, and to provide a comparative score to choose the material for advanced conceptual design activities. This document sets forth the preliminary container material selection criteria to be used in screening candidate materials. 5 refs

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act: Volume 6

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1988-01-01

The Yucca Mountain site in Nevada is one of three candidate sites for the first geologic repository for radioactive waste. On May 28, 1986, it was recommended for detailed study in a program of site characterization. This site characterization plan (SCP) has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act to summarize the information collected to date about the geologic conditions at the site;to describe the conceptual designs for the repository and the waste package;and to present the plans for obtaining the geologic information necessary to demonstrate the suitability of the site for repository, to design the repository and the waste package, to prepare an environmental impact statement, and to obtain from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) an authorization to construct the repository. This introduction begins with a brief section on the process for siting and developing a repository, followed by a discussion of the pertinent legislation and regulations. A description of site characterization is presented next;it describes the facilities to be constructed for the site characterization program and explains the principal activities to be conducted during the program. Finally, the purpose, content, organizing principles, and organization of this site characterization plan are outlined, and compliance with applicable regulations is discussed.

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act: Volume 7

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1988-01-01

The Yucca Mountain site in Neavada is one of three candidate sites for the first geologic repository for radioactive waste. On May 28, 1986, it was recommended and approved for detailed study in a program of site characterization. This site characterization plan (SCP) has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act to summarize the information collected to date about the geologic conditions at the site;to describe the conceptual designs for the repository and the waste package;and to present the plans for obtaining hte geologic information necessary to demonstrate the suitability of the site for a repository, to design the repository and the waste package, to prepare and environmental impact statement, and to obtain from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) an authorization to construct the repository. This introduction begins with a brief section on the process for siting and developing a repository, followed by a discussion of the pertinent legislation and regulations. A description of site characterization is presented next;it describes the facilities to be constructed for the site characterization program and explains the principal activities to be conducted during the program. Finally, the purpose, content, organizing principles, and organization of this site characterization plan are outlined, and compliance with applicable regulations is discussed.

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act: Volume 7

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-01-01

The Yucca Mountain site in Neavada is one of three candidate sites for the first geologic repository for radioactive waste. On May 28, 1986, it was recommended and approved for detailed study in a program of site characterization. This site characterization plan (SCP) has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act to summarize the information collected to date about the geologic conditions at the site;to describe the conceptual designs for the repository and the waste package;and to present the plans for obtaining hte geologic information necessary to demonstrate the suitability of the site for a repository, to design the repository and the waste package, to prepare and environmental impact statement, and to obtain from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) an authorization to construct the repository. This introduction begins with a brief section on the process for siting and developing a repository, followed by a discussion of the pertinent legislation and regulations. A description of site characterization is presented next;it describes the facilities to be constructed for the site characterization program and explains the principal activities to be conducted during the program. Finally, the purpose, content, organizing principles, and organization of this site characterization plan are outlined, and compliance with applicable regulations is discussed

Interaction of nuclear waste panels with shafts and access ramps for a potential repository at Yucca Mountain: Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations Project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

St John, C.M.

1987-09-01

A series of two-dimensional and three-dimensional analyses of a potential nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain were performed to estimate the thermal stresses that would be experienced at the possible locations of shafts or ramps providing access to the repository horizon. Two alternative assumptions were made for the initial state of stress, and calculations were performed to investigate behavior at repository scale. The computed states of stress were also used as boundary conditions for a series of analyses of the access ramps and vertical shafts. The results of the repository scale analyses indicated that there is a region above the repository horizon where the horizontal stresses are reduced as a consequence of the thermal loads imposed by waste emplacement. If the initial state of stress is relatively low then the total horizontal stresses near the ground surface above the repository may be tensile. An evaluation of the total stress state relative to the strength of the rock matrix and vertical and near vertical joints indicates that there is no potential for development of new fractures in the matrix, but joints near the surface could be activated if the initial stress state is low. 13 refs., 24 figs., 4 tabs

Alternative configurations for the waste-handling building at the Yucca Mountain Repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-08-01

Two alternative configurations of the waste-handling building have been developed for the proposed nuclear waste repository in tuff at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. One configuration is based on criteria and assumptions used in Case 2 (no monitored retrievable storage facility, no consolidation), and the other configuration is based on criteria and assumptions used in Case 5 (consolidation at the monitored retrievable storage facility) of the Monitored Retrievable Storage System Study for the Repository. Desirable waste-handling design concepts have been selected and are included in these configurations. For each configuration, general arrangement drawings, plot plans, block flow diagrams, and timeline diagrams are prepared

Predictability of the evolution of hydrogeological and hydrogeochemical systems; geological disposal of nuclear waste in crystalline rocks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murphy, W.M.; Diodato, D.M.

2009-01-01

Confidence in long-term geologic isolation of high-level nuclear waste and spent nuclear fuel requires confidence in predictions of the evolution of hydrogeological and hydrogeochemical systems. Prediction of the evolution of hydrogeological and hydrogeochemical systems is based on scientific understanding of those systems in the present - an understanding that can be tested with data from the past. Crystalline rock settings that have been geologically stable for millions of years and longer offer the potential of predictable, long-term waste isolation. Confidence in predictions of geologic isolation of radioactive waste can measured by evaluating the extent to which those predictions and their underlying analyses are consistent with multiple independent lines of evidence identified in the geologic system being analysed, as well as with evidence identified in analogs to that geologic system. The proposed nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, United States, differs in significant ways from potential repository sites being considered by other nations. Nonetheless, observations of hydrogeological and hydrogeochemical systems of Yucca Mountain and Yucca Mountain analogs present multiple independent lines of evidence that can be used in evaluating long-term predictions of the evolution of hydrogeological and hydrogeochemical systems at Yucca Mountain. (authors)

Preclosure analysis of conceptual waste package designs for a nuclear waste repository in tuff

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Neal, W.C.; Gregg, D.W.; Hockman, J.N.; Russell, E.W.; Stein, W.

1984-01-01

This report discusses the selection and analysis of conceptual waste package developed by the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations (NNWSI) project for possible disposal of high-level nuclear waste at a candidate site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. The design requirements that the waste package must conform to are listed, as are several desirable design considerations. Illustrations of the reference and alternative designs are shown. Four austenitic stainless steels (316L SS, 321 SS, 304L SS and Incoloy 825 high nickel alloy) have been selected for candidate canister/overpack materials, and 1020 carbon steel has been selected as the reference metal for the borehole liners. A summary of the results of technical and ecnonmic analyses supporting the selection of the conceptual waste package designs is included. Postclosure containment and release rates are not analyzed in this report

A Transportation Risk Assessment Tool for Analyzing the Transport of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste to the Proposed Yucca Mountain Repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Best, Ralph; Winnard, T.; Ross, S.; Best, R.

2001-01-01

The Yucca Mountain Transportation Database was developed as a data management tool for assembling and integrating data from multiple sources to compile the potential transportation impacts presented in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada (DEIS). The database uses the results from existing models and codes such as RADTRAN, RISKIND, INTERLINE, and HIGHWAY to estimate transportation-related impacts of transporting spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste from commercial reactors and U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) facilities to Yucca Mountain. The source tables in the database are compendiums of information from many diverse sources including: radionuclide quantities for each waste type; route and route characteristics for rail, legal-weight truck, heavy haul. truck, and barge transport options; state-specific accident and fatality rates for routes selected for analysis; packaging and shipment data by waste type; unit risk factors; the complex behavior of the packaged waste forms in severe transport accidents; and the effects of exposure to radiation or the isotopic specific effects of radionclides should they be released in severe transportation accidents. The database works together with the codes RADTRAN (Neuhauser, et al, 1994) and RISKlND (Yuan, et al, 1995) to calculate incident-free dose and accident risk. For the incident-free transportation scenario, the database uses RADTRAN and RISKIND-generated data to calculate doses to offlink populations, onlink populations, people at stops, crews, inspectors, workers at intermodal transfer stations, guards at overnight stops, and escorts, as well as non-radioactive pollution health effects. For accident scenarios, the database uses RADTRAN-generated data to calculate dose risks based on ingestion, inhalation, resuspension, immersion (cloudshine), and groundshine as

Yucca Mountain Milestone

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hunt, Rod

1997-01-01

The Department of Energy project to determine if the Yucca Mountain site in Nevada is suitable for geologic disposal of high-level nuclear waste reached a major milestone in late April when a 25-foot-diameter tunnel boring machine ''holed through'' completing a five-mile-long, horseshoe-shaped excavation through the mountain. When the cutting-head of the giant machine broke through to daylight at the tunnel's south portal, it ended a 2 1/2-year excavation through the mountain that was completed ahead of schedule and with an outstanding safety record. Video of the event was transmitted live by satellite to Washington, DC, where it was watched by Secretary of Energy Frederico Pena and other high-level DOE officials, signifying the importance of the project's mission to find a repository for high-level nuclear waste and spent nuclear fuel produced by nuclear power plants. This critical undertaking is being performed by DOE's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM). The tunnel is the major feature of the Exploratory Studies Facility (ESF), which serves as an underground laboratory for engineers and scientists to help determine if Yucca Mountain is suitable to serve as a repository for the safe disposal of high-level nuclear waste. Morrison Knudsen's Environmental/Government Group is providing design and construction-management services on the project. The MK team is performing final design for the ESF and viability assessment design for the underground waste repository that will be built only if the site is found suitable for such a mission. In fact, if at anytime during the ESF phase, the site is found unsuitable, the studies will be stopped and the site restored to its natural state

Evaluation of the geologic relations and seismotectonic stability of the Yucca Mountain area, Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-10-01

This report provides a summary of progress for the project ''Evaluation of the Geologic Relations and Seismotectonic Stability of the Yucca Mountain Area, Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI)'' for the eighteen month period of January 1, 1987 to June 10, 1988. This final report was preceded by the final report for the initial six month period, July 1, 1986 to December 31, 1986 (submitted on January 25, 1987, and revised in June 1987.) Quaternary Tectonics, Geochemical, Mineral Deposits, Vulcanic Geology, Seismology, Tectonics, Neotectonics, Remote Sensing, Geotechnical Assessments, Geotechnical Rock Mass Assessments, Basinal Studies, and Strong Ground Motion

Evaluation of the geologic relations and seismotectonic stability of the Yucca Mountain Area Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-01-01

This report provides a summary of progress for the project open-quotes Evaluation of the Geologic Relations and Seismotectonic Stability of the Yucca Mountain Area, Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI).close quotes A similar report was previously provided for the period of 1 October 1993 to 30 September 1994. The report initially covers the activities of the General Task and is followed by sections that describe the progress of the other ongoing Tasks which are listed below. Task 1: Quaternary Tectonics Task 3: Mineral Deposits, Volcanic Geology Task 4: Seismology Task 5: Tectonics Task 8: Basinal Studies

Agency for Nuclear Projects/Nuclear Waste Project Office final progress report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

The Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects/Nuclear Waste Project Office (NWPO) was formally established by Executive Policy in 1983 following passage of the federal Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (Act). That Act provides for the systematic siting, construction, operation, and closure of high-level radioactive defense and research by-products and other forms of high-level radioactive waste from around the country which will be stored at such repositories. In 1985 the Nevada legislature formally established the NWPO as a distinct and statutorily authorized agency to provide support to the Governor and State Legislature on matters concerning the high-level nuclear waste programs. The NWPO utilized a small, central staff supplemented by contractual services for needed technical and specialized expertise in order to provide high quality oversight and monitoring of federal activities, to conduct necessary independent studies, and to avoid unnecessary duplication of efforts. This report summarizes the results of this ongoing program to ensure that risks to the environment and to human safety are minimized. It includes findings in the areas of hydrogeology, geology, quality assurance activities, repository engineering, legislature participation, socioeconomic affects, risk assessments, monitoring programs, public information dissemination, and transportation activities. The bulk of the reporting deals with the Yucca Mountain facility

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act: Volume 4

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-01-01

The Yucca Mountain site in Nevada is one of three candidate sites for the first geologic repository for radioactive waste. On May 28, 1986, it was recommended and approved by the President for detailed study in a program of site characterization. This site characterization plan (SCP) has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act to summarize the information collected to date about the geologic conditions at the site; to describe the conceptual designs for the repository and the waste package; and to present the plans for obtaining the geologic information necessary to demonstate the suitability of the site for a repository, to desin the repository and the waste package, to prepare an environmental impact statement, and to obtain from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) an authorization to construct the repository. This introduction begins with a brief section on the process for siting and developing a repository, followed by a discussion of the pertinent legislation and regulations. A description of site characterization is presented next; it describes the facilities to be constructed for the site characterization program and explains the principal activities to be conducted during the program. Finally, the purpose, content, organizing principles, and organization of this site characterization plan are outlined, and compliance with applicable regulations is discussed

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act: Volume 4

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1988-01-01

The Yucca Mountain site in Nevada is one of three candidate sites for the first geologic repository for radioactive waste. On May 28, 1986, it was recommended and approved by the President for detailed study in a program of site characterization. This site characterization plan (SCP) has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act to summarize the information collected to date about the geologic conditions at the site; to describe the conceptual designs for the repository and the waste package; and to present the plans for obtaining the geologic information necessary to demonstate the suitability of the site for a repository, to desin the repository and the waste package, to prepare an environmental impact statement, and to obtain from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) an authorization to construct the repository. This introduction begins with a brief section on the process for siting and developing a repository, followed by a discussion of the pertinent legislation and regulations. A description of site characterization is presented next; it describes the facilities to be constructed for the site characterization program and explains the principal activities to be conducted during the program. Finally, the purpose, content, organizing principles, and organization of this site characterization plan are outlined, and compliance with applicable regulations is discussed.

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act: Volume 1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1988-01-01

The Yucca Mountain site in Nevada is one of three candidate sites for the first geologic repository for radioactive waste. On May 28, 1986, it was recommended for detailed study in a program of site characterization. This site characterization plan (SCP) has been prepared in acordance with the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act to summarize the information collected to date about the geologic conditions at the site;to describe the conceptual designs for the repository and the waste package and to present the plans for obtaining the geologic information necessary to demonstrate the suitability of the site for a repository, to design the repository and the waste package, to prepare an environmental impact statement, and to obtain from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) an authorization to construct the repository. This introduction begins with a brief section on the process for siting and eveloping a repository, followed by a discussion of the pertinent legislation and regulations. A description of site characterization is presented next;it describes the facilities to be constructed for the site characterization program and explains the principal activities to be conducted during the program. Finally, the purpose, content, organizing prinicples, and organization of this site characterization plan are outlined, and compliance with applicable regulations is discussed. 880 refs., 130 figs., 25 tabs.

Robotics and remote handling concepts for disposal of high-level nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McAffee, Douglas; Raczka, Norman; Schwartztrauber, Keith

1997-01-01

This paper summarizes preliminary remote handling and robotic concepts being developed as part of the US Department of Energy's (DOE) Yucca Mountain Project. The DOE is currently evaluating the Yucca Mountain Nevada site for suitability as a possible underground geologic repository for the disposal of high level nuclear waste. The current advanced conceptual design calls for the disposal of more than 12,000 high level nuclear waste packages within a 225 km underground network of tunnels and emplacement drifts. Many of the waste packages may weigh as much as 66 tonnes and measure 1.8 m in diameter and 5.6 m long. The waste packages will emit significant levels of radiation and heat. Therefore, remote handling is a cornerstone of the repository design and operating concepts. This paper discusses potential applications areas for robotics and remote handling technologies within the subsurface repository. It also summarizes the findings of a preliminary technology survey which reviewed available robotic and remote handling technologies developed within the nuclear, mining, rail and industrial robotics and automation industries, and at national laboratories, universities, and related research institutions and government agencies

A Natural Analogue for Thermal-Hydrological-Chemical Coupled Processes at the Proposed Nuclear Waste Repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bill Carey; Gordon Keating; Peter C. Lichtner

1999-01-01

Dike and sill complexes that intruded tuffaceous host rocks above the water table are suggested as natural analogues for thermal-hydrologic-chemical (THC) processes at the proposed nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Scoping thermal-hydrologic calculations of temperature and saturation profiles surrounding a 30-50 m wide intrusion suggest that boiling conditions could be sustained at distances of tens of meters from the intrusion for several thousand years. This time scale for persistence of boiling is similar to that expected for the Yucca Mountain repository with moderate heat loading. By studying the hydrothermal alteration of the tuff host rocks surrounding the intrusions, insight and relevant data can be obtained that apply directly to the Yucca Mountain repository and can shed light on the extent and type of alteration that should be expected. Such data are needed to bound and constrain model parameters used in THC simulations of the effect of heat produced by the waste on the host rock and to provide a firm foundation for assessing overall repository performance. One example of a possible natural analogue for the repository is the Paiute Ridge intrusive complex located on the northeastern boundary of the Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada. The complex consists of dikes and sills intruded into a partially saturated tuffaceous host rock that has stratigraphic sequences that correlate with those found at Yucca Mountain. The intrusions were emplaced at a depth of several hundred meters below the surface, similar to the depth of the proposed repository. The tuffaceous host rock surrounding the intrusions is hydrothermally altered to varying extents depending on the distance from the intrusions. The Paiute Ridge intrusive complex thus appears to be an ideal natural analogue of THC coupled processes associated with the Yucca Mountain repository. It could provide much needed physical and chemical data for understanding the influence of heat

Nevada Nuclear-Waste-Storage Investigations. Quarterly report, April-June 1982

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

1982-09-01

The Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations (NNWSI) are studying the Nevada Test Site (NTS) area to establish whether it would qualify as a licensable location for a commercial nuclear waste repository; determining whether specific underground rock masses in the NTS area are technically acceptable for permanently disposing of highly radioactive solid wastes; and developing and demonstrating the capability to safely handle and store commercial spent reactor fuel and high-level waste. Progress reports for the following eight tasks are presented: systems; waste package; site; repository; regulatory and institutional; test facilities; land acquisition; and program management. Some of the highlights are: A code library was established to provide a central location for documentation of repository performance assessment codes. A two-dimensional finite element code, SAGUARO, was developed for modeling saturated/unsaturated groundwater flow. The results of an initial experiment to determine canister penetration rates due to corrosion indicate the expected strong effect of toxic environmental conditions on the corrosion rate of carbon steel in tuff-conditioned water. Wells USW-H3 and USW-H4 at Yucca Mountain have been sampled for groundwater analysis. A summary characterizing and relating the mineralogy and petrology of Yucca Mountain tuffs was compiled from the findings of studies of core samples from five drill holes.

Risk assessment for the Yucca Mountain high-level nuclear waste repository site: Estimation of volcanic disruption. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ho, Chih-Hsiang.

1992-01-01

In this article, we model the volcanism near the proposed nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, U.S.A. by estimating the instantaneous recurrence rate using a nonhomogeneous Poisson process with Weibull intensity and by using a homogeneous Poisson process to predict future eruptions. We then quantify the probability that any single eruption is disruptive in terms of a (prior) probability distribution, since not every eruption would result in disruption of the repository. Bayesian analysis is performed to evaluate the volcanic risk. Based on the Quaternary data, a 90% confidence interval for the instantaneous recurrence rate near the Yucca Mountain site is (1.85 x 10 -6 /yr, 1.26 x 10 -5 /yr). Also, using these confidence bounds, the corresponding 90% confidence interval for the risk (probability of at least one disruptive eruption) for an isolation time of 10 4 years is (1.0 x 10 -3 , 6.7 x 10 -3 ), if it is assumed that the intensity remains constant during the projected time frame

Emerging Trends in the Nuclear Fuel Cycle: Implications for Waste Management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spradley, L.; Camper, L.; Rehmann, M.

2009-01-01

There are emerging trends in the nuclear fuel cycle that have implications for waste management. This paper will discuss activities in both the front-end and back-end of the nuclear fuel cycle for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)-regulated entities. Particular focus will be given to the front-end which includes uranium recovery facilities, conversion facilities, and enrichment facilities. The back-end activities include progress on the proposed high-level waste geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, NV and efforts to reprocess spent nuclear fuel or down-blend HEU. While there are potential environmental impacts due to construction and dismantling of fuel cycle facilities, this paper focuses on the operational waste stream that will need to be managed as a result of fuel-cycle facilities. (authors)

Modeling of strongly heat-driven flow processes at a potential high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pruess, K.; Tsang, Y.

1993-01-01

Two complementary numerical models for analyzing high-level nuclear waste emplacement at Yucca Mountain have been developed. A vertical cross-sectional (X-Z) model permits a realistic representation of hydrogeologic features, such as alternating tilting layers of welded and non-welded tuffs, fault zones, and surface topography. An alternative radially symmetric (R-Z) model is more limited in its ability to describe the hydrogeology of the site, but is better suited to model heat transfer in the host rock. Our models include a comprehensive description of multiphase fluid and heat flow processes, including strong enhancements of vapor diffusion from pore-level phase change effects. The neighborhood of the repository is found to partially dry out from the waste heat. A condensation halo of large liquid saturation forms around the drying zone, from which liquid flows downward at large rates. System response to infiltration from the surface and to ventilation of mined openings is evaluated. The impact of the various flow processes on the waste isolation capabilities of the site is discussed

Modeling of strongly heat-driven flow processes at a potential high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pruess, K.; Tsang, Y.

1993-01-01

Two complementary numerical models for analyzing high-level nuclear waste emplacement at Yucca Mountain have been developed. A vertical cross-sectional (X-Z) model permits a realistic representation of hydrogeologic features, such as alternating tilting layers of welded and non-welded tuffs. fault zones, and surface topography. An alternative radially symmetric (R-Z) model is more limited in its ability to describe the hydrogeology of the site, but is better suited to model heat transfer in the host rock. Our models include a comprehensive description of multiphase fluid and heat flow processes, including strong enhancements of vapor diffusion from pore-level phase change effects. The neighborhood of the repository is found to partially dry out from the waste heat. A condensation halo of large liquid saturation forms around the drying zone, from which liquid flows downward at large rates. System response to infiltration from the surface and to ventilation of mined openings is evaluated. The impact of the various flow processes on the waste isolation capabilities of the site is discussed

Prediction of Pseudo relative velocity response spectra at Yucca Mountain for underground nuclear explosions conducted in the Pahute Mesa testing area at the Nevada testing site; Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Phillips, J.S.

1991-12-01

The Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project (YMP), managed by the Office of Geologic Disposal of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management of the US Department of Energy, is examining the feasibility of siting a repository for commercial, high-level nuclear wastes at Yucca Mountain on and adjacent to the Nevada Test Site (NTS). This work, intended to extend our understanding of the ground motion at Yucca Mountain resulting from testing of nuclear weapons on the NTS, was funded by the Yucca Mountain project and the Military Applications Weapons Test Program. This report summarizes one aspect of the weapons test seismic investigations conducted in FY88. Pseudo relative velocity response spectra (PSRV) have been calculated for a large body of surface ground motions generated by underground nuclear explosions. These spectra have been analyzed and fit using multiple linear regression techniques to develop a credible prediction technique for surface PSRVs. In addition, a technique for estimating downhole PSRVs at specific stations is included. A data summary, data analysis, prediction development, prediction evaluation, software summary and FORTRAN listing of the prediction technique are included in this report.

Use of an analog site near Raymond, California, to develop equipment and methods for characterizing a potential high-level, nuclear waste repository site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Umari, A.M.J.; Geldon, A.; Patterson, G.; Gemmell, J.; Earle, J.; Darnell, J.

1994-01-01

Yucca Mountain, Nevada, currently is being investigated by the U.S. Geological Survey as a potential site for a high-level nuclear waste repository. Planned hydraulic-stress and tracer tests in fractured, tuffaceous rocks below the water table at Yucca Mountain will require work at depths in excess of 1,300 feet. To facilitate prototype testing of equipment and methods to be used in aquifer tests at Yucca Mountain, an analog site was selected in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada near Raymond, California. Two of nine 250- to 300-feet deep wells drilled into fractured, granitic rocks at the Raymond site have been instrumented with packers, pressure transducers, and other equipment that will be used at Yucca Mountain. Aquifer tests conducted at the Raymond site to date have demonstrated a need to modify some of the equipment and methods conceived for use at Yucca Mountain

Milestones for Selection, Characterization, and Analysis of the Performance of a Repository for Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rechard, Robert P. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

2015-02-01

This report presents a concise history in tabular form of events leading up to site identification in 1978, site selection in 1987, subsequent characterization, and ongoing analysis through 2009 of the performance of a repository for spent nuclear fuel and high - level radioactive waste at Yucca Mountain in southern Nevada. The tabulated events generally occurred in five periods: (1) commitment to mined geologic disposal and identification of sites; (2) site selection and analysis, based on regional geologic characterization through literature and analogous data; (3) feasibility analysis demonstrating calculation procedures and importance of system components, based on rough measures of performance using surface exploration, waste process knowledge, and general laboratory experiments; (4) suitability analysis demonstrating viability of disposal system, based on environment - specific laboratory experiments, in - situ experiments, and underground disposal system characterization; and (5) compliance analysis, based on completed site - specific characterization . The current sixth period beyond 2010 represents a new effort to set waste management policy in the United States. Because the relationship is important to understanding the evolution of the Yucca Mountain Project , the tabulation also shows the interaction between the policy realm and technical realm using four broad categories of events : (a) Regulatory requirements and related federal policy in laws and court decisions, (c) Presidential and agency directives, (c) technical milestones of implementing institutions, and (d) critiques of the Yucca Mountain Project and pertinent national and world events related to nuclear energy and radioactive waste. Preface The historical progression of technical milestones for the Yucca Mountain Project was originally developed for 10 journal articles in a special issue of Reliability Engineering System Safety on the performance assessment for the Yucca Mountain license

Transportation of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High Level Waste to Yucca Mountain: The Next Step in Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sweeney, Robin L.; Lechel, David J.

2003-01-01

In the U.S. Department of Energy's ''Final Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada,'' the Department states that certain broad transportation-related decisions can be made. These include the choice of a mode of transportation nationally (mostly legal-weight truck or mostly rail) and in Nevada (mostly rail, mostly legal-weight truck, or mostly heavy-haul truck with use of an associated intermodal transfer station), as well as the choice among alternative rail corridors or heavy-haul truck routes with use of an associated intermodal transfer station in Nevada. Although a rail line does not service the Yucca Mountain site, the Department has identified mostly rail as its preferred mode of transportation, both nationally and in the State of Nevada. If mostly rail is selected for Nevada, the Department would then identify a preference for one of the rail corridors in consultation with affected stakeholders, particularly the State of Nevada. DOE would then select the rail corridor and initiate a process to select a specific rail alignment within the corridor for the construction of a rail line. Five proposed rail corridors were analyzed in the Final Environmental Impact Statement. The assessment considered the impacts of constructing a branch rail line in the five 400-meter (0.25mile) wide corridors. Each corridor connects the Yucca Mountain site with an existing mainline railroad in Nevada

Nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-10-01

The Department of Energy is awarding grants to the state of Nevada for the state's participation in DOE's program to investigate Yucca Mountain as a possible site for the disposal of civilian nuclear waste. This report has found that DOE's financial assistance budget request of $15 million for Nevada's fiscal year 1990 was not based on the amount the state requested but rather was derived by increasing Nevada's grant funds from the previous year in proportion to the increase that DOE requested for its own activities at the Nevada site. DOE's evaluations of Nevada's requests are performed too late to be used in DOE's budget formulation process because Nevada has been applying for financial assistance at about the same time that DOE submits its budget request to Congress

Department of Energy perspective on high-level waste standards for Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brocoum, S.J.; Gil, A.V.; Van Luik, A.E.; Lugo, M.A.

1996-01-01

This paper provides a regulatory perspective from the viewpoint of the potential licensee, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), on the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) report on Yucca Mountain standards issued in August 1995, and on how the recommendations in that report should be considered in the development of high-level radioactive waste standards applicable to Yucca Mountain. The paper first provides an overview of the DOE perspective and then discusses several of the issues that are of most importance in the development of the regulatory framework for Yucca Mountain, including both the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standard and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) implementing regulation. These issues include: the regulatory time frame, the risk/dose limit, the definition of the reference biosphere, human intrusion, and natural processes and events

Supplemental Performance Analyses for the Potential High-Level Nuclear Waste Repository at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sevougian, S. D.; McNeish, J. A.; Coppersmith, K.; Jenni, K. E.; Rickertsen, L. D.; Swift, P. N.; Wilson, M. L.

2002-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is considering the possible recommendation of a site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, for the potential development of a geologic repository for the disposal of high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel. To facilitate public review and comment, in May 2001 the DOE released the Yucca Mountain Science and Engineering Report (S and ER) (1), which presents technical information supporting the consideration of the possible site recommendation. The report summarizes the results of more than 20 years of scientific and engineering studies. Based on internal reviews of the S and ER and its key supporting references, the Total System Performance Assessment for the Site Recommendation (TSPA-SR) (2) and the Analysis Model Reports and Process Model Reports cited therein, the DOE has recently identified and performed several types of analyses to supplement the treatment of uncertainty in support of the consideration of a possible site recommendation. The results of these new analyses are summarized in the two-volume report entitled FY01 Supplemental Science and Performance Analysis (SSPA) (3,4). The information in this report is intended to supplement, not supplant, the information contained in the S and ER. The DOE recognizes that important uncertainties will always remain in any assessment of the performance of a potential repository over thousands of years (1). One part of the DOE approach to recognizing and managing these uncertainties is a commitment to continued testing and analysis and to the continued evaluation of the technical basis supporting the possible recommendation of the site, such as the analysis contained in the SSPA. The goals of the work described here are to provide insights into the implications of newly quantified uncertainties, updated science, and evaluations of lower operating temperatures on the performance of a potential Yucca Mountain repository and to increase confidence in the results of the TSPA described

Evaluation of the geologic relations and seismotectonic stability of the Yucca Mountain Area Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI). Progress report, 30 September 1994

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1994-12-31

This report dated 30 September 1994 provides a summary of progress for the project {open_quotes}Evaluation of the Geologic Relations and Seismotectonic Stability of the Yucca Mountain Area, Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI){close_quotes}. This progress report was preceded by the progress report for the year from 1 October 1992 to 30 September 1993. This report summarizes the geologic and seismotectonic studies conducted at Yucca Mountain during the contract period including Quaternary tectonics, an evaluation of mineral resource potential of the area, caldera geology, and volcano-tectonic activity at and near the site. A report of basinal studies conducted during the contract period is also included. Selected papers are indexed separately for inclusion in the Energy Science and Technology Database.

Ventilation planning for a prospective nuclear waste repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wallace, K.G. Jr.

1987-01-01

In 1982, the US Congress passed the Nuclear Waste Policy Act to provide for the development of underground repositories for spent nuclear fuel. This development will be managed by the United States Department of Energy. In 1986, the President selected three areas for site characterization to determine their suitability for the development of an underground repository; those sites were: (1) A site in volcanic tuff located at Yucca Mountain in Nevada, (2) a site in bedded salt located in Deaf Smith County in Texas, and (3) a site in basalt located in Hanford, Washington. At present conceptual repository designs are being developed for each site. A key element of a repository design is the underground ventilation system required to support construction, nuclear waste emplacement, and potential waste retrieval. This paper describes the preliminary ventilation systems designed for the repository in tuff. The concept provides separate ventilation systems for the construction and waste emplacement activities. The paper further describes the means by which acceptable environmental conditions will be re-established to allow re-entry into previously closed rooms for the purpose of inspection, maintenance or retrieval

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-01-01

The Yucca Mountain site in Nevada is one of three candidate sites for the first geologic repository for radioactive waste. On May 28, 1986, it was recommended by the Secretary of Energy and approved by the President for detailed study in a program of site characterization. This site characterization plan (SCP) has been prepared by the US Department of Energy (DOE) in accordance with the requirements of the Nulcear Waste Policy Act to summarize the information collected to date about the geologic conditions at the site;to describe the conceptual designs for the repository and the waste package;and to present the plans for obtaining the geologic information necessary to demonstrate the suitability of the site for a repository, to design the repository and the waste package, to prepare an environmental impact statement, and to obtain from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) an authorization to construct the repository. This introduction begins with a brief section on the process for siting and developing a repository, followed by a discussion of the pertinent legislation and regulations. A description of site characterization is presented next;it describes the facilities to be constructed for the site characterization program and explains the principal activities to be conducted during the program. Finally, the purpose, content, organizing principles, and organization of the site characterization plan are oulined, and compliance with applicable regulations is discussed

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1988-01-01

The Yucca Mountain site in Nevada is one of three candidate sites for the first geologic repository for radioactive waste. On May 28, 1986, it was recommended by the Secretary of Energy and approved by the President for detailed study in a program of site characterization. This site characterization plan (SCP) has been prepared by the US Department of Energy (DOE) in accordance with the requirements of the Nulcear Waste Policy Act to summarize the information collected to date about the geologic conditions at the site;to describe the conceptual designs for the repository and the waste package;and to present the plans for obtaining the geologic information necessary to demonstrate the suitability of the site for a repository, to design the repository and the waste package, to prepare an environmental impact statement, and to obtain from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) an authorization to construct the repository. This introduction begins with a brief section on the process for siting and developing a repository, followed by a discussion of the pertinent legislation and regulations. A description of site characterization is presented next;it describes the facilities to be constructed for the site characterization program and explains the principal activities to be conducted during the program. Finally, the purpose, content, organizing principles, and organization of the site characterization plan are oulined, and compliance with applicable regulations is discussed.

Nuclear waste package design for the Vadose zone in tuff

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Neal, W.C.; Ballou, L.B.; Gregg, D.W.; Russell, E.W.

1984-02-01

This report presents an overview of the selection and analysis of conceptual waste package designs that will be used by the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations (NNWSI) project for disposal of high-level nuclear waste (HLW) at the proposed Yucca Mountain, Nevada Site. The design requirements that the waste packages are required to meet are listed. Concept drawings for the reference designs and one alternative package design are shown. Four metal alloys; 304L SS, 321 SS, 316L SS and Incoloy 825 have been selected for candidate canister/overpack materials, and 1020 carbon steel has been selected as the reference metal for the borehole liners. A summary of the results of technical and economic analysis supporting the selection of the conceptual waste package designs is included. Post-closure containment and release rates are not discussed in this paper. 17 references, 2 figures, 2 tables

Site characterization progress report: Yucca Mountain, Nevada, October 1, 1994--March 31, 1995, Number 12. Nuclear Waste Policy Act (Section 113)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-08-01

During the first half of fiscal year 1995, most activities at the Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project were directed at implementing the Program Plan developed by the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management. The Plan is designed to enable the Office to make measurable and significant progress toward key objectives over the next five years within the financial resources that can be realistically expected. Activities this period focused on the immediate goal of determining by 1998 whether Yucca Mountain, Nevada, is technically suitable as a possible site for a geologic repository for the permanent disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Work on the Project advanced in several critical areas, including programmatic activities such as issuing the Program Plan, completing the first technical basis report to support the assessment of three 10 CFR 960 guidelines, developing the Notice of Intent for the Environmental Impact Statement, submitting the License Application Annotated Outline, and beginning a rebaselining effort to conform with the goals of the Program Plan. Scientific investigation and analysis of the site and design and construction activities to support the evaluation of the technical suitability of the site also advanced. Specific details relating to all Project activities and reports generated are presented in this report

Site characterization progress report: Yucca Mountain, Nevada, October 1, 1994--March 31, 1995, Number 12. Nuclear Waste Policy Act (Section 113)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-08-01

During the first half of fiscal year 1995, most activities at the Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project were directed at implementing the Program Plan developed by the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management. The Plan is designed to enable the Office to make measurable and significant progress toward key objectives over the next five years within the financial resources that can be realistically expected. Activities this period focused on the immediate goal of determining by 1998 whether Yucca Mountain, Nevada, is technically suitable as a possible site for a geologic repository for the permanent disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Work on the Project advanced in several critical areas, including programmatic activities such as issuing the Program Plan, completing the first technical basis report to support the assessment of three 10 CFR 960 guidelines, developing the Notice of Intent for the Environmental Impact Statement, submitting the License Application Annotated Outline, and beginning a rebaselining effort to conform with the goals of the Program Plan. Scientific investigation and analysis of the site and design and construction activities to support the evaluation of the technical suitability of the site also advanced. Specific details relating to all Project activities and reports generated are presented in this report.

Yucca Mountain Project bibliography, January--June 1988: An update: Civilian Radioactive Waste Management Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tamura, A.T.; Lorenz, J.J.

1988-10-01

The Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations Project was renamed the Yucca Mountain Project on August 5, 1988. This update contains information that was added to the DOE Energy Data Base during the first six months of 1988. The update is categorized by principal project participating organizations, and items are arranged in chronological order. Participant-sponsored subcontractor reports, papers, and articles are included in the sponsoring organization's list. Previous information on this project can be found in the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations bibliographies, DOE/TIC-3406 which covers the years 1977--1985, and DOE/OSTI-3406(Suppl.1) which covers 1986 and 1987. These bibliographies contain indexes for Corporate Author, Personal Author, Subject, Contract Number, Report Number, Order Number Correlation and Key Word in Context

Yucca Mountain Project bibliography, July--December 1988: An update: Civilian Radioactive Waste Management Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tamura, A.T.; Lorenz, J.J.

1989-04-01

This update contains information on the Yucca Mountain Project that was added to the Energy Data Base during the last six months of 1988. The update also includes a new section which provides information about publications on the Energy Data Base that were not sponsored by the project but have some relevance to it. This section covers the period 1977 to 1988. Prior to August 5, 1988, this project was called the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations. The update is categorized by principal project participating organizations, and items are arranged in chronological order. Participant-sponsored subcontractor reports, meeting papers, and journal articles are included with sponsoring organization. Previous information on this project can be found in the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations bibliographies: DOE/TIC-3406, which covers the years 1977 to 1985; DOE/OSTI-3406(Suppl.1), which covers 1986 and 1987; and the Yucca Mountain Project Bibliography, DOE/OSTI-3406(Suppl.1)(Add. 1), which covers the first six months of 1988. All entries in these publications are searchable on-line on the NNW data base file which can be accessed through the Integrated Technical Information System (ITIS) of the US Department of Energy

Methodology Used for Total System Performance Assessment of the Potential Nuclear Waste Repository at Yucca Mountain (USA)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

E. Devibec; S.D. Sevougian; P.D. Mattie; J.A. McNeish; S. Mishra

2001-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy and its contractors are currently evaluating a site in Nevada (Yucca Mountain) for disposal of high-level radioactive waste from U.S. commercial nuclear plants and U.S. government-owned facilities. The suitability of the potential geologic repository is assessed, based on its performance in isolating the nuclear waste from the environment. Experimental data and models representing the natural and engineered barriers are combined into a Total System Performance Assessment (TSPA) model [1]. Process models included in the TSPA model are unsaturated zone flow and transport, thermal hydrology, in-drift geochemistry, waste package degradation, waste form degradation, engineered barrier system transport, saturated zone flow and transport, and biosphere transport. Because of the uncertainty in the current data and in the future evolution of the total system, simulations follow a probabilistic approach. Multiple realization simulations using Monte Carlo analysis are conducted over time periods of up to one million years, which estimates a range of possible behaviors of the repository. The environmental impact is measured primarily by the annual dose received by an average member of a critical population group residing 20 km down-gradient of the potential repository. In addition to the nominal scenario, other exposure scenarios include the possibility of disruptive events such as volcanic eruption or intrusion, or accidental human intrusion. Sensitivity to key uncertain processes is analyzed. The influence of stochastic variables on the TSPA model output is assessed by ''uncertainty importance analysis'', e.g., regression analysis and classification tree analysis. Further investigation of the impact of parameters and assumptions is conducted through ''one-off analysis'', which consists in fixing a parameter at a particular value, using an alternative conceptual model, or in making a different assumption. Finally, robustness analysis evaluates

DOE's Yucca Mountain studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-12-01

This booklet is about the disposal of high-level nuclear waste in the United States. It is for readers who have a general rather than a technical background. It discusses why scientists and engineers thinkhigh-level nuclear waste may be disposed of safely underground. It also describes why Yucca Mountain, Nevada, is being studied as a potential repository site and provides basic information about those studies

Nuclear waste: How the issue falls out

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garner, W.L.

1995-01-01

Unless Congress takes some action, utilities will be forced to provide onsite storage of spent fuel from civilian nuclera reactors much longer than they ever imagined. Congress's failure to authorize the Department of Energy (DOE) to begin planning a centralized, interim storage facility and, equally important, to accelerate development of a permanent repository, means that spent nuclear fuel will remain in limbo at 73 reactor sites in 34 states. Today's 30,000 metric tons of spent fuel from civilian nuclear plants will grow to 85,000 metric tons by 2033, according to DOE. The agency also must find a home for a future 70,000 tons of defense waste. There is a growing sense of urgency in Congress this year that something must be done about the nation's nuclear waste problem. By 1998, 26 civilian nuclear units will have exhausted their storage capacity. By 2010 - the earliest DOE says it could open a permanent repository at Yucca Mountain in Nevada, provided the site proves feasible - 80 nuclear units will be out of storage space. At least half a dozen bills have been introduced so far in the 104th Congress, by both propoents and opponents of nuclear power. Recent events in Washington suggest this will be a hard-fought battle

VULNERABILITY OF MOUNTAIN RIVERS TO WASTE DUMPING FROM NEAMT COUNTY, ROMANIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

FLORIN-CONSTANTIN MIHAI

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Lack of waste management facilities from mountain region often lead to uncontrolled disposal of waste on river banks polluting the local environment and damaging the tourism potential. Geographical conditions influences the distribution of human settlements which are located along the rivers and its tributaries. This paper aims to estimate the amounts of household waste generated and uncollected disposed into mountain rivers, taking into account several factors such as:proximity of rivers to the human settlements, the morphology of villages, length of river that crosses the locality(built up areas, local population, the access to waste collection services and waste management infrastructure. Vulnerability of rivers to illegal dumping is performed using GIS techniques, highlighting the localities pressure on rivers in close proximity. For this purpose, it developed a calculation model for estimation the amounts of waste (kg that are dumped on a river section (m that crosses a locality (village or it is in close proximity. This estimation is based on the “principle of proximity and minimum effort” it can be applied in any mountainous region that are lacking or partially access to waste collection services. It is an assessment tool of mountain rivers vulnerability to waste dumping,taking into account the geographical and demographic conditions of the study area. Also the current dysfunctions are analyzed based on field observations.

Managing the nation's nuclear waste. Overview: Nuclear Waste Policy Act

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1985-10-01

Signed into law by the President on January 7, 1983, the Nuclear Waste Policy Act established a national policy for safely storing, transporting, and disposing of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. This overview presents the following information on the Nuclear Waste Policy Act: (1) background; (2) permanent repository; (3) siting guidelines and mission plan; (4) monitored retrievable storage; and (5) nuclear waste funds. (DT)

Scientific Solutions to Nuclear Waste Environmental Challenges

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johnson, Bradley R.

2014-01-01

of time it takes for one-half of the material to undergo radioactive decay.) In general, the ideal material would need to be durable for approximately 10 half-lives to allow the activity to decay to negligible levels. However, the potential health effects of each radionuclide vary depending on what type of radiation is emitted, the energy of that emission, and the susceptibility for the human body to accumulate and concentrate that particular element. Consequently, actual standards tend to be based on limiting the dose (energy deposited per unit mass) that is introduced into the environment. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has the responsibility to establish standards for nuclear waste disposal to protect the health and safety of the public. For example, the Energy Policy Act of 1992 directed the EPA to establish radiation protection standards for the Yucca Mountain geologic repository for nuclear wastes. The standards for Yucca Mountain were promulgated in 2008, and limit the dose to 15 millirem per year for the first 10,000 years, and 100 milirem per year between 10,000 years and 1 million years (40 CFR Part 197; http://www.epa.gov/radiation/yucca/2008factsheet.html). So, the challenge is two-fold: (1) develop a material (a waste form) that is capable of immobilizing the waste over geologic time scales, and (2) develop a process to convert the radioactive sludge in the tanks into this durable waste form material. Glass: Hard, durable, inert, and with infinite chemical versatility Molten glass is a powerful solvent liquid, which can be designed to dissolve almost anything. When solidified, it can be one of the most chemically inert substances known to man. Nature's most famous analogue to glass is obsidian, a vitreous product of volcanic activity; formations over 17 million years old have been found. Archaeologists have found man-made glass specimens that are five thousand years old

Preliminary drift design analyses for nuclear waste repository in tuff

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hardy, M.P.; Brechtel, C.E.; Goodrich, R.R.; Bauer, S.J.

1990-01-01

The Yucca Mountain Project (YMP) is examining the feasibility of siting a repository for high-level nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, on and adjacent to the Nevada Test Site (NTS). The proposed repository will be excavated in the Topopah Spring Member, which is a moderately fractured, unsaturated, welded tuff. Excavation stability will be required during construction, waste emplacement, retrieval (if required), and closure to ensure worker safety. The subsurface excavations will be subject to stress changes resulting from thermal expansion of the rock mass and seismic events associated with regional tectonic activity and underground nuclear explosions (UNEs). Analyses of drift stability are required to assess the acceptable waste emplacement density, to design the drift shapes and ground support systems, and to establish schedules and cost of construction. This paper outlines the proposed methodology to assess drift stability and then focuses on an example of its application to the YMP repository drifts based on preliminary site data. Because site characterization activities have not begun, the database currently lacks the extensive site-specific field and laboratory data needed to form conclusions as to the final ground support requirements. This drift design methodology will be applied and refined as more site-specific data are generated and as analytical techniques and methodologies are verified during the site characterization process

Concept for waste package environment tests in the Yucca Mountain exploratory shaft

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yow, J.L. Jr.

1985-05-01

The Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations (NNWSI) project is studying a tuffaceous rock unit located at Yucca Mountain on the western boundary of the Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada. The objective is to evaluate the suitability of the volcanic rocks located above the water table at Yucca Mountain as a potential location for a repository for high level radioactive waste. As part of the NNWSI project, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is responsible for the design of the waste package and for determining the expected performance of the waste package in the repository environment. To design an optimal waste package system for the unsaturated emplacement environment, the mechanisms by which liquid water can return to contact the metal canister after peaking of the thermal load must be established. Definition of these flux and flow mechanisms is essential for estimating canister corrosion modes and rates. Therefore, three waste package environment tests are being designed for the in situ phase of exploratory shaft testing. These tests emphasize measurement techniques that offer the possibility of characterizing the movement of water into and through the pores and fractures of the densely welded Topopah Spring Member. Other measurement techniques will be used to examine the interactions between moisture migration and the thermomechanical rock mass behavior. Three reduced-scale heater tests will use electrical resistive heaters in a horizontal configuration. All three tests are designed to investigate moisture conditions in the rock during heating and cooling phases of a thermal cycle so that the effects of these moisture conditions on the performance of the waste package system may be established. 28 refs., 4 figs., 3 tabs

Independent management and financial review, Yucca Mountain Project, Nevada. Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-07-15

The Yucca Mountain Project is one part of the Department of Energy`s Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management Program (the Program) which was established by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, and as amended in 1987. The Program`s goal is to site the nation`s first geologic repository for the permanent disposal of high-level nuclear waste, in the form of spent fuel rod assemblies, generated by the nuclear power industry and a smaller quantity of Government radioactive waste. The Program, which also encompasses the transportation system and the multipurpose canister system was not the subject of this Report. The subject of this Review was only the Yucca Mountain Project in Nevada. While the Review was directed toward the Yucca Mountain Project rather than the Program as a whole, there are certain elements of the Project which cannot be addressed except through discussion of some Program issues. An example is the Total System Life Cycle Cost addressed in Section 7 of this report. Where Program issues are discussed in this Report, the reader is reminded of the scope limitations of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) contract to review only the Yucca Mountain Project. The primary scope of the Review was to respond to the specific criteria contained in the NARUC scope of work. In responding to these criteria, the Review Team understood that some interested parties have expressed concern over the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act relative to the Yucca Mountain Project and the nature of activities currently being carried out by the Department of Energy at the Yucca Mountain Project site. The Review Team has attempted to analyze relevant portions of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act as Amended, but has not conducted a thorough analysis of this legislation that could lead to any specific legal conclusions about all aspects of it.

Independent management and financial review, Yucca Mountain Project, Nevada. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-01-01

The Yucca Mountain Project is one part of the Department of Energy's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management Program (the Program) which was established by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, and as amended in 1987. The Program's goal is to site the nation's first geologic repository for the permanent disposal of high-level nuclear waste, in the form of spent fuel rod assemblies, generated by the nuclear power industry and a smaller quantity of Government radioactive waste. The Program, which also encompasses the transportation system and the multipurpose canister system was not the subject of this Report. The subject of this Review was only the Yucca Mountain Project in Nevada. While the Review was directed toward the Yucca Mountain Project rather than the Program as a whole, there are certain elements of the Project which cannot be addressed except through discussion of some Program issues. An example is the Total System Life Cycle Cost addressed in Section 7 of this report. Where Program issues are discussed in this Report, the reader is reminded of the scope limitations of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) contract to review only the Yucca Mountain Project. The primary scope of the Review was to respond to the specific criteria contained in the NARUC scope of work. In responding to these criteria, the Review Team understood that some interested parties have expressed concern over the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act relative to the Yucca Mountain Project and the nature of activities currently being carried out by the Department of Energy at the Yucca Mountain Project site. The Review Team has attempted to analyze relevant portions of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act as Amended, but has not conducted a thorough analysis of this legislation that could lead to any specific legal conclusions about all aspects of it

Politics and promises of nuclear waste disposal: the view from Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bryan, R.H.

1987-01-01

DOE's betrayal of the principles and standards of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) has distorted the agency's repository-siting decisions. Leadership is needed to make midcourse corrections and to return to the promise of state-federal cooperation on which the act was built. NWPA managed to incorporate the interests of diverse factions into a decision-making process that was viewed as an equitable and workable solution to the nation's nuclear waste disposal dilemma. The House of Representatives subcommittees report documents conclusively a substantial and pervasive bias in favor of the selection of sites at Yucca Mountain and Hanford and a politization of the siting process

Thermal analysis of Yucca Mountain commercial high-level waste packages

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Altenhofen, M.K.; Eslinger, P.W.

1992-10-01

The thermal performance of commercial high-level waste packages was evaluated on a preliminary basis for the candidate Yucca Mountain repository site. The purpose of this study is to provide an estimate for waste package component temperatures as a function of isolation time in tuff. Several recommendations are made concerning the additional information and modeling needed to evaluate the thermal performance of the Yucca Mountain repository system

A lineament analysis of Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perry, J.J.

1988-01-01

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 was signed into law on January 7, 1983. It specifies procedures for the Department of Energy in the selection of a high level nuclear waste repository. Federal Environmental Protection Agency standards require adequate isolation of waste from the biosphere for 10,000 years. The law considers such geologic factors as tectonic stability, igneous activity, hydrologic conditions and natural resources to be of primary concern. Yucca Mountain in southern Nevada is one of three sites selected for further consideration in the site characterization process. The Nuclear Waste Project Office (NWPO) within the Agency for Nuclear Projects of the State of Nevada is conducting an independent scientific assessment of the proposed site. The remote sensing technical assessment is one of seven task groups conducting review and research into the suitability of Yucca Mountain. The study undertaken by the Remote Sensing Group was that of a lineament analysis with regard to the site's structural relationship within a regional tectonic framework. Lineaments mapped from synoptic imagery may prove to represent structural zones of weakness. These zones may provide pathways for the infiltration of groundwater, conduits for the extrusion of magma or be reactivated as stress conditions change. This paper describes the methodology for a lineament analysis of the Yucca Mountain area

Analogues to features and processes of a high-level radioactive waste repository proposed for Yucca Mountain, Nevada

Science.gov (United States)

Simmons, Ardyth M.; Stuckless, John S.; with a Foreword by Abraham Van Luik, U.S. Department of Energy

2010-01-01

Natural analogues are defined for this report as naturally occurring or anthropogenic systems in which processes similar to those expected to occur in a nuclear waste repository are thought to have taken place over time periods of decades to millennia and on spatial scales as much as tens of kilometers. Analogues provide an important temporal and spatial dimension that cannot be tested by laboratory or field-scale experiments. Analogues provide one of the multiple lines of evidence intended to increase confidence in the safe geologic disposal of high-level radioactive waste. Although the work in this report was completed specifically for Yucca Mountain, Nevada, as the proposed geologic repository for high-level radioactive waste under the U.S. Nuclear Waste Policy Act, the applicability of the science, analyses, and interpretations is not limited to a specific site. Natural and anthropogenic analogues have provided and can continue to provide value in understanding features and processes of importance across a wide variety of topics in addressing the challenges of geologic isolation of radioactive waste and also as a contribution to scientific investigations unrelated to waste disposal. Isolation of radioactive waste at a mined geologic repository would be through a combination of natural features and engineered barriers. In this report we examine analogues to many of the various components of the Yucca Mountain system, including the preservation of materials in unsaturated environments, flow of water through unsaturated volcanic tuff, seepage into repository drifts, repository drift stability, stability and alteration of waste forms and components of the engineered barrier system, and transport of radionuclides through unsaturated and saturated rock zones.

Candidate container materials for Yucca Mountain waste package designs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McCright, R.D.; Halsey, W.G.; Gdowski, G.E.; Clarke, W.L.

1991-09-01

Materials considered as candidates for fabricating nuclear waste containers are reviewed in the context of the Conceptual Design phase of a potential repository located at Yucca Mountain. A selection criteria has been written for evaluation of candidate materials for the next phase -- Advanced Conceptual Design. The selection criteria is based on the conceptual design of a thin-walled container fabricated from a single metal or alloy; the criteria consider the performance requirements on the container and the service environment in which the containers will be emplaced. A long list of candidate materials is evaluated against the criteria, and a short list of materials is proposed for advanced characterization in the next design phase

Unsaturated flow modeling in performance assessments for the Yucca Mountain disposal system for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rechard, Rob P.; Birkholzer, Jens T.; Wu, Yu-Shu; Stein, Joshua S.; Houseworth, James E.

2014-01-01

This paper summarizes the progression of modeling efforts of infiltration, percolation, and seepage conducted between 1984 and 2008 to evaluate feasibility, viability, and assess compliance of a repository in the unsaturated zone for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Scientific understanding of infiltration in a desert environment, unsaturated percolation flux in fractures and matrix of the volcanic tuff, and seepage into an open drift in a thermally perturbed environment was initially lacking in 1984. As understanding of the Yucca Mountain disposal system increased through site characterization and in situ testing, modeling of infiltration, percolation, and seepage evolved from simple assumptions in a single model in 1984 to three modeling modules each based on several detailed process models in 2008. Uncertainty in percolation flux through Yucca Mountain was usually important in explaining the observed uncertainty in performance measures:cumulative release in assessments prior to 1995 and individual dose, thereafter. - Highlights: • Progression of modeling of infiltration, percolation, and seepage conducted is described for a geological repository at Yucca Mountain. • Progression from 1-D in single equivalent to 3-D model of percolation in dual permeability continuum is described. • Introduction of an infiltration boundary condition in 1998 and the refinement for evaluating uncertainty for the license application is described. • Introduction of a seepage module that included calibration to in-site measurements and separating uncertainty and variability is described

Evolution of repository and waste package designs for Yucca Mountain disposal system for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rechard, Rob P.; Voegele, Michael D.

2014-01-01

This paper summarizes the evolution of the engineered barrier design for the proposed Yucca Mountain disposal system. Initially, the underground facility used a fairly standard panel and drift layout excavated mostly by drilling and blasting. By 1993, the layout of the underground facility was changed to accommodate construction by a tunnel boring machine. Placement of the repository in unsaturated zone permitted an extended period without backfilling; placement of the waste package in an open drift permitted use of much larger, and thus hotter packages. Hence in 1994, the underground facility design switched from floor emplacement of waste in small, single walled stainless steel or nickel alloy containers to in-drift emplacement of waste in large, double-walled containers. By 2000, the outer layer was a high nickel alloy for corrosion resistance and the inner layer was stainless steel for structural strength. Use of large packages facilitated receipt and disposal of high volumes of spent nuclear fuel. In addition, in-drift package placement saved excavation costs. Options considered for in-drift emplacement included different heat loads and use of backfill. To avoid dripping on the package during the thermal period and the possibility of localized corrosion, titanium drip shields were added for the disposal drifts by 2000. In addition, a handling canister, sealed at the reactor to eliminate further handling of bare fuel assemblies, was evaluated and eventually adopted in 2006. Finally, staged development of the underground layout was adopted to more readily adjust to changes in waste forms and Congressional funding. - Highlights: • Progression of events associated with repository design to accommodate tunnel boring machine and in-drift waste package emplacement are discussed. • Change in container design from small, single-layered stainless steel vessel to large, two-layered nickel alloy vessel is discussed. • The addition of drip shield to limit the

Near-surface velocity modeling at Yucca Mountain using borehole and surface records from underground nuclear explosions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Durrani, B.A. [Texas Univ., El Paso, TX (United States). Dept. of Geological Sciences; Walck, M.C. [Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States)

1996-09-01

The Department of Energy is investigating Yucca Mountain, Nevada as a potential site for commercial radioactive waste disposal in a mined geologic repository. One critical aspect of site suitability is the tectonic stability of the repository site. The levels of risk from both actual fault displacements in the repository block and ground shaking from nearby earthquakes are being examined. In particular, it is necessary to determine the expected level of ground shaking at the repository depth for large seismic sources such as nearby large earthquakes or underground nuclear explosions (UNEs). Earthquakes are expected to cause the largest ground motions at the site, however, only underground nuclear explosion data have been obtained at the repository depth level (about 350m below the ground level) to date. In this study we investigate ground motion from Nevada Test Site underground nuclear explosions recorded at Yucca Mountain to establish a compressional velocity model for the uppermost 350m of the mountain. This model is useful for prediction of repository-level ground motions for potential large nearby earthquakes.

Near-surface velocity modeling at Yucca Mountain using borehole and surface records from underground nuclear explosions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Durrani, B.A.

1996-09-01

The Department of Energy is investigating Yucca Mountain, Nevada as a potential site for commercial radioactive waste disposal in a mined geologic repository. One critical aspect of site suitability is the tectonic stability of the repository site. The levels of risk from both actual fault displacements in the repository block and ground shaking from nearby earthquakes are being examined. In particular, it is necessary to determine the expected level of ground shaking at the repository depth for large seismic sources such as nearby large earthquakes or underground nuclear explosions (UNEs). Earthquakes are expected to cause the largest ground motions at the site, however, only underground nuclear explosion data have been obtained at the repository depth level (about 350m below the ground level) to date. In this study we investigate ground motion from Nevada Test Site underground nuclear explosions recorded at Yucca Mountain to establish a compressional velocity model for the uppermost 350m of the mountain. This model is useful for prediction of repository-level ground motions for potential large nearby earthquakes

On-site storage of high level nuclear waste: Attitudes and perceptions of local residents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bassett, G.W. Jr.; Jenkins-Smith, H.C.; Silva, C.

1996-01-01

No public policy issue has been as difficult as high-level nuclear waste. Debates continue regarding Yucca Mountain as a disposal site, and - more generally - the appropriateness of geologic disposal and the need to act quickly. Previous research has focused on possible social, political, and economic consequences of a facility in Nevada. Impacts have been predicted to be potentially large and to emanate mainly from stigmatization of the region due to increased perceptions of risk. Analogous impacts from leaving waste at power plants have been either ignored or assumed to be negligible. This paper presents survey results on attitudes of residents in three countries where nuclear waste is currently stored. Topics include perceived risk, knowledge of nuclear waste and radiation, and impacts on jobs, tourism, and housing values from leaving waste on site. Results are similar to what has been reported for Nevada; the public is concerned about possible adverse effects from on-site storage of waste. 24 refs., 7 figs., 5 tabs

On-site storage of high level nuclear waste: attitudes and perceptions of local residents.

Science.gov (United States)

Bassett, G W; Jenkins-Smith, H C; Silva, C

1996-06-01

No public policy issue has been as difficult as high-level nuclear waste. Debates continue regarding Yucca Mountain as a disposal site, and-more generally-the appropriateness of geologic disposal and the need to act quickly. Previous research has focused on possible social, political, and economic consequences of a facility in Nevada. Impacts have been predicted to be potentially large and to emanate mainly from stigmatization of the region due to increased perceptions of risk. Analogous impacts from leaving waste at power plants have been either ignored or assumed to be negligible. This paper presents survey results on attitudes of residents in three counties where nuclear waste is currently stored. Topics include perceived risk, knowledge of nuclear waste and radiation, and impacts on jobs, tourism, and housing values from leaving waste on site. Results are similar to what has been reported for Nevada; the public is concerned about possible adverse effects from on-site storage of waste.

Nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-07-01

The state of Nevada opposed DOE's development of a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. As a result, disputes have arisen over how Nevada has spent financial assistance provided by DOE to pay the state's repository program costs. This report reviews Nevada's use of about $32 million in grant funds provided by DOE through June 1989 and found that Nevada improperly spent about $1 million. Nevada used as much as $683,000 for lobbying and litigation expenses that were unauthorized or were expressly prohibited by law, court decision, or grant terms; exceeded a legislative spending limit on socioeconomic studies by about $96,000; and used, contrary to grant terms, about $275,000 from one grant period to pay expenses incurred in the prior year. Also, Nevada did not always exercise adequate internal controls over grant funds, such as timely liquidation of funds advanced to contractors. A permissive approach to grant administration by DOE contributed to Nevada's inappropriate use of grant funds

Nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1996-01-01

The NEA Nuclear Waste Bulletin has been prepared by the Radiation Protection and Waste Management Division of the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency to provide a means of communication amongst the various technical and policy groups within the waste management community. In particular, it is intended to provide timely and concise information on radioactive waste management activities, policies and programmes in Member countries and at the NEA. It is also intended that the Bulletin assists in the communication of recent developments in a variety of areas contributing to the development of acceptable technology for the management and disposal of nuclear waste (e.g., performance assessment, in-situ investigations, repository engineering, scientific data bases, regulatory developments, etc)

Salt disposal of heat-generating nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leigh, Christi D.; Hansen, Francis D.

2011-01-01

This report summarizes the state of salt repository science, reviews many of the technical issues pertaining to disposal of heat-generating nuclear waste in salt, and proposes several avenues for future science-based activities to further the technical basis for disposal in salt. There are extensive salt formations in the forty-eight contiguous states, and many of them may be worthy of consideration for nuclear waste disposal. The United States has extensive experience in salt repository sciences, including an operating facility for disposal of transuranic wastes. The scientific background for salt disposal including laboratory and field tests at ambient and elevated temperature, principles of salt behavior, potential for fracture damage and its mitigation, seal systems, chemical conditions, advanced modeling capabilities and near-future developments, performance assessment processes, and international collaboration are all discussed. The discussion of salt disposal issues is brought current, including a summary of recent international workshops dedicated to high-level waste disposal in salt. Lessons learned from Sandia National Laboratories' experience on the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant and the Yucca Mountain Project as well as related salt experience with the Strategic Petroleum Reserve are applied in this assessment. Disposal of heat-generating nuclear waste in a suitable salt formation is attractive because the material is essentially impermeable, self-sealing, and thermally conductive. Conditions are chemically beneficial, and a significant experience base exists in understanding this environment. Within the period of institutional control, overburden pressure will seal fractures and provide a repository setting that limits radionuclide movement. A salt repository could potentially achieve total containment, with no releases to the environment in undisturbed scenarios for as long as the region is geologically stable. Much of the experience gained from United

Salt disposal of heat-generating nuclear waste.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Leigh, Christi D. (Sandia National Laboratories, Carlsbad, NM); Hansen, Francis D.

2011-01-01

This report summarizes the state of salt repository science, reviews many of the technical issues pertaining to disposal of heat-generating nuclear waste in salt, and proposes several avenues for future science-based activities to further the technical basis for disposal in salt. There are extensive salt formations in the forty-eight contiguous states, and many of them may be worthy of consideration for nuclear waste disposal. The United States has extensive experience in salt repository sciences, including an operating facility for disposal of transuranic wastes. The scientific background for salt disposal including laboratory and field tests at ambient and elevated temperature, principles of salt behavior, potential for fracture damage and its mitigation, seal systems, chemical conditions, advanced modeling capabilities and near-future developments, performance assessment processes, and international collaboration are all discussed. The discussion of salt disposal issues is brought current, including a summary of recent international workshops dedicated to high-level waste disposal in salt. Lessons learned from Sandia National Laboratories' experience on the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant and the Yucca Mountain Project as well as related salt experience with the Strategic Petroleum Reserve are applied in this assessment. Disposal of heat-generating nuclear waste in a suitable salt formation is attractive because the material is essentially impermeable, self-sealing, and thermally conductive. Conditions are chemically beneficial, and a significant experience base exists in understanding this environment. Within the period of institutional control, overburden pressure will seal fractures and provide a repository setting that limits radionuclide movement. A salt repository could potentially achieve total containment, with no releases to the environment in undisturbed scenarios for as long as the region is geologically stable. Much of the experience gained from

Science, society, and America's nuclear waste: Unit 1, Nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

This is unit 1 in a four-unit secondary curriculum. It is intended to provide information about scientific and societal issues related to the management of spent nuclear fuel from generation of electricity at nuclear powerplants and high-level radioactive waste from US national defense activities. The curriculum, supporting classroom activities, and teaching materials present a brief discussion of energy and electricity generation, including that produced at nuclear powerplants; information on sources, amounts, location, and characteristics of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste; sources, types and effects of radiation; US policy for managing and disposing of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste and what other countries are doing; and the components of the nuclear waste management system

Nuclear Waste Package Mockups: A Study of In-situ Redox State

Science.gov (United States)

Helean, K.; Anderson, B.; Brady, P. V.

2006-05-01

The Yucca Mountain Repository (YMR), located in southern Nevada, is to be the first facility in the U.S. for the permanent disposal of high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuels. Total system performance assessment(TSPA) has indicated that among the major radionuclides contributing to dose are Np, Tc, and I. These three radionuclides are mobile in most geochemical settings, and therefore sequestering them within the repository horizon is a priority for the Yucca Mountain Project (YMP). Corroding steel may offset radionuclide transport processes within the proposed waste packages at YMR by retaining radionuclides, creating locally reducing conditions, and reducing porosity. Ferrous iron has been shown to reduce UO22+ to UO2s, and some ferrous iron-bearing ion-exchange materials have been shown to adsorb radionuclides and heavy metals. Locally reducing conditions may lead to the reduction and subsequent immobilization of problematic dissolved species such as TcO4-, NpO2+, and UO22+ and can also inhibit corrosion of spent nuclear fuel. Water occluded during corrosion produces bulky corrosion products, and consequently less porosity is available for water and radionuclide transport. The focus of this study is on the nature of Yucca Mountain waste package corrosion products and their effects on local redox conditions, radionuclide transport, and porosity. In order to measure in-situ redox, six small-scale (1:40) waste package mockups were constructed using A516 and 316 stainless steel, the same materials as the proposed Yucca Mountain waste packages. The mockups are periodically injected with a simulated groundwater and the accumulated effluent and corrosion products are evaluated for their Fe(II)/Fe(III) content and mineralogy. Oxygen fugacities are then calculated and, thus, in-situ redox conditions are determined. Early results indicate that corrosion products are largely amorphous Fe-oxyhydroxides, goethite and magnetite. That information together with the

Evaluation of the geologic relations and seismotectonic stability of the Yucca Mountain Area Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigations (NNWSI). Progress report, October 1, 1991--September 30, 1992

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1992-09-30

This report dated 30 September 1992 provides a summary of progress for the project {open_quotes}Evaluation of the Geologic Relations and Seismotectonic Stability of the Yucca Mountain Area, Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI){close_quotes}. This progress report was preceded by the progress report for the year from 1 October 1990 to 30 September 1991. This report summarizes the geologic and seismotectonic studies conducted at Yucca Mountain during the contract period including Quaternary tectonics, an evaluation of mineral resource potential of the area, caldera geology, and volcano-tectonic activity at and near the site. A report of basinal studies conducted during the contract period is also included. Selected papers are indexed separately for inclusion in the Energy Science and Technology Database.

Methodology used for total system performance assessment of the potential nuclear waste repository at yucca mountain (USA)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Devonec, E.; Sevougian, S.D.; Mattie, P.D.; Mcneish, J.A.; Mishra, S.

2001-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy and its contractors are currently evaluating a site in Nevada (Yucca Mountain) for disposal of high-level radioactive waste from U.S. commercial nuclear plants and U.S. government-owned facilities. The suitability of the potential geologic repository is assessed, based on its performance in isolating the nuclear waste from the environment. Experimental data and models representing the natural and engineered barriers are combined into a Total System Performance Assessment (TSPA) model. Because of the uncertainty in the current data and in the future evolution of the total system, simulations follow a probabilistic approach. Multiple realization simulations using Monte Carlo analysis are conducted over time periods of up to one million years, which estimates a range of possible behaviors of the repository. In addition to the nominal scenario, other exposure scenarios include the possibility of disruptive events such as volcanic eruption or intrusion, or accidental human intrusion. Sensitivity to key uncertain processes is analyzed. The influence of stochastic variables on the TSPA model output is assessed by ''uncertainty importance analysis'', e.g., regression analysis and classification tree analysis. Further investigation of the impact of parameters and assumptions is conducted through ''one-off analysis'', which consists in fixing a parameter at a particular value, using an alternative conceptual model, or in making a different assumption. Finally, robustness analysis evaluates the performance of the repository when various natural or engineered barriers are assumed to be degraded. The objective of these analyses is to evaluate the performance of the potential repository system under conditions ranging from expected to highly unlikely, though physically possible conditions. (author)

Methodology used for total system performance assessment of the potential nuclear waste repository at yucca mountain (USA)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Devonec, E.; Sevougian, S.D.; Mattie, P.D.; Mcneish, J.A. [Duke Engineering and Services, Town Center Drive, Las Vegas (United States); Mishra, S. [Duke Engineering and Services, Austin, TX (United States)

2001-07-01

The U.S. Department of Energy and its contractors are currently evaluating a site in Nevada (Yucca Mountain) for disposal of high-level radioactive waste from U.S. commercial nuclear plants and U.S. government-owned facilities. The suitability of the potential geologic repository is assessed, based on its performance in isolating the nuclear waste from the environment. Experimental data and models representing the natural and engineered barriers are combined into a Total System Performance Assessment (TSPA) model. Because of the uncertainty in the current data and in the future evolution of the total system, simulations follow a probabilistic approach. Multiple realization simulations using Monte Carlo analysis are conducted over time periods of up to one million years, which estimates a range of possible behaviors of the repository. In addition to the nominal scenario, other exposure scenarios include the possibility of disruptive events such as volcanic eruption or intrusion, or accidental human intrusion. Sensitivity to key uncertain processes is analyzed. The influence of stochastic variables on the TSPA model output is assessed by ''uncertainty importance analysis'', e.g., regression analysis and classification tree analysis. Further investigation of the impact of parameters and assumptions is conducted through ''one-off analysis'', which consists in fixing a parameter at a particular value, using an alternative conceptual model, or in making a different assumption. Finally, robustness analysis evaluates the performance of the repository when various natural or engineered barriers are assumed to be degraded. The objective of these analyses is to evaluate the performance of the potential repository system under conditions ranging from expected to highly unlikely, though physically possible conditions. (author)

How to achieve public participation in nuclear waste decisions: Public relations or transparent adversary science

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Treichel, J.

1999-01-01

The current US nuclear waste disposal program began with passage of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 and was modified by the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987. The Amendments Act made many major changes to the original Act, the most significant of which was the singling out of Yucca Mountain as the only site to be studied for a deep geologic high-level nuclear waste repository. While that decision appeared to simplify and streamline the program, it vastly increased the levels of public resistance and protest, particularly in Nevada. To counter the lack of public acceptance of its programs, the Department of Energy has embarked on countless efforts purportedly aimed at creating public participation. However, nuclear proponents portray a Yucca Mountain repository as inevitable. With this a foregone conclusion, it is apparent to the public that opportunities for meaningful participation do not exist - the only allowable change is in their attitudes. This is purely paternalism and, as such, it is an insult to concerned citizens. Intelligent citizens believe that they cannot play a meaningful role in the current program. Their participation amounts to joining a game or contest that is rigged. All rules, regulations and standards governing the Yucca Mountain project are either changing or proposed to be changed. In a game of golf, players cannot determine their handicap midway through the course. While there are jokes told about such actions in sports, a nuclear waste policy is no laughing matter. In this case, the game, or site characterization program, is now referred to by many as 'advocacy science'. With Yucca Mountain as the only site, and the frantic cries of the commercial nuclear utilities that the lack of a disposal site is a national crisis, the investigations of the site appear to watchful citizens to be aimed at proving its suitability, rather than an objective study. Risk Assessment and risk communication, while very useful when applied

How to achieve public participation in nuclear waste decisions: Public relations or transparent adversary science

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Treichel, J. [Nevada Nuclear Waste Task Force, Las Vegas, NV (United States)

1999-12-01

The current US nuclear waste disposal program began with passage of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 and was modified by the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987. The Amendments Act made many major changes to the original Act, the most significant of which was the singling out of Yucca Mountain as the only site to be studied for a deep geologic high-level nuclear waste repository. While that decision appeared to simplify and streamline the program, it vastly increased the levels of public resistance and protest, particularly in Nevada. To counter the lack of public acceptance of its programs, the Department of Energy has embarked on countless efforts purportedly aimed at creating public participation. However, nuclear proponents portray a Yucca Mountain repository as inevitable. With this a foregone conclusion, it is apparent to the public that opportunities for meaningful participation do not exist - the only allowable change is in their attitudes. This is purely paternalism and, as such, it is an insult to concerned citizens. Intelligent citizens believe that they cannot play a meaningful role in the current program. Their participation amounts to joining a game or contest that is rigged. All rules, regulations and standards governing the Yucca Mountain project are either changing or proposed to be changed. In a game of golf, players cannot determine their handicap midway through the course. While there are jokes told about such actions in sports, a nuclear waste policy is no laughing matter. In this case, the game, or site characterization program, is now referred to by many as 'advocacy science'. With Yucca Mountain as the only site, and the frantic cries of the commercial nuclear utilities that the lack of a disposal site is a national crisis, the investigations of the site appear to watchful citizens to be aimed at proving its suitability, rather than an objective study. Risk Assessment and risk communication, while very useful when

Thermal modeling for a potential high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pruess, K.; Tsang, Y.

1994-03-01

Repository performance models based on numerical simulation of fluid and heat flows have recently been developed by several different groups. Model conceptualizations generally focus on large-scale average behavior. This comparison finds that current performance assessment (PA) models use generally similar approximations and parameters. Certain differences exist in some performance-relevant parameters, especially absolute permeabilities, characteristic curves, and thermal conductivities. These reflect present uncertainties about the most appropriate parameters applicable to Yucca Mountain and must be resolved through future field observations and laboratory measurements. For a highly heterogeneous fractured-porous hydrogeologic system such as Yucca Mountain, water infiltration through the unsaturated zone is expected to be dominated by highly localized phenomena. These include fast channelized flow along preferential paths in fractures, and frequent local ponding. The extended dry repository concept proposed by the Livermore group is reviewed. Predictions of large-scale drying around the repository on the average for large thermal loads cannot be taken to indicate that waste packages will not be contacted by liquid water, and that aqueous-phase transport of contaminants is not possible. Specifically, the authors find that modest water infiltration, on the order of a few millimeters per year, would be sufficient to overwhelm the vaporization capacity of the repository heat and inundate the waste packages within a time frame of a few thousand years. A preliminary analysis indicates that channelized flow of water may persist over large vertical distances. The vaporization-condensation cycle has a capacity for generating huge amounts of ponded water. A small fraction of the total condensate, if ponded and then episodically released, would be sufficient to cause liquid phase to make contact with the waste packages

Nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pligt, J. van der

1989-01-01

This chapter present a brief overview of the current situation of siting radioactive wastes. This is followed by an overview of various psychological approaches attempting to analyse public reactions to nuclear facilities. It will be argued that public reactions to nuclear waste factilities must be seen in the context of more general attitudes toward nuclear energy. The latter are not only based upon perceptions of the health and environmental risks but are built on values, and sets of attributes which need not be similar to the representations o the experts and policy-makers. The issue of siting nuclear waste facilities is also embedded in a wider moral and political domain. This is illustrated by the importance of equity issues in siting radioactive wastes. In the last section, the implications of the present line of argument for risk communication and public participation in decisions about siting radioactive wastes will be briefly discussed. (author). 49 refs

The road to Yucca Mountain—Evolution of nuclear waste disposal in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Stuckless, John S.; Levich, Robert A.

2016-01-01

The generation of electricity by nuclear power and the manufacturing of atomic weapons have created a large amount of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. There is a world-wide consensus that the best way to protect mankind and the environment is to dispose of this waste in a deep geologic repository. Initial efforts focused on salt as the best medium for disposal, but the heat generated by the radioactive waste led many earth scientists to examine other rock types. In 1976, the director of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) wrote to the U.S. Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA), predecessor agency of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), suggesting that there were several favorable environments at the Nevada Test Site (NTS), and that the USGS already had extensive background information on the NTS. Later, in a series of communications and one publication, the USGS espoused the favorability of the thick unsaturated zone. After the passage of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (1982), the DOE compiled a list of nine favorable sites and settled on three to be characterized. In 1987, as the costs of characterizing three sites ballooned, Congress amended the Nuclear Waste Policy Act directing the DOE to focus only on Yucca Mountain in Nevada, with the proviso that if anything unfavorable was discovered, work would stop immediately. The U.S. DOE, the U.S. DOE national laboratories, and the USGS developed more than 100 detailed plans to study various earth-science aspects of Yucca Mountain and the surrounding area, as well as materials studies and engineering projects needed for a mined geologic repository. The work, which cost more than 10 billion dollars and required hundreds of man-years of work, culminated in a license application submitted to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in 2008.

Japanese Nuclear Waste Avatars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wynn Kirby, Peter; Stier, Daniel

2016-01-01

Japan's cataclysmic 2011 tsunami has become a vast, unwanted experiment in waste management. The seismic event and resulting Fukushima Daiichi radiation crisis created an awkwardly fortuitous rupture in Japanese nuclear practice that exposed the lax and problematic management of nuclear waste in this country to broader scrutiny, as well as distortions in its very conception. This article looks at the full spectrum of nuclear waste in post-tsunami Japan, from spent fuel rods to contorted reactor containment, and the ways that nuclear waste mirrors or diverges from more quotidian waste practices in Japanese culture. Significantly, the Fukushima Daiichi plant itself and its erstwhile banal surroundings have themselves transmuted into an unwieldy form of nuclear waste. The immense challenges of the Fukushima Daiichi site have stimulated a series of on-the-fly innovations that furnish perspective on more everyday nuclear waste practices in the industry. While some HLW can be reprocessed for limited use in today's reactors, it cannot be ignored that much of Japan's nuclear waste is simply converted into other forms of waste. In a society that has long been fixated on segregating filth, maintaining (imagined) purity, and managing proximity to pollution, the specter of nuclear waste looms over contemporary Japan and its ongoing debates over resources, risk, and Japanese nuclear identity itself

Commercial nuclear-waste management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Andress, D.A.

1981-04-01

This report is primarily concerned with nuclear waste generated by commercial power operations. It is clear, however, that the total generation of commercial nuclear waste does not tell the whole story, there are sizeable stockpiles of defense nuclear wastes which will impact areas such as total nuclide exposure to the biosphere and the overall economics of waste disposal. The effects of these other nuclear waste streams can be factored in as exogenous inputs. Their generation is essentially independent of nuclear power operations. The objective of this report is to assess the real-world problems associated with nuclear waste management and to design the analytical framework, as appropriate, for handling nuclear waste management issues in the International Nuclear Model. As such, some issues that are not inherently quantifiable, such as the development of environmental Impact Statements to satisfy the National Environmental Protection Act requirements, are only briefly mentioned, if at all

Hydrologic investigations to evaluate a potential site for a nuclear-waste repository, Yucca Mountain, Nevada Test Site

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilson, W.E.

1985-01-01

Yucca Mountain, Nevada Test Site, is being evaluated by the U.S. Department of Energy for its suitability as a site for a mined geologic respository for high-level nuclear wastes. The repository facility would be constructed in densely welded tuffs in the unsaturated zone. In support of the evaluation, the U.S. Geological Survey is conducting hydrologic investigations of both the saturated and unsaturated zones, as well as paleohydrologic studies. Investigation in saturated-zone hydrology will help define one component of ground-water flow paths and travel times to the accessible environment. A two-dimensional, steady-state, finite-element model was developed to describe the regional hydrogeologic framework. The unsaturated zone is 450 to 700 meters thick at Yucca Mountain; precipitation averages about 150 millimeters per year. A conceptual hydrologic model of the unsaturated zone incorporates the following features: minimal net infiltration, variable distribution of flux, lateral flow, potential for perched-water zones, fracture and matrix flow, and flow along faults. The conceptual model is being tested primarily by specialized test drilling; plans also are being developed for in-situ testing in a proposed exploratory shaft. Quaternary climatic and hydrologic conditions are being evaluated to develop estimates of the hydrologic effects of potential climatic changes during the next 10,000 years. Evaluation approaches include analysis of plant macrofossils in packrat middens, evaluation of lake and playa sediments, infiltration tests, and modeling effects of potential increased recharge on the potentiometric surface

Experimental investigation of hydrous pyrolysis of diesel fuel and the effect of pyrolysis products on performance of the candidate nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jackson, K.J.; Carroll, S.A.

1994-01-01

It is thought that a significant amount of diesel fuel and other hydrocarbon-rich phases may remain inside the candidate nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain after construction and subsequent emplacement of radioactive waste. Although the proposed repository horizon is above the water table, the remnant hydrocarbon phases may react with hydrothermal solutions generated by high temperature conditions that will prevail for a period of time in the repository. The preliminary experimental results of this study show that diesel fuel hydrous pyrolysis is minimal at 200 degrees C and 70 bars. The composition of the diesel fuel remained constant throughout the experiment and the concentration of carboxylic acids in the aqueous phases was only slightly above the detection limit (1-2 ppm) of the analytical technique

Transport of neptunium through Yucca Mountain tuffs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Triay, I.R.; Robinson, B.A.; Mitchell, A.J.; Overly, C.M.; Lopez, R.M.

1993-01-01

Neptunium has a high solubility in groundwaters from Yucca Mountain [1]. Uranium in nuclear reactors produces 237 Np which has a half-life of 2.1 4 x 10 6 years. Consequently, the transport of 237 Np through tuffs is of major importance in assessing the performance of a high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. The objective of this work is to determine the amount of Np retardation that is provided by the minerals in Yucca Mountain tuffs as a function of groundwater chemistry

Progression of performance assessment modeling for the Yucca Mountain disposal system for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rechard, Rob P.; Wilson, Michael L.; Sevougian, S. David

2014-01-01

This paper summarizes the evolution of consequence modeling for a repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste at Yucca Mountain in southern Nevada. The discussion includes four early performance assessments (PAs) conducted between 1982 and 1995 to support selection and to evaluate feasibility and three major PAs conducted between 1998 and 2008 to evaluate viability, recommend the site, and assess compliance. Modeling efforts in 1982 estimated dose to individuals 18 km from the site caused by volcanic eruption through the repository. Modeling in 1984 estimated releases via the groundwater pathway because of container corrosion. In combination, this early analysis supported the first environmental assessment. Analysts in 1991 evaluated cumulative release, as specified in the 1985 US radiation protection standards, via the groundwater pathway over 10 4 yr at a 5-km boundary by modeling waste degradation and flow/transport in the saturated and unsaturated zones. By 1992, however, the US Congress mandated a change to a dose measure. Thus, the 1993 and 1995 performance assessments improved modeling of waste container degradation to provide better estimates of radionuclide release rates out to 10 6 yr. The 1998 viability assessment was a major step in modeling complexity. Dose at a 20-km boundary from the repository was evaluated through 10 6 yr for undisturbed conditions using more elaborate modeling of flow and the addition of modules for modeling infiltration, drift seepage, the chemical environment, and biosphere transport. The 2000 assessment for the site recommendation refined the analysis. Seepage modeling was greatly improved and waste form degradation modeling included more chemical dependence. The 2008 compliance assessment for the license application incorporated the influence of the seismicity on waste package performance to evaluate dose at an ∼18-km boundary. - Highlights: • Evolution of the consequence models to simulate physical

Mountain-Scale Coupled Processes (TH/THC/THM)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dixon, P.

2004-01-01

The purpose of this Model Report is to document the development of the Mountain-Scale Thermal-Hydrological (TH), Thermal-Hydrological-Chemical (THC), and Thermal-Hydrological-Mechanical (THM) Models and evaluate the effects of coupled TH/THC/THM processes on mountain-scale UZ flow at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. This Model Report was planned in ''Technical Work Plan (TWP) for: Performance Assessment Unsaturated Zone'' (BSC 2002 [160819], Section 1.12.7), and was developed in accordance with AP-SIII.10Q, Models. In this Model Report, any reference to ''repository'' means the nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, and any reference to ''drifts'' means the emplacement drifts at the repository horizon. This Model Report provides the necessary framework to test conceptual hypotheses for analyzing mountain-scale hydrological/chemical/mechanical changes and predict flow behavior in response to heat release by radioactive decay from the nuclear waste repository at the Yucca Mountain site. The mountain-scale coupled TH/THC/THM processes models numerically simulate the impact of nuclear waste heat release on the natural hydrogeological system, including a representation of heat-driven processes occurring in the far field. The TH simulations provide predictions for thermally affected liquid saturation, gas- and liquid-phase fluxes, and water and rock temperature (together called the flow fields). The main focus of the TH Model is to predict the changes in water flux driven by evaporation/condensation processes, and drainage between drifts. The TH Model captures mountain-scale three dimensional (3-D) flow effects, including lateral diversion at the PTn/TSw interface and mountain-scale flow patterns. The Mountain-Scale THC Model evaluates TH effects on water and gas chemistry, mineral dissolution/precipitation, and the resulting impact to UZ hydrological properties, flow and transport. The THM Model addresses changes in permeability due to mechanical and thermal disturbances in

Tourism Impacts of Three Mile Island and Other Adverse Events: Implications for Lincoln County and Other Rural Counties Bisected by Radioactive Wastes Intended for Yucca Mountain.

Science.gov (United States)

Himmelberger, Jeffery J.; And Others

1995-01-01

Summarizes key research implications of Three Mile Island and other major hazard events as related to tourism. Examines how the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository system will impact tourism in southern Nevada and other visitor-oriented rural counties bisected by planned waste transportation corridors. (AIM)

Summary of ground motion prediction results for Nevada Test Site underground nuclear explosions related to the Yucca Mountain project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Walck, M.C.

1996-10-01

This report summarizes available data on ground motions from underground nuclear explosions recorded on and near the Nevada Test Site, with emphasis on the ground motions recorded at stations on Yucca Mountain, the site of a potential high-level radioactive waste repository. Sandia National Laboratories, through the Weapons Test Seismic Investigations project, collected and analyzed ground motion data from NTS explosions over a 14-year period, from 1977 through 1990. By combining these data with available data from earlier, larger explosions, prediction equations for several ground motion parameters have been developed for the Test Site area for underground nuclear explosion sources. Also presented are available analyses of the relationship between surface and downhole motions and spectra and relevant crustal velocity structure information for Yucca Mountain derived from the explosion data. The data and associated analyses demonstrate that ground motions at Yucca Mountain from nuclear tests have been at levels lower than would be expected from moderate to large earthquakes in the region; thus nuclear explosions, while located relatively close, would not control seismic design criteria for the potential repository

Summary of ground motion prediction results for Nevada Test Site underground nuclear explosions related to the Yucca Mountain project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Walck, M.C.

1996-10-01

This report summarizes available data on ground motions from underground nuclear explosions recorded on and near the Nevada Test Site, with emphasis on the ground motions recorded at stations on Yucca Mountain, the site of a potential high-level radioactive waste repository. Sandia National Laboratories, through the Weapons Test Seismic Investigations project, collected and analyzed ground motion data from NTS explosions over a 14-year period, from 1977 through 1990. By combining these data with available data from earlier, larger explosions, prediction equations for several ground motion parameters have been developed for the Test Site area for underground nuclear explosion sources. Also presented are available analyses of the relationship between surface and downhole motions and spectra and relevant crustal velocity structure information for Yucca Mountain derived from the explosion data. The data and associated analyses demonstrate that ground motions at Yucca Mountain from nuclear tests have been at levels lower than would be expected from moderate to large earthquakes in the region; thus nuclear explosions, while located relatively close, would not control seismic design criteria for the potential repository.

Nuclear waste issue

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryhanen, V.

2000-01-01

A prerequisite for future use of nuclear energy in electricity production is safe management of the radioactive wastes generated by nuclear power industry. A number of facilities have been constructed for different stages of nuclear waste management around the world, for example for conditioning of different kind of process wastes and for intermediate storage of spent nuclear fuel. Difficulties have often been encountered particularly when trying to advance plans for final stage of waste management, which is permanent disposal in stable geological formations. The main problems have not been technical, but poor public acceptance and lack of necessary political decisions have delayed the progress in many countries. However, final disposal facilities are already in operation for low- and medium-level nuclear wastes. The most challenging task is the development of final disposal solutions for long-lived high-level wastes (spent fuel or high-level reprocessing waste). The implementation of deep geological repositories for these wastes requires persistent programmes for technology development, siting and safety assessments, as well as for building public confidence in long-term safety of the planned repositories. Now, a few countries are proceeding towards siting of these facilities, and the first high-level waste repositories are expected to be commissioned in the years 2010 - 2020. (author)

Low-level radioactive waste facility siting in the Rocky Mountain compact region

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Whitman, M.

1983-09-01

The puprose of the Rocky Mountain Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compact is to develop a regional management system for low-level waste (LLW) generated in the six states eligible for membership: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. Under the terms of the compact, any party state generating at least 20% of the region's waste becomes responsible for hosting a regional LLW management facility. However, the compact prescribes no system which the host state must follow to develop a facility, but rather calls on the state to fulfill its responsibility through reliance on its own laws and regulations. Few of the Rocky Mountain compact states have legislation dealing specifically with LLW facility siting. Authority for LLW facility siting is usually obtained from radiation control statutes and solid or hazardous waste statutes. A state-by-state analysis of the siting authorities of each of the Rock Mountain compact states as they pertain to LLW disposal facility siting is presented. Siting authority for LLW disposal facilities in the Rocky Mountain compact region runs from no authority, as in Wyoming, to general statutory authority for which regulations would have to be promulgated, as in Arizona and Nevada, to more detailed siting laws, as in Colorado and New Mexico. Barring an amendment to, or different interpretation of, the Utah Hazardous Waste Facility Siting Act, none of the Rocky Mountain States' LLW facility siting authorities preempt local veto authorities

Preliminary assessment of nuclear waste transportation cost and risk for operation of the first repository at candidate sites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peterson, R.W.; McSweeney, T.I.; Varadarajan, R.V.; Wilmot, E.L.; Cashwell, J.W.; Joy, D.S.

1983-01-01

To support the selection of the first commercial nuclear waste repository site in 1987, environmental analyses of five candidate site locations are currently being performed. The five locations are in the Gulf Interior Region, the Permian Basin, the Paradox Basin, Yucca Mountain and the Hanford reservation. Costs and operational risks associated with the transportation of nuclear wastes to a single repository located in these regions have been calculated for a life-cycle of 26 years

Exploratory shaft facility: It's role in the characterization of the Yucca Mountain site for a potential nuclear repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kalia, H.N.; Merson, T.J.

1990-01-01

The US Department of Energy is characterizing Yucca Mountain, Nevada, to assess its suitability as a potential site for the permanent disposal of high-level radioactive waste from nuclear power plants and defense related activities. The assessment activities include surface investigations, drill holes from the surface, and an underground facility for in situ characterization tests. This underground exploratory shaft facility is being designed to meet the criteria for characterizing the mountain as described in the Site Characterization Plan. 9 refs., 9 figs., 1 tab

Nevada may lose nuclear waste funds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marshall, E.

1988-01-01

The people of Nevada are concerned that a cut in DOE funding for a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada will result in cuts in the state monitoring program, e.g. dropping a seismic monitoring network and a sophisticated drilling program. Economic and social impact studies will be curtailed. Even though a provision to curtail local research forbids duplication of DOE's work and would limit the ability of Nevada to go out an collect its own data, Nevada State University at Las Vegas would receive a nice plum, a top-of-the-line supercomputer known as the ETA-10 costing almost $30 million financed by DOE

Yucca Mountain Site characterization project bibliography, January--June 1991

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-06-01

Following a reorganization of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management in 1990, the Yucca Mountain Project was renamed Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. The title of this bibliography was also changed to Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project Bibliography. Prior to August 5, 1988, this project was called the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations. This bibliography contains information on this ongoing project that was added to the Department of Energy's Science and Technology Database from January 1, 1990, through December 31, 1991

Prediction of Pseudo relative velocity response spectra at Yucca Mountain for underground nuclear explosions conducted in the Pahute Mesa testing area at the Nevada testing site

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Phillips, J.S.

1991-12-01

The Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project (YMP), managed by the Office of Geologic Disposal of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management of the US Department of Energy, is examining the feasibility of siting a repository for commercial, high-level nuclear wastes at Yucca Mountain on and adjacent to the Nevada Test Site (NTS). This work, intended to extend our understanding of the ground motion at Yucca Mountain resulting from testing of nuclear weapons on the NTS, was funded by the Yucca Mountain project and the Military Applications Weapons Test Program. This report summarizes one aspect of the weapons test seismic investigations conducted in FY88. Pseudo relative velocity response spectra (PSRV) have been calculated for a large body of surface ground motions generated by underground nuclear explosions. These spectra have been analyzed and fit using multiple linear regression techniques to develop a credible prediction technique for surface PSRVs. In addition, a technique for estimating downhole PSRVs at specific stations is included. A data summary, data analysis, prediction development, prediction evaluation, software summary and FORTRAN listing of the prediction technique are included in this report

Research Opportunities in Corrosion Science for Long-Term Prediction of Materials Performance: A Report of the DOE Workshop on “Corrosion Issues of Relevance to the Yucca Mountain Waste Repository”.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Payer, Joe H. [Case Western Reserve Univ., Cleveland, OH (United States); Scully, John R. [Univ. of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA (United States)

2003-07-29

The report summarizes the findings of a U.S. Department of Energy workshop on “Corrosion Issues of Relevance to the Yucca Mountain Waste Repository”. The workshop was held on July 29-30, 2003 in Bethesda, MD, and was co-sponsored by the Office of Basic Energy Sciences and Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management. The workshop focus was corrosion science relevant to long-term prediction of materials performance in hostile environments, with special focus on relevance to the permanent disposal of nuclear waste at the Yucca Mountain Repository. The culmination of the workshop is this report that identifies both generic and Yucca Mountain Project-specific research opportunities in basic and applied topic areas. The research opportunities would be realized well after the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s initial construction-authorization licensing process. At the workshop, twenty-three invited scientists deliberated on basic and applied science opportunities in corrosion science relevant to long-term prediction of damage accumulation by corrosive processes that affect materials performance.

Yucca Mountain Biological Resources Monitoring Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

The US Department of Energy (DOE) is required by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (as amended in 1987) to study and characterize Yucca Mountain as a possible site for a geologic repository for high-level nuclear waste. During site characterization, the DOE will conduct a variety of geotechnical, geochemical, geological, and hydrological studies to determine the suitability of Yucca Mountain as a repository. To ensure that site characterization activities (SCA) do not adversely affect the Yucca Mountain area, an environmental program has been implemented to monitor and mitigate potential impacts and to ensure that activities comply with applicable environmental regulations. This report describes the activities and accomplishments during fiscal year 1991 (FY91) for six program areas within the Terrestrial Ecosystem component of the YMP environmental program. The six program areas are Site Characterization Activities Effects, Desert Tortoises, Habitat Reclamation, Monitoring and Mitigation, Radiological Monitoring, and Biological Support

Science, society, and America's nuclear waste: Unit 3, The Nuclear Waste Policy Act

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

This is the 3rd unit, (The Nuclear Waste Policy Act) a four-unit secondary curriculum. It is intended to provide information about scientific and societal issues related to the management of spent nuclear fuel from generation of electricity at nuclear powerplants and high-level radioactive waste from US national defense activities. The curriculum, supporting classroom activities, and teaching materials present a brief discussion of energy and electricity generation, including that produced at nuclear powerplants; information on sources, amounts, location, and characteristics of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste; sources, types and effects of radiation; US policy for managing and disposing of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste and what other countries are doing; and the components of the nuclear waste management system

Preliminary total-system analysis of a potential high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eslinger, P.W.; Doremus, L.A.; Engel, D.W.; Miley, T.B.; Murphy, M.T.; Nichols, W.E.; White, M.D.; Langford, D.W.; Ouderkirk, S.J.

1993-01-01

The placement of high-level radioactive wastes in minded repositories deep underground is considered a disposal method that would effectively isolate these wastes from the environment for long periods of time. This report describes modeling performed at PNL for Yucca Mountain between May and November 1991 addressing the performance of the entire repository system related to regulatory criteria established by the EPA in 40 CFR Part 191. The geologic stratigraphy and material properties used in this study were chosen in cooperation with performance assessment modelers at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). Sandia modeled a similar problem using different computer codes and a different modeling philosophy. Pacific Northwest Laboratory performed a few model runs with very complex models, and SNL performed many runs with much simpler (abstracted) models

Preliminary total-system analysis of a potential high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Eslinger, P.W.; Doremus, L.A.; Engel, D.W.; Miley, T.B.; Murphy, M.T.; Nichols, W.E.; White, M.D. [Pacific Northwest Lab., Richland, WA (United States); Langford, D.W.; Ouderkirk, S.J. [Westinghouse Hanford Co., Richland, WA (United States)

1993-01-01

The placement of high-level radioactive wastes in mined repositories deep underground is considered a disposal method that would effectively isolate these wastes from the environment for long periods of time. This report describes modeling performed at PNL for Yucca Mountain between May and November 1991 addressing the performance of the entire repository system related to regulatory criteria established by the EPA in 40 CFR Part 191. The geologic stratigraphy and material properties used in this study were chosen in cooperation with performance assessment modelers at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). Sandia modeled a similar problem using different computer codes and a different modeling philosophy. Pacific Northwest Laboratory performed a few model runs with very complex models, and SNL performed many runs with much simpler (abstracted) models.

Nuclear waste management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wyatt, A.

1978-01-01

The Canadian Nuclear Association has specific views on the following aspects of waste management: a) public information and public participation programs should be encouraged; b) positive political leadership is essential; c) a national plan and policy are necessary; d) all hazardous materials should receive the same care as radioactive wastes; e) power plant construction need not be restricted as long as there is a commitment to nuclear waste management; f) R and D should be funded consistently for nuclear waste management and ancillary topics like alternative fuel cycles and reprocessing. (E.C.B.)

Nuclear waste - a fresh perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tammemagi, H.Y.

1996-01-01

Rather than looking at the nuclear waste problem in isolation, it should be viewed in the broader context of how society disposes of all of its wastes. A comparison of radioactive and non-radioactive wastes shows, contrary to popular perception, that the properties of these two waste types are actually very similar. However, the methods of regulation and management of the two waste types are very different. It is time that these differences were reconciled - both the nuclear and the non-nuclear waste industries have a lot to gain. There are three main categories of (non-nuclear) waste: municipal wastes, hazardous wastes, and industrial wastes. Rather than treating each of these waste types in separate, isolated compartments, there should be an integration of the principles and regulations involved in their management. The non-nuclear waste industry has much to learn from the nuclear approach

Nuclear waste criticality analysis. Quarterly progress report, 1 October--31 December 1995

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Culbreth, W.G.

1996-01-01

The work to date includes the preparation of a report related to criticality in spent fuel, a report on the Oklo reactors and their relevance to Yucca Mountain, and the creation of a computer program to model the Oklo reactors. The objective of the program includes a computational model of the only known natural analogue to an underground nuclear waste repository and the possible application of the model to predict the long-term behavior of Yucca Mountain. A final summary of all work completed will be presented after the end of the project on February 29, 1996

Science, society, and America's nuclear waste: Unit 3, The Nuclear Waste Policy Act

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

This teachers guide is unit 3, the nuclear waste policy act, in a four-unit secondary curriculum. It is intended to provide information about scientific and societal issues related to the management of spent nuclear fuel from generation of electricity at nuclear powerplants and high-level radioactive waste from US national defense activities. The curriculum, supporting classroom activities, and teaching materials present a brief discussion of energy and electricity generation, including that produced at nuclear power plants; information on sources, amounts, location, and characteristics of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste; sources, types and effects of radiation; US policy for managing and disposing of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste and what other countries are doing; and the components of the nuclear waste management system

Nuclear waste. Last stop Siberia?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Popova, L.

2006-01-01

Safe and environmentally sound management of nuclear waste and spent fuel is an unresolved problem of nuclear power. But unlike other nuclear nations, Russia has much more problems with nuclear waste. Russia inherited these problems from the military programs and decades of nuclear fuel cycle development. Nuclear waste continue to mount, while the government does not pay serious enough attention to the solution of the waste problem and considers to increase the capacity of nuclear power plants (NPPs). There are more than 1000 nuclear waste storages in Russia.1 More than 70 million tons of the solid waste has been accumulated by the year 2005, including 14 million tons of tails of the decommissioned uranium mine in the North Caucasus. President Putin said that ''infrastructure of the waste processing is extremely insufficient''. (orig.)

Nevada Test Site flood inundation study: Part of US Geological Survey flood potential and debris hazard study, Yucca Mountain Site for USDOE, Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blanton, J.O. III.

1992-01-01

The Geological Survey (GS), as part of the Yucca Mountain Project (YMP), is conducting studies at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. The purposes of these studies are to provide hydrologic and geologic information to evaluate the suitability of Yucca Mountain for development as a high-level nuclear waste repository, and to evaluate the ability of the mined geologic disposal system (MGDS) to isolate the waste in compliance with regulatory requirements. The Bureau of Reclamation was selected by the GS as a contractor to provide probable maximum flood (PMF) magnitudes and associated inundation maps for preliminary engineering design of the surface facilities at Yucca Mountain. These PMF peak flow estimates and associated inundation maps are necessary for successful waste repository design and construction. The standard step method for backwater computations, incorporating the Bernouli energy equation and the results of the PMF study were chosen as the basis for defining the areal extent of flooding

Evaluation of the geologic relations and seismotectonic stability of the Yucca Mountain area Nevada Nuclear Waste site investigation (NNWSI). Progress report, October 1, 1992--September 30, 1993

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-01-01

This report provides a summary of progress for the project open-quotes Evaluation of the Geologic Relations and Seismotectonic Stability of the Yucca Mountain Area, Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI).close quotes A similar report was previously provided for the period of 1 October 1991 to 30 September 1992. The report initially covers the activities of the General Task and is followed by sections that describe the progress of the other ongoing Tasks. This report summarizes the geologic and seismotectonic studies conducted at Yucca Mountain during the contract period including Quaternary tectonics, an evaluation of mineral resource potential of the area, caldera geology, and volcano-tectonic activity at and near the site. A report of basinal studies conducted during the contract period is also included. Selected papers are indexed separately for inclusion in the Energy Science and Technology Database

Evaluation of the geologic relations and seismotectonic stability of the Yucca Mountain area Nevada Nuclear Waste site investigation (NNWSI). Progress report, October 1, 1992--September 30, 1993

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1993-09-30

This report provides a summary of progress for the project {open_quotes}Evaluation of the Geologic Relations and Seismotectonic Stability of the Yucca Mountain Area, Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI).{close_quotes} A similar report was previously provided for the period of 1 October 1991 to 30 September 1992. The report initially covers the activities of the General Task and is followed by sections that describe the progress of the other ongoing Tasks. This report summarizes the geologic and seismotectonic studies conducted at Yucca Mountain during the contract period including Quaternary tectonics, an evaluation of mineral resource potential of the area, caldera geology, and volcano-tectonic activity at and near the site. A report of basinal studies conducted during the contract period is also included. Selected papers are indexed separately for inclusion in the Energy Science and Technology Database.

Exploratory shaft facility: It`s role in the characterization of the Yucca Mountain site for a potential nuclear repository

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kalia, H.N.; Merson, T.J.

1990-03-01

The US Department of Energy is characterizing Yucca Mountain, Nevada, to assess its suitability as a potential site for the permanent disposal of high-level radioactive waste from nuclear power plants and defense related activities. The assessment activities include surface investigations, drill holes from the surface, and an underground facility for in situ characterization tests. This underground exploratory shaft facility is being designed to meet the criteria for characterizing the mountain as described in the Site Characterization Plan. 9 refs., 9 figs., 1 tab.

Yucca Mountain project canister material corrosion studies as applied to the electrometallurgical treatment metallic waste form

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keiser, D.D.

1996-11-01

Yucca Mountain, Nevada is currently being evaluated as a potential site for a geologic repository. As part of the repository assessment activities, candidate materials are being tested for possible use as construction materials for waste package containers. A large portion of this testing effort is focused on determining the long range corrosion properties, in a Yucca Mountain environment, for those materials being considered. Along similar lines, Argonne National Laboratory is testing a metallic alloy waste form that also is scheduled for disposal in a geologic repository, like Yucca Mountain. Due to the fact that Argonne's waste form will require performance testing for an environment similar to what Yucca Mountain canister materials will require, this report was constructed to focus on the types of tests that have been conducted on candidate Yucca Mountain canister materials along with some of the results from these tests. Additionally, this report will discuss testing of Argonne's metal waste form in light of the Yucca Mountain activities

Yucca Mountain Project public interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reilly, B.E.

1990-01-01

The US Department of Energy (DOE) is committed to keeping the citizens of Nevada informed about activities that relate to the high-level nuclear waste repository program. This paper presents an overview of the Yucca Mountain Project's public interaction philosophy, objectives, activities and experiences during the two years since Congress directed the DOE to conduct site characterization activities only for the Yucca Mountain site

Nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1983-01-01

The Koeberg nuclear power station, planned to come on stream in 1984, is expected to save South Africa some six million t/annum of coal, and to contribute some 10 per cent of the country's electricity requirements. The use of nuclear energy will provide for growing national energy needs, and reduce high coal transport costs for power generation at the coast. In the long term, however, it gives rise to the controversial question of nuclear waste storage. The Atomic Energy Corporation of South Africa Ltd (AEC) recently announced the purchase of a site in Namaqualand (NW Cape) for the storage of low-level radioactive waste. The Nuclear Development Corporation of South Africa (Pty) Ltd, (NUCOR) will develop and operate the site. The South African Mining and Engineering Journal interviewed Dr P.D. Toens, manager of the Geology Department and Mr P.E. Moore, project engineer, on the subject of nuclear waste, the reasons behind Nucor's choice of site and the storage method

Public attitudes regarding nuclear wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rankin, W.L.

1978-01-01

This paper traces the history of public attitudes regarding nuclear waste issues. A majority of the public has recently developed the attitude that nuclear wastes are a serious problem, and a small percentage of the public opposes nuclear power mainly because of nuclear waste issues. However, a majority of the public has confidence in the ability of technologists to solve the problems associated with nuclear waste disposal. Finally, the attitudes of nuclear technologists regarding waste disposal differed greatly from the attitudes of other groups, especially environmentalists

America's nuclear waste backlog

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benenson, R.

1981-01-01

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

United States Program on Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste Management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stewart, L.

2004-01-01

The President signed the Congressional Joint Resolution on July 23, 2002, that designated the Yucca Mountain site for a proposed geologic repository to dispose of the nation's spent nuclear fuel (SNF) and high-level radioactive waste (HLW). The United States (U.S.) Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) is currently focusing its efforts on submitting a license application to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in December 2004 for construction of the proposed repository. The legislative framework underpinning the U.S. repository program is the basis for its continuity and success. The repository development program has significantly benefited from international collaborations with other nations in the Americas

Yucca Mountain biological resources monitoring program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-02-01

The US Department of Energy (DOE) is required by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (as amended in 1987) to study and characterize Yucca Mountain as a potential site for a geologic repository for high-level nuclear waste. During site characterization, the DOE will conduct a variety of geotechnical, geochemical, geological, and hydrological studies to determine the suitability of Yucca Mountain as a potential repository. To ensure that site characterization activities (SCA) do not adversely affect the environment at Yucca Mountain, an environmental program has been implemented to monitor and mitigate potential impacts and ensure activities comply with applicable environmental regulations. This report describes the activities and accomplishments of EG ampersand G Energy Measurements, Inc. (EG ampersand G/EM) during fiscal year 1992 (FY92) for six program areas within the Terrestrial Ecosystem component of the YMP environmental program. The six program areas are Site Characterization Effects, Desert Tortoises, Habitat Reclamation, Monitoring and Mitigation, Radiological Monitoring, and Biological Support

Modeling fluid-rock interaction at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Viani, B.E.; Bruton, C.J.

1992-08-01

Volcanic rocks at Yucca Mountain, Nevada aie being assessed for their suitability as a potential repository for high-level nuclear waste. Recent progress in modeling fluid-rock interactions, in particular the mineralogical and chemical changes that may accompany waste disposal at Yucca Mountain, will be reviewed in this publication. In Part 1 of this publication, ''Geochemical Modeling of Clinoptilolite-Water Interactions,'' solid-solution and cation-exchange models for the zeolite clinoptilolite are developed and compared to experimental and field observations. At Yucca Mountain, clinoptilolite which is found lining fractures and as a major component of zeolitized tuffs, is expected to play an important role in sequestering radionuclides that may escape from a potential nuclear waste repository. The solid-solution and ion-exchange models were evaluated by comparing predicted stabilities and exchangeable cation distributions of clinoptilolites with: (1) published binary exchange data; (2) compositions of coexisting clinoptilolites and formation waters at Yucca Mountain; (3) experimental sorption isotherms of Cs and Sr on zeolitized tuff, and (4) high temperature experimental data. Good agreement was found between predictions and expertmental data, especially for binary exchange and Cs and Sr sorption on clinoptilolite. Part 2 of this publication, ''Geochemical Simulation of Fluid-Rock Interactions at Yucca Mountain,'' describes preliminary numerical simulations of fluid-rock interactions at Yucca Mountain. The solid-solution model developed in the first part of the paper is used to evaluate the stability and composition of clinciptilolite and other minerals in the host rock under ambient conditions and after waste emplacement

Nuclear waste landscapes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Solomon, B.D.; Cameron, D.M.

1990-01-01

In this paper the authors explore the time dimension in nuclear waste disposal, with the hope of untangling future land use issues for a full range of radioactive waste facilities. The longevity and hazards presented by nuclear reactor irradiated (spent) fuel and liquid reprocessing waste are well known. Final repositories for these highly radioactive wastes, to be opened early in the 21st Century, are to be located deep underground in rural locations throughout the developed world. Safety concerns are addressed by engineered and geological barriers containing the waste containers, as well as through geographic isolation from heavily populated areas. Yet nuclear power plants (as well as other applications of atomic energy) produce an abundance of other types of radioactive wastes. These materials are generally known as low level wastes (LLW) in the United States, though their level of longevity and radioactivity can vary dramatically

Bored tunnel storage of nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Penberthy, L.

1983-01-01

Contrary to the current emphasis on deep geologic disposal of high-level nuclear waste, simple bored tunnels offer many advantages. Much lower cost is important in this period of severe budget crisis. Recoverability is feasible from a tunnel in a mountain, but dubious from a flooded mine 3000 ft deep. It is quite possible that the world will need the breeder energy cycle urgently 200 years from now. In the writer's opinion, it would be a sin for our generation to make so much fertile and fissile uranium fuel unavailable for future generations. Storage conditions in a near-surface repository are much better than deep because the temperature can be kept down, pressure will be atmospheric instead of potentially 1200 psi, and flooding will not occur. The so-called ''hydrothermal'' conditions are thus completely avoided. Accordingly, endless studies of hydrogeology, water pathway times, waste-host rock interactions and the like are unnecessary, and the time for action is much shorter

Evaluation of the geologic relations and seismotectonic stability of the Yucca Mountain area, Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-10-01

This report provides a summary of progress for the project ''Evaluation of the Geologic Relations and Seismotectonic Stability of the Yucca Mountain Area, Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI)'' for the eighteen month period of January 1, 1987 to June 10, 1988. This final report was preceded by the final report for the initial six month period, July 1, 1986 to December 31, 1986 (submitted on January 25, 1987, and revised in June 1987). The general Task continued to coordinate project activities to meet general deadlines and responsibilities. The central office provided general secretarial support. The activities that were started during the first project period included expansion of the central copying facilities, growth of the central reprint, map, aerial and photograph collections, and some expansion of personal computer capabilities. The research and review accomplishments are mainly under the following tasks: quaternary tectonics, geochemical, mineral deposits, volcanic geology, seismology, tectonics, neotectonics, remote sensing, geotechnical assessments, geotechnical rock mass assessment, basinal studies, and strong ground motion

Nuclear waste and hazardous waste in the public perception

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kruetli, Pius; Seidl, Roman; Stauffacher, Michael

2015-01-01

The disposal of nuclear waste has gained attention of the public for decades. Accordingly, nuclear waste has been a prominent issue in natural, engineer and social science for many years. Although bearing risks for todays and future generations hazardous waste in contrast is much less an issue of public concern. In 2011, we conducted a postal survey among Swiss Germans (N = 3.082) to learn more about, how nuclear waste is perceived against hazardous waste. We created a questionnaire with two versions, nuclear waste and hazardous waste, respectively. Each version included an identical part with well-known explanatory factors for risk perception on each of the waste types separately and additional questions directly comparing the two waste types. Results show that basically both waste types are perceived similarly in terms of risk/benefit, emotion, trust, knowledge and responsibility. However, in the direct comparison of the two waste types a complete different pattern can be observed: Respondents perceive nuclear waste as more long-living, more dangerous, less controllable and it, furthermore, creates more negative emotions. On the other hand, respondents feel more responsible for hazardous waste and indicate to have more knowledge about this waste type. Moreover, nuclear waste is perceived as more carefully managed. We conclude that mechanisms driving risk perception are similar for both waste types but an overarching negative image of nuclear waste prevails. We propose that hazardous waste should be given more attention in the public as well as in science which may have implications on further management strategies of hazardous waste.

Nuclear waste and hazardous waste in the public perception

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kruetli, Pius; Seidl, Roman; Stauffacher, Michael [ETH Zurich (Switzerland). Inst. for Environmental Decisions

2015-07-01

The disposal of nuclear waste has gained attention of the public for decades. Accordingly, nuclear waste has been a prominent issue in natural, engineer and social science for many years. Although bearing risks for todays and future generations hazardous waste in contrast is much less an issue of public concern. In 2011, we conducted a postal survey among Swiss Germans (N = 3.082) to learn more about, how nuclear waste is perceived against hazardous waste. We created a questionnaire with two versions, nuclear waste and hazardous waste, respectively. Each version included an identical part with well-known explanatory factors for risk perception on each of the waste types separately and additional questions directly comparing the two waste types. Results show that basically both waste types are perceived similarly in terms of risk/benefit, emotion, trust, knowledge and responsibility. However, in the direct comparison of the two waste types a complete different pattern can be observed: Respondents perceive nuclear waste as more long-living, more dangerous, less controllable and it, furthermore, creates more negative emotions. On the other hand, respondents feel more responsible for hazardous waste and indicate to have more knowledge about this waste type. Moreover, nuclear waste is perceived as more carefully managed. We conclude that mechanisms driving risk perception are similar for both waste types but an overarching negative image of nuclear waste prevails. We propose that hazardous waste should be given more attention in the public as well as in science which may have implications on further management strategies of hazardous waste.

Geologic environments for nuclear waste repositories

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paleologos Evan K.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available High-level radioactive waste (HLW results from spent reactor fuel and reprocessed nuclear material. Since 1957 the scientific consensus is that deep geologic disposal constitutes the safest means for isolating HLW for long timescales. Nuclear power is becoming significant for the Arab Gulf countries as a way to diversify energy sources and drive economic developments. Hence, it is of interest to the UAE to examine the geologic environments currently considered internationally to guide site selection. Sweden and Finland are proceeding with deep underground repositories mined in bedrock at depths of 500m, and 400m, respectively. Equally, Canada’s proposals are deep burial in the plutonic rock masses of the Canadian Shield. Denmark and Switzerland are considering disposal of their relative small quantities of HLW into crystalline basement rocks through boreholes at depths of 5,000m. In USA, the potential repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada lies at a depth of 300m in unsaturated layers of welded volcanic tuffs. Disposal of low and intermediate-level radioactive wastes, as well as the German HLW repository favour structurally-sound layered salt stata and domes. Our article provides a comprehensive review of the current concepts regarding HLW disposal together with some preliminary analysis of potentially appropriate geologic environments in the UAE.

A program to assess microbial impacts on nuclear waste containment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horn, J.; Meike, A.

1996-01-01

In this paper we discuss aspects of a comprehensive program to identify and bound potential effects of microorganisms on long-term nuclear waste containment, using as examples, studies conducted within the Yucca Mountain Project. A comprehensive program has been formulated which cuts across standard disciplinary lines to address the specific concerns of microbial activity in a radioactive waste repository. Collectively, this program provides bounding parameters of microbial activities that modify the ambient geochemistry and hydrology, modify corrosion rates, and transport and transform radionuclides under conditions expected to be encountered after geological waste emplacement. This program is intended to provide microbial reaction rates and bounding conditions in a form that can be integrated into existing chemical and hydrological models. The inclusion of microbial effects will allow those models to more accurately assess long term repository integrity

Deep Geologic Nuclear Waste Disposal - No New Taxes - 12469

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Conca, James [RJLee Group, Inc., Pasco WA 509.205.7541 (United States); Wright, Judith [UFA Ventures, Inc., Richland, WA (United States)

2012-07-01

formation, i.e., how well it performs on its own for millions of years with little engineering assistance from humans. It is critical that the states most affected by this issue (WA, SC, ID, TN, NM and perhaps others) develop an independent multi-state agreement in order for a successful program to move forward. Federal approval would follow. Unknown to most, the United States has a successful operating deep permanent geologic nuclear repository for high and low activity waste, called the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, New Mexico. Its success results from several factors, including an optimal geologic and physio-graphic setting, a strong scientific basis, early regional community support, frequent interactions among stakeholders at all stages of the process, long-term commitment from the upper management of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) over several administrations, strong New Mexico State involvement and oversight, and constant environmental monitoring from before nuclear waste was first emplaced in the WIPP underground (in 1999) to the present. WIPP is located in the massive bedded salts of the Salado Formation, whose geological, physical, chemical, redox, thermal, and creep-closure properties make it an ideal formation for long-term disposal, long-term in this case being greater than 200 million years. These properties also mean minimal engineering requirements as the rock does most of the work of isolating the waste. WIPP has been operating for twelve years, and as of this writing, has disposed of over 80,000 m{sup 3} of nuclear weapons waste, called transuranic or TRU waste (>100 nCurie/g but <23 Curie/1000 cm{sup 3}) including some high activity waste from reprocessing of spent fuel from old weapons reactors. All nuclear waste of any type from any source can be disposed in this formation better, safer and cheaper than in any other geologic formation. At the same time, it is critical that we complete the Yucca Mountain license application

Nuclear waste disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hare, Tony.

1990-01-01

The Save Our Earth series has been designed to appeal to the inquiring minds of ''planet-friendly'' young readers. There is now a greater awareness of environmental issues and an increasing concern for a world no longer able to tolerate the onslaught of pollution, the depletion of natural resources and the effects of toxic chemicals. Each book approaches a specific topic in a way that is exciting and thought-provoking, presenting the facts in a style that is concise and appropriate. The series aims to demonstrate how various environmental subjects relate to our lives, and encourages the reader to accept not only responsibility for the planet, but also for its rescue and restoration. This volume, on nuclear waste disposal, explains how nuclear energy is harnessed in a nuclear reactor, what radioactive waste is, what radioactivity is and its effects, and the problems and possible solutions of disposing of nuclear waste. An awareness of the dangers of nuclear waste is sought. (author)

TECHNICAL PEER REVIEW REPORT - YUCCA MOUNTAIN: WASTE PACKAGE CLOSURE CONTROL SYSTEM

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NA

2005-10-25

The objective of the Waste Package Closure System (WPCS) project is to assist in the disposal of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) and associated high-level wastes (HLW) at the Yucca Mountain site in Nevada. Materials will be transferred from the casks into a waste package (WP), sealed, and placed into the underground facility. The SNF/HLW transfer and closure operations will be performed in an aboveground facility. The objective of the Control System is to bring together major components of the entire WPCS ensuring that unit operations correctly receive, and respond to, commands and requests for data. Integrated control systems will be provided to ensure that all operations can be performed remotely. Maintenance on equipment may be done using hands-on or remote methods, depending on complexity, exposure, and ease of access. Operating parameters and nondestructive examination results will be collected and stored as permanent electronic records. Minor weld repairs must be performed within the closure cell if the welds do not meet the inspection acceptance requirements. Any WP with extensive weld defects that require lids to be removed will be moved to the remediation facility for repair.

TECHNICAL PEER REVIEW REPORT - YUCCA MOUNTAIN: WASTE PACKAGE CLOSURE CONTROL SYSTEM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-01-01

The objective of the Waste Package Closure System (WPCS) project is to assist in the disposal of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) and associated high-level wastes (HLW) at the Yucca Mountain site in Nevada. Materials will be transferred from the casks into a waste package (WP), sealed, and placed into the underground facility. The SNF/HLW transfer and closure operations will be performed in an aboveground facility. The objective of the Control System is to bring together major components of the entire WPCS ensuring that unit operations correctly receive, and respond to, commands and requests for data. Integrated control systems will be provided to ensure that all operations can be performed remotely. Maintenance on equipment may be done using hands-on or remote methods, depending on complexity, exposure, and ease of access. Operating parameters and nondestructive examination results will be collected and stored as permanent electronic records. Minor weld repairs must be performed within the closure cell if the welds do not meet the inspection acceptance requirements. Any WP with extensive weld defects that require lids to be removed will be moved to the remediation facility for repair

Preliminary analysis of the cost and risk of transporting nuclear waste to potential candidate commercial repository sites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilmot, E.L.; Madsen, M.M.; Cashwell, J.W.; Joy, D.S.

1983-06-01

This report documents preliminary cost and risk analyses that were performed in support of the Nuclear Waste Terminal Storage (NWTS) program. The analyses compare the costs and hazards of transporting wastes to each of five regions that contain potential candidate nuclear waste repository sites being considered by the NWTS program. These regions are: the Gulf Interior Region, the Permian Basin, the Paradox Basin, Yucca Mountain, and Hanford. Two fuel-cycle scenarios were analyzed: once-through and reprocessing. Transportation was assumed to be either entirely by truck or entirely by rail for each of the scenarios. The results from the risk analyses include those attributable to nonradiological causes and those attributable to the radioactive character of the wastes being transported. 17 references

Nuclear wastes: lets talk about

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-01-01

This colloquium is entirely devoted to the problem of nuclear wastes management and to the anxiety of the French public opinion with respect to radioactive wastes in general. Nuclear wastes, generally are perceived as the unique problem of nuclear industry and as a new and unknown problem for which no solutions have been proposed so far. The aim of this colloquium is to demonstrate that such solutions exist and that, probably, they have been more thoroughly examined than in other industrial sectors. The two first talks give the inventory of possible solutions and the policy followed by nuclear operators for the conditioning and packaging of radioactive wastes. The other talks give the point of view of the producers and of the managers of nuclear wastes and the legal aspects of the management and storage of nuclear wastes, in particular the December 30, 1991 law. A particular attention is given to the importance of communication and public information in the successful management of nuclear wastes. (J.S.)

Radioactive wastes of Nuclear Industry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-01-01

This conference studies the radioactive waste of nuclear industry. Nine articles and presentations are exposed here; the action of the direction of nuclear installations safety, the improvement of industrial proceedings to reduce the waste volume, the packaging of radioactive waste, the safety of radioactive waste disposal and environmental impact studies, a presentation of waste coming from nuclear power plants, the new waste management policy, the international panorama of radioactive waste management, the international transport of radioactive waste, finally an economic analysis of the treatment and ultimate storage of radioactive waste. (N.C.)

Nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-06-01

DOE estimates that disposing of radioactive waste from civilian nuclear power plants and its defense-related nuclear facilities could eventually end up costing $32 billion. To pay for this, DOE collects fees from utilities on electricity generated by nuclear power plants and makes payments from its defense appropriation. This report states that unless careful attention is given to its financial condition, the nuclear waste program is susceptible to future shortfalls. Without a fee increase, the civilian-waste part of the program may already be underfunded by at least $2.4 billion (in discounted 1988 dollars). Also, DOE has not paid its share of cost-about $480 million-nor has it disclosed this liability in its financial records. Indexing the civilian fee to the inflation rate would address one major cost uncertainty. However, while DOE intends to do this at an appropriate time, it does not use a realistic rate of inflation as its most probable scenario in assessing whether that time has arrived

Preclosure seismic hazards and their impact on site suitability of Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gibson, J.D.

1992-01-01

This paper presents an overview of the preclosure seismic hazards and the influence of these hazards on determining the suitability of Yucca Mountain as a national high-level nuclear-waste repository. Geologic data, engineering analyses, and regulatory guidelines must be examined collectively to assess this suitability. An environmental assessment for Yucca Mountain, written in 1986, compiled and evaluated the existing tectonic data and presented arguments to satisfy, in part, the regulatory requirements that must be met if the Yucca Mountain site is to become a national waste repository. Analyses have been performed in the past five years that better quantify the local seismic hazards and the possibility that these hazards could lead to release of radionuclides to the environment. The results from these analyses increase the confidence in the ability of Yucca Mountain and the facilities that may be built there to function satisfactorily in their role as a waste repository. Uncertainties remain, however, primarily in the input parameters and boundary conditions for the models that were used to complete the analyses. These models must be validated and uncertainties reduced before Yucca Mountain can qualify as a viable high-level nuclear waste repository

Yucca Mountain Biological resources monitoring program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-01-01

The US Department of Energy (US DOE) is required by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (as amended in 1987) to study and characterize Yucca Mountain as a possible site for a geological repository for high-level radioactive waste. To ensure site characterization activities do not adversely affect the Yucca Mountain area, an environmental program, the Yucca Mountain Biological Resources Monitoring Program, has been implemented monitor and mitigate environmental impacts and to ensure activities comply with applicable environmental laws. Potential impacts to vegetation, small mammals, and the desert tortoise (an indigenous threatened species) are addressed, as are habitat reclamation, radiological monitoring, and compilation of baseline data. This report describes the program in Fiscal Years 1989 and 1990. 12 refs., 4 figs., 17 tabs

Nuclear waste for NT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nelson, Brendan

2005-01-01

The Northern Territory may be powerless to block the dumping of low-level nuclear waste in the Territory under legislation introduced into Parliament by Minister for Education Science and Training, Dr Brendan Nelson, in October. Despite strong opposition to the dumping of nuclear waste in the NT, the Australian Government will be able to send waste to one of the three nominated Commonwealth-owned Defence sites within the NT under the Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 and the Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management (Related Amendment) Bill 2005. The Bills veto recently drafted NT legislation designed to scuttle the plans. Low-level nuclear waste is stored at more than 100 sites around Australia, including hospitals, factories, universities and defence facilities. Medical isotopes produced at Lucas Heights and provided for medical procedures are the source of much of this waste, including some 16 cubic metres currently held at Darwin Hospital. Dr Nelson stressed that the Government would take all die necessary steps to comply with safety and regulatory precautions, including handling waste in line with relevant environmental, nuclear safety and proliferation safeguards

Nuclear wastes, a questionnaire

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1980-01-01

Questionnaire giving basic information for the public on nuclear wastes and radioactive waste management. Risk and regulations to reduce the risk to permissible limits are more particularly developed. A survey of radioactive wastes is made along the fuel cycle: production, processing, transport, disposal to end on effect of waste management on the cost of nuclear kWh [fr

Communicating A Controversial and Complex Project to the Public: Yucca Mountain Tours - Real and Virtual Communication

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benson, A.B.; Nelson, P.V.; D'Ouville, M.

2000-01-01

Since 1983, under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as amended (42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.), the U.S. Department of Energy (the Department) has been investigating a site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, to determine whether it is suitable for development as the nation's first repository for permanent geologic disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. By far, the largest quantity of waste destined for geologic disposal is spent nuclear fuel from 118 commercial nuclear power reactors at 72 power plant sites and 1 commercial storage site across the United States. Currently, 104 of these reactors are still in operation and generate about 20 percent of the country's electricity. Under standard contracts that DOE executed with the utilities, DOE is to accept spent nuclear fuel from the utilities for disposal. Until that happens, the utilities must safely store their spent nuclear fuel in compliance with Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulations. As of December 1998, commercial spent nuclear fuel containing approximately 38,500 metric tons of heavy metal (MTHM) was stored in 33 states. The balance of the waste destined for geologic disposal in a repository is Department-owned spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. The Department's spent nuclear fuel includes naval spent nuclear fuel and irradiated fuel from weapons production, domestic research reactors, and foreign research reactors. For disposal in a geologic repository, high-level radioactive waste would be processed into a solid glass form and placed into approximately 20,000 canisters. No liquid or hazardous wastes regulated under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 would be disposed of in a geologic repository. The difficulty in siting new facilities, particularly those designed as nuclear or nuclear-related facilities, is well documented. In this context, national boundaries are not significant distinguishing barriers. As one publication observed, ''Environmental

Communicating A Controversial and Complex Project to the Public: Yucca Mountain Tours - Real and Virtual Communication

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A.B. Benson; P.V. Nelson; M. d' Ouville

2000-03-01

Since 1983, under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as amended (42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.), the U.S. Department of Energy (the Department) has been investigating a site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, to determine whether it is suitable for development as the nation's first repository for permanent geologic disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. By far, the largest quantity of waste destined for geologic disposal is spent nuclear fuel from 118 commercial nuclear power reactors at 72 power plant sites and 1 commercial storage site across the United States. Currently, 104 of these reactors are still in operation and generate about 20 percent of the country's electricity. Under standard contracts that DOE executed with the utilities, DOE is to accept spent nuclear fuel from the utilities for disposal. Until that happens, the utilities must safely store their spent nuclear fuel in compliance with Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulations. As of December 1998, commercial spent nuclear fuel containing approximately 38,500 metric tons of heavy metal (MTHM) was stored in 33 states. The balance of the waste destined for geologic disposal in a repository is Department-owned spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. The Department's spent nuclear fuel includes naval spent nuclear fuel and irradiated fuel from weapons production, domestic research reactors, and foreign research reactors. For disposal in a geologic repository, high-level radioactive waste would be processed into a solid glass form and placed into approximately 20,000 canisters. No liquid or hazardous wastes regulated under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 would be disposed of in a geologic repository. The difficulty in siting new facilities, particularly those designed as nuclear or nuclear-related facilities, is well documented. In this context, national boundaries are not significant distinguishing barriers. As one publication observed, &apos

Nye County, Nevada 1992 nuclear waste repository program: Program overview. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

The purpose of this document is to provide an overview of the Nye County FY92 Nuclear Waste Repository Program (Program). Funds to pay for Program costs will come from the Federal Nuclear Waste Fund, which was established under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (NWPA). In early 1983, the Yucca Mountain was identified as a potentially suitable site for the nation's first geologic repository for spent reactor fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Later that year, the Nye County Board of County Commissioners (Board) established the capability to monitor the Federal effort to implement the NWPA and evaluate the potential impacts of repository-related activities on Nye County. Over the last eight years, the County's program has grown in complexity and cost in order to address DOE's evolving site characterization studies, and prepare for the potential for facility construction and operation. Changes were necessary as well, in response to Congress's redirection of the repository program specified in the amendments, to the NWPA approved in 1987. In early FY 1991, the County formally established a project office to plan and implement its program of work. The Repository Project Office's (RPO) mission and functions are provided in Section 2.0. The RPO organization structure is described in Section 3.0

Nuclear Waste Fund management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosselli, R.

1984-01-01

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (NWPA) established two separate special bank accounts: the Nuclear Waste Fund (NWF) was established to finance all of the Federal Government activities associated with the disposal of High-Level Waste (HLW) or Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF). The Interim Storage Fund (ISF) is the financial mechanism for the provision of Federal Interim Storage capacity, not to exceed 1900 metric tons of SNF at civilian power reactors. The management of these funds is discussed. Since the two funds are identical in features and the ISF has not yet been activated, the author's remarks are confined to the Nuclear Waste Fund. Three points discussed include legislative features, current status, and planned activities

Nuclear waste disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lindblom, U.; Gnirk, P.

1982-01-01

The subject is discussed under the following headings: the form and final disposal of nuclear wastes; the natural rock and groundwater; the disturbed rock and the groundwater; long-term behavior of the rock and the groundwater; nuclear waste leakage into the groundwater; what does it all mean. (U.K.)

Strategy and plan for siting and licensing a Rocky Mountain low-level radioactive waste facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Whitman, M.

1983-09-01

In 1979, the States of Nevada and Washington temporarily closed their commercial low-level radioactive waste (LLW) disposal facilities and South Carolina, the only other state hosting such a facility, restricted the amount of waste it would accept. All three states then announced that they did not intend to continue the status quo of accepting all of the country's commercial low-level radioactive waste. Faced with this situation, other states began considering alternative LLW management and disposal options. In the Rocky Mountain region, this evolved into discussions for the development of an interstate compact to manage low-level waste. Inherent in this management plan was a strategy to site and license a new LLW disposal facility for the Rocky Mountain region. The Rocky Mountain Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compact was negotiated over the course of a year, with final agreement on the language of the compact agreed to in early 1982. States eligible to join the compact are Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. Colorado adopted the compact into law in 1982, and Nevada, New Mexico and Wyoming adopted it in 1983. Utah has joined the Northwest Compact, although it may decide to join the Rocky Mountain Compact after a new disposal facility is developed for the region. Arizona has taken no action on the Rocky Mountain Compact

Should high-level nuclear waste be disposed of at geographically dispersed sites?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bassett, G.W. Jr.

1992-01-01

Consideration of the technical feasibility of Yucca Mountain in Nevada as the site for a high-level nuclear waste repository has led to an intense debate regarding the economic, social, and political impacts of the repository. Impediments to the siting process mean that the nuclear waste problem is being resolved by adhering to the status quo, in which nuclear waste is stored at scattered sites near major population centers. To assess the merits of alternative siting strategies--including both the permanent repository and the status quo- we consider the variables that would be included in a model designed to select (1) the optimal number of disposal facilities, (2) the types of facilities (e.g., permanent repository or monitored retrievable facility), and (3) the geographic location of storage sites. The objective function in the model is an all-inclusive measure of social cost. The intent of the exercise is not to demonstrate the superiority of any single disposal strategy; uncertainties preclude a conclusive proof of optimality for any of the disposal options. Instead, we want to assess the sensitivity of a variety of proposed solutions to variations in the physical, economic, political, and social variables that influence a siting strategy

Environmental assessment overview, Yucca Mountain site, Nevada Research and Development Area, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-05-01

In February 1983, the US Department of Energy (DOE) identified the Yucca Mountain site in Nevada as one of nine potentially acceptable sites for a mined geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. The site is in the Great Basin, which is one of five distinct geohydrologic settings considered for the first repository. To determine their suitability, the Yucca Mountain site and the eight other potentially acceptable sites have been evaluated in accordance with the DOE's General Guidelines for the Recommendations of Sites for the Nuclear Waste Repositories. On the basis of the evaluations reported in this EA, the DOE has found that the Yucca Mountain site is not disqualified under the guidelines. On the basis of these findings, the DOE is nominating the Yucca Mountain site as one of five sites suitable for characterization. 3 figs

Nuclear wastes: overview

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Billard, Isabelle

2006-01-01

Nuclear wastes are a major concern for all countries dealing with civil nuclear energy, whatever these countries have decided yet about reprocessing/storage options. In this chapter, a (exact) definition of a (radioactive) waste is given, together with definitions of waste classes and their characteristics (volumes, types etc.). The various options that are currently experienced in the world will be presented but focus will be put on the French case. Envision evolutions will be briefly presented. (author)

Bibliography of publications related to the Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project prepared by U.S. Geological Survey personnel through April 1991

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Glanzman, V.M.

1991-01-01

Personnel of the US Geological Survey have participated in nuclear-waste management studies in the State of Nevada since the mid-1970's. A bibliography of publications prepared principally for the US Department of Energy Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project (formerly Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations) through April 1991 contains 475 entries in alphabetical order. The listing includes publications prepared prior to the inception of the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations Project in April 1977 and selected publications of interest to the Yucca Mountain region. 480 refs

Waste package for Yucca Mountain repository: Strategy for regulatory compliance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cloninger, M.; Short, D.; Stahl, D.

1989-02-01

This document summarizes the strategy given in the Site Characterization Plan (1) for demonstrating compliance with the post closure performance objectives for the waste package and the Engineered Barrier System (EBS) contained in the Code of Federal Regulations. The strategy consists of the development of a conservative waste package design that will meet the regulatory requirements with sufficient margin for uncertainty using a multi-barrier approach that takes advantage of the unsaturated nature of the Yucca Mountain site. This strategy involves an iterative process designed to achieve compliance with the requirements for substantially complete containment and EBS release. The strategy will be implemented in such a manner that sufficient evidence will be provided for presentation to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) so that it may make a finding that there is ''reasonable assurance'' that these performance requirements will indeed be met. In implementing the strategy, DOE recognizes four fundamental goals: (1) protect public health and safety; (2) minimize financial and other resource commitments; (3) comply with applicable laws and regulations; and (4) maintain an aggressive schedule. The strategy is intended to be a reasonable balance of these competing goals. 7 refs., 3 figs., 1 tab

SNL Yucca Mountain Project data report: Density and porosity data for tuffs from the unsaturated zone at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schwartz, B.M.

1990-02-01

Yucca Mountain, located on and adjacent to the Nevada Test Site in southern Nevada, is being evaluated as a potential site for underground disposal of nuclear wastes. At present, the physical, thermal, and mechanical properties of tuffaceous rocks from Yucca Mountain are being determined as part of the Yucca Mountain Project. This report documents experiment data, which have been obtained by Sandia National Laboratories or its contractors, for the density and porosity of tuffaceous rocks that lie above the water table at Yucca Mountain. 7 refs., 2 figs., 3 tabs

Overview of the US program for developing a waste disposal system for spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kay, C.E.

1988-01-01

Safe disposal of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive high-level waste (HLW) has been a matter of national concern ever since the first US civilian nuclear reactor began generating electricity in 1957. Based on current projections of commercial generating capacity, by the turn of the century, there will be >40,000 tonne of spent fuel in the Untied States. In addition to commercial spent fuel, defense HLW is generated in the United States and currently stored at three US Department of Energy (DOE) sites: The Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987 provided for financial incentives to host a repository or a monitored retrievable storage (MRS) facility; mandated the areas in which DOE's siting efforts should concentrate (Yucca Mountain, Nevada); required termination of site-specific activities at other sites; required a resisting process for an MRS facility, which DOE had proposed as an integral part of the waste disposal system; terminated all activities for identifying candidates for a second repository; established an 11-member Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board; established a three-member MRS commission to be appointed by heads of the US Senate and House; directed the President to appoint a negotiator to seek a state or Indian tribe willing to host a repository or MRS facility at a suitable site and to negotiate terms and conditions under which the state or tribe would be willing to host such a facility; and amended, adjusted, or established other requirements contained in the 1982 law

The problematic of nuclear wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rozon, D.

2004-01-01

Within the frame of a project of modification of radioactive waste storage installations, and of refurbishing the Gentilly-2 nuclear plant (Quebec, Canada), the author first gives an overview and comments assessments of the volume and nature of nuclear wastes produced by Canadian nuclear power plants. He presents the Canadian program of nuclear waste management (history, Seaborn assessment Commission, mission of the SGDN-NWMO). He discusses the relationship between risk and dose, the risk duration, and the case of non radioactive wastes. He discusses energy challenges in terms of CO 2 emissions and with respect to climate change, proposes an alternative scenario on a long term, compares nuclear energy and wind energy, and discusses the nuclear technology evolution

Nuclear waste: the political realities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arnott, D.

1983-01-01

The land dumping of nuclear waste has again come to the attention of anti-nuclear groups, environmentalists and the media, following the announcement of the proposed sites for intermediate-level nuclear waste at Billingham and Bedford. Opposition has already surfaced on a large scale, with public meetings in both areas and a revitalisation of the waste dumping network. This article explains some of the political realities in the nuclear debate, and suggests how we can tackle the issue of waste dumping, remembering that, even if the industry closes tomorrow, there are vast quantities of waste which must be safely and democratically dealt with. (author)

Nuclear waste - perceptions and realities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilkinson, D.

1984-01-01

This paper discusses the complex scientific, sociological, political and emotive aspects of nuclear waste. The public perception of the hazards and risks, to present and future generations, in the management of nuclear wastes are highlighted. The cost of nuclear waste management to socially acceptable and technically achievable standards is discussed. (UK)

Research Opportunities in Corrosion Science for Long-Term Prediction of Materials Performance: A Report of the DOE Workshop on ''Corrosion Issues of Relevance to the Yucca Mountain Waste Repository''

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Payer, Joe H.; Scully, John R.

2003-01-01

The report summarizes the findings of a U.S. Department of Energy workshop on ''Corrosion Issues of Relevance to the Yucca Mountain Waste Repository''. The workshop was held on July 29-30, 2003 in Bethesda, MD, and was co-sponsored by the Office of Basic Energy Sciences and Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management. The workshop focus was corrosion science relevant to long-term prediction of materials performance in hostile environments, with special focus on relevance to the permanent disposal of nuclear waste at the Yucca Mountain Repository. The culmination of the workshop is this report that identifies both generic and Yucca Mountain Project-specific research opportunities in basic and applied topic areas. The research opportunities would be realized well after the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's initial construction-authorization licensing process. At the workshop, twenty-three invited scientists deliberated on basic and applied science opportunities in corrosion science relevant to long-term prediction of damage accumulation by corrosive processes that affect materials performance.

Nuclear waste. DOE has terminated research evaluating crystalline rock for a repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fultz, Keith O.; Sprague, John W.; Weigel, Dwayne E.; Price, Vincent P.

1989-05-01

We found that DOE terminated funding of research projects specifically designed to evaluate the suitability of crystalline rock for a repository. DOE continued other research efforts involving crystalline rock because they will provide information that it considers useful for evaluating the suitability of Yucca Mountain, Nevada, for a potential repository. Such research activities are not prohibited by the amendments. In January 1988, DOE began evaluating both its domestic and international research programs to ensure their compliance with the 1987 amendments. Several DOE offices and contractors were involved in the evaluation. DOE officials believe that the evaluation effectively brought the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management activities into compliance with the amendments while maintaining useful international relations of continuing benefit to the nuclear waste program in general and to DOE's investigation of the Yucca Mountain site in particular. (The 1987 amendments designated Yucca Mountain as the only site that DOE is to investigate for a potential repository.) The approach and results of DOE's evaluation are discussed. Our review of DOE documents indicates that, by June 22, 1988, DOE completed its evaluation of ongoing crystalline rock research projects to ensure compliance with the 1987 amendments, terminated those research activities it identified as being specifically designed to evaluate the suitability of crystalline rock for a repository, continued some research activities involving crystalline rock because these activities would benefit the investigation and development of the Yucca Mountain repository site, and redirected some research activities so that they would contribute to investigating and developing the Yucca Mountain site

Should nuclear be feared ... ... or is it nuclear power's hour?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Diesendorf, Mark; Sevior, Martin

2006-01-01

This is a debate for and against nucl era power. Some people think that nuclear power is not as clean, green or cheap as its supporters would like us to think. Nuclear waste disposal is the biggest problem. There is not a single country which has built a facility for the long-term management of high-level nuclear wastes. United States is the only country in the world is most advanced in this regard, is building a waste repository at yucca Mountains, Nevada. The cost of nuclear activity is even higher than previously estimated

Natural analogs for Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murphy, W.M.

1995-01-01

High-level radioactive waste in the US, spent fuels from commercial reactors and nuclear materials generated by defense activities, will remain potentially hazardous for thousands of years. Demonstrable long-term stability of certain geologic and geochemical systems motivates and sustains the concept that high-level waste can be safely isolated in geologic repositories for requisite periods of time. Each geologic repository is unique in its properties and performance with reguard to isolation of nuclear wastes. Studies of processes analogous to waste-form alteration and radioelement transport in environments analogous to Yucca Mountain are being conducted at two sites, described in this article to illustrate uses of natural analog data: the Nopal I uranium deposit in the Sierra Pena Blanca, Mexico, and the Akrotiri archaeological site on the island of Santorini, Greece

Glass containing radioactive nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boatner, L.A.; Sales, B.C.

1985-01-01

Lead-iron phosphate glasses containing a high level of Fe 2 O 3 for use as a storage medium for high-level-radioactive nuclear waste. By combining lead-iron phosphate glass with various types of simulated high-level nuclear waste, a highly corrosion resistant, homogeneous, easily processed glass can be formed. For corroding solutions at 90 C, with solution pH values in the range between 5 and 9, the corrosion rate of the lead-iron phosphate nuclear waste glass is at least 10 2 to 10 3 times lower than the corrosion rate of a comparable borosilicate nuclear waste glass. The presence of Fe 2 O 3 in forming the lead-iron phosphate glass is critical. Lead-iron phosphate nuclear waste glass can be prepared at temperatures as low as 800 C, since they exhibit very low melt viscosities in the 800 to 1050 C temperature range. These waste-loaded glasses do not readily devitrify at temperatures as high as 550 C and are not adversely affected by large doses of gamma radiation in H 2 O at 135 C. The lead-iron phosphate waste glasses can be prepared with minimal modification of the technology developed for processing borosilicate glass nuclear waste forms. (author)

Geopolitics of nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marshall, E.

1991-01-01

More debate has begun over questions related to the safety of high-level waste disposal at the Yucca Mountain site in the Nevada desert. An engineering geologists, Jerry Szymanski, one of the Department of Energy's (DOE) own staffers in Las Vegas, has proposed that the $15-billion repository would sit on top of an intensely active structure that, if altered by an earthquake, would send a slug of ground water up from deep within the mountain into the waste storage area. This theory has already been slammed in two formal reviews and has virtually no support among geologists. However, enough doubt has been raised that much more geological testing will be necessary to prove or disprove Szymanski's theory. Nevada state officials are also using all methods to thwart or block the project. The question of the origin of a series of calcium carbonate and opal veins exposed in an exploratory pit, trench 14, near the top of the mountain is also far from answered. The DOE and US Geological Survey may have to collect much more information on the quantity, size, and location of carbonate sites in the area at a high financial outlay to the US government before a complete case on the origin of the material in trench 14 can be made

Overview of the Yucca Mountain Licensing Process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

M. Wisenburg

2004-01-01

This paper presents an overview of the licensing process for a Yucca Mountain repository for high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel. The paper discusses the steps in the licensing proceeding, the roles of the participants, the licensing and hearing requirements contained in the Code of Federal Regulations. A description of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff acceptance and compliance reviews of the Department of Energy (DOE) application for a construction authorization and a license to receive and possess high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel is provided. The paper also includes a detailed description of the hearing process

Preparing to Submit a License Application for Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

W.J. Arthur; M.D. Voegele

2005-01-01

In 1982, the U.S. Congress passed the Nuclear Waste Policy Act, a Federal law that established U.S. policy for the permanent disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Congress amended the Act in 1987, directing the Department of Energy to study only Yucca Mountain, Nevada as the site for a permanent geologic repository. As the law mandated, the Department evaluated Yucca Mountain to determine its suitability as the site for a permanent geologic repository. Decades of scientific studies demonstrated that Yucca Mountain would protect workers, the public, and the environment during the time that a repository would be operating and for tens of thousands of years after closure of the repository. A repository at this remote site would also: preserve the quality of the environment; allow the environmental cleanup of Cold War weapons facilities; provide the nation with additional protection from acts of terrorism; and support a sound energy policy. Throughout the scientific evaluation of Yucca Mountain, there has been no evidence to disqualify Yucca Mountain as a suitable site for the permanent disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Upon completion of site characterization, the Secretary of Energy considered the results and concluded that a repository at Yucca Mountain would perform in a manner that protects public health and safety. The Secretary recommended the site to the President in February 2002; the President agreed and recommended to Congress that the site be approved. The Governor of Nevada submitted a notice of disapproval, and both houses of Congress acted to override the disapproval. In July 2002, the President's approval allowed the Department to begin the process of submittal of a license application for Yucca Mountain as the site for the nation's first repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Yucca Mountain is located on federal land in Nye County in southern Nevada, an arid region

SPARTAN: a simple performance assessment code for the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations Project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin, Y.T.

1985-12-01

SPARTAN is a simple computer model designed for the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations Project to calculate radionuclide transport in geologic media. The physical processes considered are limited to Darcy's flow, radionuclide decay, and convective transport with constant retardation of radionuclides relative to water flow. Inputs for the model must be provided for the geometry, repository area, flow path, water flux, effective porosity, initial inventory, waste solubility, canister lifetime, and retardation factors. Results from the model consist of radionuclide release rates from the prospective Yucca Mountain repository for radioactive waste and cumulative curies released across the flow boundaries at the end of the flow path. The rates of release from the repository relative to NRC performance objectives and releases to the accessible environment relative to EPA requirements are also calculated. Two test problems compare the results of simulations from SPARTAN with analytical solutions. The comparisons show that the SPARTAN solution closely matches the analytical solutions across a range of conditions that approximate those that might occur at Yucca Mountain

Photogeologic study of small-scale linear features near a potential nuclear-waste repository site at Yucca Mountain, southern Nye County, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Throckmorton, C.K.

1987-01-01

Linear features were mapped from 1:2400-scale aerial photographs of the northern half of the potential underground nuclear-waste repository site at Yucca Mountain by means of a Kern PG 2 stereoplotter. These features were thought to be the expression of fractures at the ground surface (fracture traces), and were mapped in the caprock, upper lithophysal, undifferentiated lower lithophysal and hackly units of the Tiva Canyon Member of the Miocene Paintbrush Tuff. To determine if the linear features corresponded to fracture traces observed in the field, stations (areas) were selected on the map where the traces were both abundant and located solely within one unit. These areas were visited in the field, where fracture-trace bearings and fracture-trace lengths were recorded. Additional data on fracture-trace length and fracture abundance, obtained from ground-based studies of cleared pavements located within the study area were used to help evaluate data collected for this study. 16 refs., 4 figs., 2 tabs

Spotlight back on LHW with Yucca Mountain on Trump's horizon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shepherd, John

2017-01-01

After years of argument and delay could the US be edging closer to resurrecting proposals to build a national repository for high level nuclear waste (HLW) at Yucca Mountain in Nevada? The federal government has looked at the site with a view to establishing a repository since the 1970s. However, after pouring billions of dollars into projects and studies over the decades, the project remained bogged down in legal battles and opposition from politicians and pressure groups. Now, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said it had directed its staff to use the equivalent of about EUR 95,000 from the national Nuclear Waste Fund on ''information-gathering activities'' that could pave the way for resuming a licensing review of Yucca Mountain as a potential deep geologic repository (DGR).

Degradation mode survey candidate titanium-base alloys for Yucca Mountain project waste package materials. Revision 1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gdowski, G.E.

1997-12-01

The Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project (YMP) is evaluating materials from which to fabricate high-level nuclear waste containers (hereafter called waste packages) for the potential repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Because of their very good corrosion resistance in aqueous environments titanium alloys are considered for container materials. Consideration of titanium alloys is understandable since about one-third (in 1978) of all titanium produced is used in applications where corrosion resistance is of primary importance. Consequently, there is a considerable amount of data which demonstrates that titanium alloys, in general, but particularly the commercial purity and dilute {alpha} grades, are highly corrosion resistant. This report will discuss the corrosion characteristics of Ti Gr 2, 7, 12, and 16. The more highly alloyed titanium alloys which were developed by adding a small Pd content to higher strength Ti alloys in order to give them better corrosion resistance will not be considered in this report. These alloys are all two phase ({alpha} and {beta}) alloys. The palladium addition while making these alloys more corrosion resistant does not give them the corrosion resistance of the single phase {alpha} and near-{alpha} (Ti Gr 12) alloys.

Evaluation of the geologic relations and seismotectonic stability of the Yucca Mountain area, Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI); Final report, January 1, 1987--June 30, 1988: Volume 1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1988-10-01

This report provides a summary of progress for the project ``Evaluation of the Geologic Relations and Seismotectonic Stability of the Yucca Mountain Area, Nevada Nuclear Waste Site Investigation (NNWSI)`` for the eighteen month period of January 1, 1987 to June 10, 1988. This final report was preceded by the final report for the initial six month period, July 1, 1986 to December 31, 1986 (submitted on January 25, 1987, and revised in June 1987.) Quaternary Tectonics, Geochemical, Mineral Deposits, Vulcanic Geology, Seismology, Tectonics, Neotectonics, Remote Sensing, Geotechnical Assessments, Geotechnical Rock Mass Assessments, Basinal Studies, and Strong Ground Motion.

Phenomenological studies of two-phase flow processes for nuclear waste isolation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pruess, K.; Finsterle, S.; Persoff, P.; Oldenburg, C.

1994-01-01

The US civilian radioactive waste management program is unique in its focus on a site in the unsaturated zone, at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Two-phase flow phenomena can also play an important role in repositories beneath the water table where gas is generated by corrosion, hydrolysis, and biological degradation of the waste packages. An integrated program has been initiated to enhance our understanding of two-phase flow behavior in fractured rock masses. The studies include two-phase (gas-liquid) flow experiments in laboratory specimens of natural rock fractures, analysis and modeling of heterogeneity and instability effects in two-phase flow, and design and interpretation of field experiments by means of numerical simulation. We present results that identify important aspects of two-phase flow behavior on different space and time scales which are relevant to nuclear waste disposal in both unsaturated and saturated formations

Radioactivity and nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saas, A.

1996-01-01

Radioactive wastes generated by nuclear activities must be reprocessed using specific treatments before packaging, storage and disposal. This digest paper gives first a classification of radioactive wastes according to their radionuclides content activity and half-life, and the amount of wastes from the different categories generated each year by the different industries. Then, the radiotoxicity of nuclear wastes is evaluated according to the reprocessing treatments used and to their environmental management (surface storage or burial). (J.S.)

Nuclear waste management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-12-01

The subject is discussed, with special reference to the UK, under the headings: radiation; origins of the waste (mainly from nuclear power programme; gas, liquid, solid; various levels of activity); dealing with waste (methods of processing, storage, disposal); high-active waste (storage, vitrification, study of means of eventual disposal); waste management (UK organisation to manage low and intermediate level waste). (U.K.)

Yucca Mountain, Nevada - A Proposed Geologic Repository for High-Level Radioactive Waste (Volume 1) Introduction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

R.A. Levich; J.S. Stuckless

2006-01-01

Yucca Mountain in Nevada represents the proposed solution to what has been a lengthy national effort to dispose of high-level radioactive waste, waste which must be isolated from the biosphere for tens of thousands of years. This chapter reviews the background of that national effort and includes some discussion of international work in order to provide a more complete framework for the problem of waste disposal. Other chapters provide the regional geologic setting, the geology of the Yucca Mountain site, the tectonics, and climate (past, present, and future). These last two chapters are integral to prediction of long-term waste isolation

Yucca Mountain, Nevada - A Proposed Geologic Repository for High-Level Radioactive Waste (Volume 1) Introduction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

R.A. Levich; J.S. Stuckless

2006-09-25

Yucca Mountain in Nevada represents the proposed solution to what has been a lengthy national effort to dispose of high-level radioactive waste, waste which must be isolated from the biosphere for tens of thousands of years. This chapter reviews the background of that national effort and includes some discussion of international work in order to provide a more complete framework for the problem of waste disposal. Other chapters provide the regional geologic setting, the geology of the Yucca Mountain site, the tectonics, and climate (past, present, and future). These last two chapters are integral to prediction of long-term waste isolation.

Nuclear Waste and Ethics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Damveld, Herman

2003-01-01

In the past years in almost all conferences on storage of nuclear waste, ethics has been considered as an important theme. But what is ethics? We will first give a sketch of this branch of philosophy. We will then give a short explanation of the three principal ethical theories. In the discussion about storage of nuclear waste, the ethical theory of utilitarianism is often implicitly invoked. In this system future generations weigh less heavily than the present generation, so that people of the future are not considered as much as those now living. We reject this form of reasoning. The discussion about nuclear waste is also sometimes pursued from ethical points of departure such as equality and justice. But many loose ends remain in these arguments, which gives rise to the question of whether the production and storage of nuclear waste is responsible

Nuclear Waste and Ethics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Damveld, Herman [Groningen (Netherlands)

2003-10-01

In the past years in almost all conferences on storage of nuclear waste, ethics has been considered as an important theme. But what is ethics? We will first give a sketch of this branch of philosophy. We will then give a short explanation of the three principal ethical theories. In the discussion about storage of nuclear waste, the ethical theory of utilitarianism is often implicitly invoked. In this system future generations weigh less heavily than the present generation, so that people of the future are not considered as much as those now living. We reject this form of reasoning. The discussion about nuclear waste is also sometimes pursued from ethical points of departure such as equality and justice. But many loose ends remain in these arguments, which gives rise to the question of whether the production and storage of nuclear waste is responsible.

Repository sealing concepts for the Nevada nuclear waste storage Investigations Project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fernandez, J.A.; Freshley, M.D.

1984-08-01

This report describes concepts for sealing a nuclear waste repository in an unsaturated tuff environment. The repository site under consideration is Yucca Mountain, which is on and adjacent to the Nevada Test Site. The hydrogeology of Yucca Mountain, preliminary repository concepts, functional requirements and performance criteria for sealing, federal and state regulations, and hydrological calculations are considered in developing the sealing concepts. Water flow through the unsaturated zone is expected to be small and generally vertically downward with some potential to occur through discrete fault and fracture zones. These assumptions are used in developing sealing concepts for shafts, ramps, and boreholes. Sealing of discrete, water-producing faults and fracture zones encountered in horizontal emplacement holes and in access and emplacement drifts is also described. 49 references, 21 figures, 6 tables

Seismic design ampersand analysis considerations for high level nuclear waste repositories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hossain, Q.A.

1993-01-01

A high level nuclear waste repository, like the one at Nevada's Yucca Mountain that is being investigated for site suitability, will have some unique seismic design and analysis considerations. These are discussed, and a design philosophy that can rationally account for the unique performance objectives of such facilities is presented. A case is made for the use of DOE's performance goal-based seismic design and evaluation methodology that is based on a hybrid open-quotes deterministicclose quotes and open-quotes probabilisticclose quotes concept. How and to what extent this methodology should be modified to adopt it for a potential site like Yucca Mountain is also outlined. Finally, the issue of designing for seismic fault rupture is discussed briefly, and the desirability of using the proposed seismic design philosophy in fault rupture evaluation is described

Seismic design and analysis considerations for high level nuclear waste repositories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hossain, Q.A.

1993-01-01

A high level nuclear waste repository, like the one at Nevada's Yucca Mountain that is being investigated for site suitability, will have some unique seismic design and analysis considerations. These are discussed, and a design philosophy that can rationally account for the unique performance objectives of such facilities is presented. A case is made for the use of DOE's performance goal-based seismic design and evaluation methodology that is based on a hybrid ''deterministic'' and ''probabilistic'' concept. How and to what extent this methodology should be modified to adopt it for a potential site like Yucca Mountain is also outlined. Finally, the issue of designing for seismic fault rupture is discussed briefly, and the desirability of using the proposed seismic design philosophy in fault rupture evaluation is described

World Nuclear Association position statement: Safe management of nuclear waste and used nuclear fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saint-Pierre, Sylvain

2006-01-01

This WNA Position Statement summarises the worldwide nuclear industry's record, progress and plans in safely managing nuclear waste and used nuclear fuel. The global industry's safe waste management practices cover the entire nuclear fuel-cycle, from the mining of uranium to the long-term disposal of end products from nuclear power reactors. The Statement's aim is to provide, in clear and accurate terms, the nuclear industry's 'story' on a crucially important subject often clouded by misinformation. Inevitably, each country and each company employs a management strategy appropriate to a specific national and technical context. This Position Statement reflects a confident industry consensus that a common dedication to sound practices throughout the nuclear industry worldwide is continuing to enhance an already robust global record of safe management of nuclear waste and used nuclear fuel. This text focuses solely on modern civil programmes of nuclear-electricity generation. It does not deal with the substantial quantities of waste from military or early civil nuclear programmes. These wastes fall into the category of 'legacy activities' and are generally accepted as a responsibility of national governments. The clean-up of wastes resulting from 'legacy activities' should not be confused with the limited volume of end products that are routinely produced and safely managed by today's nuclear energy industry. On the significant subject of 'Decommissioning of Nuclear Facilities', which is integral to modern civil nuclear power programmes, the WNA will offer a separate Position Statement covering the industry's safe management of nuclear waste in this context. The paper's conclusion is that the safe management of nuclear waste and used nuclear fuel is a widespread, well-demonstrated reality. This strong safety record reflects a high degree of nuclear industry expertise and of industry responsibility toward the well-being of current and future generations. Accumulating

Public opposition to the siting of the high-level nuclear waste repository: The importance of trust

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pijawka, K.D.; Mushkatel, A.H.

1991-01-01

This paper examines several dimensions of public opposition to the proposed siting of the high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. In order to provide a context for the public's views of the repository in metropolitan Clark County, both governmental studies of the repository siting process are analyzed, as well as elements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act. This analysis suggests that one potentially key component of the public's opposition to the siting, as well as their perceptions of risk of the facility, may be the result of a lack of trust in the Department of Energy. Empirical analysis of survey data collected in Nevada in 1988 confirms the strong relationship between political trust and repository risk perceptions

Materials aspects of nuclear waste isolation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bennett, J.W.

1984-01-01

This paper is intended to provide an overview of the nuclear waste repository performance requirements and the roles which we expect materials to play in meeting these requirements. The objective of the U.S. Dept. of Energy's (DOE) program is to provide for the safe, permanent isolation of high-level radioactive wastes from the public. The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (the Act) provides the mandate to accomplish this objective by establishing a program timetable, a schedule of procedures to be followed, and program funding (1 mil/kwhr for all nuclear generated electricity). The centerpiece of this plan is the design and operation of a mined geologic repository system for the permanent isolation of radioactive wastes. A nuclear waste repository contains several thousand acres of tunnels and drifts into which the nuclear waste will be emplaced, and several hundred acres for the facilities on the surface in which the waste is received, handled, and prepared for movement underground. With the exception of the nuclear material-related facilities, a repository is similar to a standard mining operation. The difference comes in what a repository is supposed to do - to contain an isolate nuclear waste from man and the environment

Yucca Mountain Project bibliography, January--June 1989

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-01-01

Following a reorganization of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, the Yucca Mountain Project was renamed Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. The title of this bibliography was also changed to Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project Bibliography. Prior to August 5, 1988, this project was called the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations. This bibliography contains information on this ongoing project that was added to the Department of Energy's Energy Science and Technology Database from January 1990 through June 1990. The bibliography is categorized by principal project participating organization. Participant-sponsored subcontractor reports, papers, and articles are included in the sponsoring organization's list. Another section contains information about publications on the Energy Science and Technology Database that were not sponsored by the project but have some relevance to it

Ground-water travel time calculations for the potential nuclear repository site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Younker, J.L.; Wilson, W.E.; Sinnock, S.

1986-01-01

In support of the US Department of Energy Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations Project, ground-water travel times were calculated for flow paths in both the saturated and unsaturated zones at Yucca Mountain, a potential site for a high-level radioactive waste repository in southern Nevada. The calculations were made through a combined effort by Science Applications International Corporation, Sandia National Laboratories, and the US Geological Survey. Travel times in the unsaturated zone were estimated by dividing the flow path length by the ground-water velocity, where velocities were obtained by dividing the vertical flux by the effective porosity of the rock types along assumed vertical flow paths. Saturated zone velocities were obtained by dividing the product of the bulk hydraulic conductivity and hydraulic gradient by the effective porosity. Total travel time over an EPA-established 5-km flow path was then calculated to be the sum of the travel times in the two parts of the flow path. Estimates of ground water fluxes and travel times are critical for evaluating the favorability of the Yucca Mountain site because they provide the basis for estimating the potential for radionuclides to reach the accessible environment within certain time limits

Yucca Mountain Biological Resources Monitoring Program; Annual report, FY91

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1992-01-01

The US Department of Energy (DOE) is required by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (as amended in 1987) to study and characterize Yucca Mountain as a possible site for a geologic repository for high-level nuclear waste. During site characterization, the DOE will conduct a variety of geotechnical, geochemical, geological, and hydrological studies to determine the suitability of Yucca Mountain as a repository. To ensure that site characterization activities (SCA) do not adversely affect the Yucca Mountain area, an environmental program has been implemented to monitor and mitigate potential impacts and to ensure that activities comply with applicable environmental regulations. This report describes the activities and accomplishments during fiscal year 1991 (FY91) for six program areas within the Terrestrial Ecosystem component of the YMP environmental program. The six program areas are Site Characterization Activities Effects, Desert Tortoises, Habitat Reclamation, Monitoring and Mitigation, Radiological Monitoring, and Biological Support.

Yucca Mountain and the environmental issue

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gertz, C.P.

1991-01-01

The scientists and engineers who work on the Yucca Mountain Project keenly feel their responsibility - to solve an important national environmental issue. Addressing the issue of nuclear waste disposal may also help keep the nuclear option viable. Under congressional mandate, they are working to find that solution despite tough opposition from the state of Nevada. Nevada and the US Department of Energy (DOE) have been litigating the issue of environmental permits for almost 2 years now, and the court decisions have all favored DOE. The DOE's site characterization efforts are designed to determine whether Yucca Mountain can safely store spent nuclear fuel for the next 10,000 yr. DOE is studying the rocks, the climate, and the water table to make sure that the site is suitable before anything is built there. The success of the Yucca Mountain Project is vital to settling existing environmental issues as well as maintaining the viability of nuclear energy. Through efforts in Congress and outreach programs in Nevada, DOE hopes to inform the public of the mission and begin the process of site characterization

``Recycling'' Nuclear Power Plant Waste: Technical Difficulties and Proliferation Concerns

Science.gov (United States)

Lyman, Edwin

2007-04-01

One of the most vexing problems associated with nuclear energy is the inability to find a technically and politically viable solution for the disposal of long-lived radioactive waste. The U.S. plan to develop a geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel at Yucca Mountain in Nevada is in jeopardy, as a result of managerial incompetence, political opposition and regulatory standards that may be impossible to meet. As a result, there is growing interest in technologies that are claimed to have the potential to drastically reduce the amount of waste that would require geologic burial and the length of time that the waste would require containment. A scenario for such a vision was presented in the December 2005 Scientific American. While details differ, these technologies share a common approach: they require chemical processing of spent fuel to extract plutonium and other long-lived actinide elements, which would then be ``recycled'' into fresh fuel for advanced reactors and ``transmuted'' into shorter-lived fission products. Such a scheme is the basis for the ``Global Nuclear Energy Partnership,'' a major program unveiled by the Department of Energy (DOE) in early 2006. This concept is not new, but has been studied for decades. Major obstacles include fundamental safety issues, engineering feasibility and cost. Perhaps the most important consideration in the post-9/11 era is that these technologies involve the separation of plutonium and other nuclear weapon-usable materials from highly radioactive fission products, providing opportunities for terrorists seeking to obtain nuclear weapons. While DOE claims that it will only utilize processes that do not produce ``separated plutonium,'' it has offered no evidence that such technologies would effectively deter theft. It is doubtful that DOE's scheme can be implemented without an unacceptable increase in the risk of nuclear terrorism.

Independent management and financial review, Yucca Mountain Project, Nevada. Final report, Appendix

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-01-01

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (Public Law 97-425), as amended by Public Law 100-203, December 22, 1987, established the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) within the Department of Energy (DOE), and directed the Office to investigate a site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, to determine if this site is suitable for the construction of a repository for the disposal of high level nuclear waste. Work on site characterization has been under way for several years. Thus far, about $1.47 billion have been spent on Yucca Mountain programs. This work has been funded by Congressional appropriations from a Nuclear Waste Fund to which contributions have been made by electric utility ratepayers through electric utilities generating power from nuclear power stations. The Secretary of Energy and the Governor of the State of Nevada have appointed one person each to a panel to oversee an objective, independent financial and management evaluation of the Yucca Mountain Project. The Requirements for the work will include an analysis of (1) the Yucca Mountain financial and, contract management techniques and controls; (2) Project schedules and credibility of the proposed milestones; (3) Project organizational effectiveness and internal planning processes, and (4) adequacy of funding levels and funding priorities, including the cost of infrastructure and scientific studies. The recipient will provide monthly progress report and the following reports/documents will be presented as deliverables under the contract: (1) Financial and Contract Management Preliminary Report; (2) Project Scheduling Preliminary Report; (3)Project Organizational Effectiveness Preliminary Report; (4) Project Funding Levels and Funding Priorities Preliminary Report; and (5) Final Report

Independent management and financial review, Yucca Mountain Project, Nevada. Final report, Appendix

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-07-15

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (Public Law 97-425), as amended by Public Law 100-203, December 22, 1987, established the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) within the Department of Energy (DOE), and directed the Office to investigate a site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, to determine if this site is suitable for the construction of a repository for the disposal of high level nuclear waste. Work on site characterization has been under way for several years. Thus far, about $1.47 billion have been spent on Yucca Mountain programs. This work has been funded by Congressional appropriations from a Nuclear Waste Fund to which contributions have been made by electric utility ratepayers through electric utilities generating power from nuclear power stations. The Secretary of Energy and the Governor of the State of Nevada have appointed one person each to a panel to oversee an objective, independent financial and management evaluation of the Yucca Mountain Project. The Requirements for the work will include an analysis of (1) the Yucca Mountain financial and, contract management techniques and controls; (2) Project schedules and credibility of the proposed milestones; (3) Project organizational effectiveness and internal planning processes, and (4) adequacy of funding levels and funding priorities, including the cost of infrastructure and scientific studies. The recipient will provide monthly progress report and the following reports/documents will be presented as deliverables under the contract: (1) Financial and Contract Management Preliminary Report; (2) Project Scheduling Preliminary Report; (3)Project Organizational Effectiveness Preliminary Report; (4) Project Funding Levels and Funding Priorities Preliminary Report; and (5) Final Report.

Status of nuclear waste management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kittel, J.H.

1980-01-01

This paper discusses what nuclear waste is and where it comes from, what the technical strategies are for disposing of this waste, compares the toxicity of nuclear waste to other materials that are more familiar to us, and finally, comments on why it is taking so long to get on with the job of isolating nuclear waste permanently. The author believes that the technical solutions for the management and disposal of high-level and low-level nuclear waste are adequately in hand. The issues that are delaying the implementation of this technology are almost entirely related to sociological and political considerations. High-level nuclear waste can be safely stored and isolated through a multiple barrier approach. Although it is a hazardous material and must be handled properly, its toxicity diminishes rapidly. It then becomes less hazardous than other materials that we deal with everyday in routine industrial or household operations. The disposal of low-level waste has not attracted as much public attention as high-level waste management. Nevertheless, it is just as important to the public. For example, the use of radioactive isotopes in medicine, and the many lives that are saved as a result, would be very greatly reduced if medical institutions had no place to dispose of their radioactive waste. The management of uranium mill tailings is similar in many technical aspects to low-level waste management. Institutional issues, however, have not become as important in the case of mill tailings disposal

Nuclear waste disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schueller, W.

1976-01-01

The article cites and summarizes the papers on the topics: economic and ecological importance of waste management, reprocessing of nuclear fuel and recycling of uranium and plutonium, waste management and final storage, transports and organizational aspects of waste management, presented at this symposium. (HR/AK) [de

DOE's Yucca Mountain studies: What are they? Why are they being done?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-12-01

This booklet is about the disposal of high-level nuclear waste in the United States. It is intended for readers who do not have a technical background. It discusses why scientists and engineers think high-level nuclear waste may be disposed of safely underground. It also describes why Yucca Mountain, Nevada, is being studied and provides basic information about those studies

Nuclear waste management: a perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leuze, R.E.

1980-01-01

The scope of our problems with nuclear waste management is outlined. Present and future inventories of nuclear wastes are assessed for risk. A discussion of what is presently being done to solve waste management problems and what might be done in the future are presented

Ten questions on nuclear wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guillaumont, R.; Bacher, P.

2004-01-01

The authors give explanations and answers to ten issues related to nuclear wastes: when a radioactive material becomes a waste, how radioactive wastes are classified and particularly nuclear wastes in France, what are the risks associated with radioactive wastes, whether the present management of radioactive wastes is well controlled in France, which wastes are raising actual problems and what are the solutions, whether amounts and radio-toxicity of wastes can be reduced, whether all long life radionuclides or part of them can be transmuted, whether geologic storage of final wastes is inescapable, whether radioactive material can be warehoused over long durations, and how the information on radioactive waste management is organised

Fair rules for siting a high-level nuclear waste repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Easterling, D.

1992-01-01

Geologic repositories are designed to resolve the ever-growing problem of high-level nuclear waste, but these facilities invite intense local opposition due to the perceived severity of the risks and the possibility of stigma effects. This analysis examines whether the perceived fairness of the siting process affects local residents' support for hosting a repository. In particular, a survey of 1,001 Nevada residents is used to test the hypothesis that an individual's willingness to accept a local repository will increase if he or she is convinced that this is the safest disposal option available. A logistic analysis indicates that beliefs regarding relative suitability have an independent effect on the acceptability of a local repository (i.e., Yucca Mountain). The article then considers the question of how to implement an optimizing strategy for siting facilities, comparing an idealized strategy against the original Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) of 1982 and the Amendments Act of 1987. Although choosing the safest site seems as if it could enhance public acceptance of the repository program, there is currently little prospect of identifying the best option to the high-level waste problem and, as a results, little chance of gaining the public support that is necessary to promote a successful siting outcome. 81 refs., 1 fig., 5 tabs

Anticipating Potential Waste Acceptance Criteria for Defense Spent Nuclear Fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rechard, R.P.; Lord, M.E.; Stockman, C.T.; McCurley, R.D.

1997-01-01

The Office of Environmental Management of the U.S. Department of Energy is responsible for the safe management and disposal of DOE owned defense spent nuclear fuel and high level waste (DSNF/DHLW). A desirable option, direct disposal of the waste in the potential repository at Yucca Mountain, depends on the final waste acceptance criteria, which will be set by DOE's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM). However, evolving regulations make it difficult to determine what the final acceptance criteria will be. A method of anticipating waste acceptance criteria is to gain an understanding of the DOE owned waste types and their behavior in a disposal system through a performance assessment and contrast such behavior with characteristics of commercial spent fuel. Preliminary results from such an analysis indicate that releases of 99Tc and 237Np from commercial spent fuel exceed those of the DSNF/DHLW; thus, if commercial spent fuel can meet the waste acceptance criteria, then DSNF can also meet the criteria. In large part, these results are caused by the small percentage of total activity of the DSNF in the repository (1.5%) and regulatory mass (4%), and also because commercial fuel cladding was assumed to provide no protection

Politics of nuclear waste

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Colglazier, E.W. Jr. (eds.)

1982-01-01

In November of 1979, the Program in Science, Technology and Humanism and the Energy Committee of the Aspen Institute organized a conference on resolving the social, political, and institutional conflicts over the permanent siting of radioactive wastes. This book was written as a result of this conference. The chapters provide a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of the governance issues connected with radioactive waste management as well as a sampling of the diverse views of the interested parties. Chapter 1 looks in depth of radioactive waste management in the United States, with special emphasis on the events of the Carter Administration as well as on the issues with which the Reagen administration must deal. Chapter 2 compares waste management policies and programs among the industralized countries. Chapter 3 examines the factional controversies in the last administration and Congress over nuclear waste issues. Chapter 4 examines the complex legal questions involved in the federal-state conflicts over nuclear waste management. Chapter 5 examines the concept of consultation and concurrence from the perspectives of a host state that is a candidate for a repository and an interested state that has special concerns regarding the demonstration of nuclear waste disposal technology. Chapter 6 examines US and European perspectives concerning public participation in nuclear waste management. Chapter 7 discusses propaganda in the issues. The epilogue attempts to assess the prospects for consensus in the United States on national policies for radioactive waste management. All of the chapter in this book should be interpreted as personal assessments. (DP)

Politics of nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Colglazier, E.W. Jr.

1982-01-01

In November of 1979, the Program in Science, Technology and Humanism and the Energy Committee of the Aspen Institute organized a conference on resolving the social, political, and institutional conflicts over the permanent siting of radioactive wastes. This book was written as a result of this conference. The chapters provide a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of the governance issues connected with radioactive waste management as well as a sampling of the diverse views of the interested parties. Chapter 1 looks in depth of radioactive waste management in the United States, with special emphasis on the events of the Carter Administration as well as on the issues with which the Reagen administration must deal. Chapter 2 compares waste management policies and programs among the industralized countries. Chapter 3 examines the factional controversies in the last administration and Congress over nuclear waste issues. Chapter 4 examines the complex legal questions involved in the federal-state conflicts over nuclear waste management. Chapter 5 examines the concept of consultation and concurrence from the perspectives of a host state that is a candidate for a repository and an interested state that has special concerns regarding the demonstration of nuclear waste disposal technology. Chapter 6 examines US and European perspectives concerning public participation in nuclear waste management. Chapter 7 discusses propaganda in the issues. The epilogue attempts to assess the prospects for consensus in the United States on national policies for radioactive waste management. All of the chapter in this book should be interpreted as personal assessments

Nuclear waste - the unsolved problem

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boyle, S.

1986-01-01

Nuclear waste is identified and the problems created by reprocessing are mentioned. The disposal option for low, intermediate and high-level radioactive wastes are discussed. Sites where disposal has taken place have been found to be unsatisfactory because of contamination and radionuclide migration. The Nuclear Industry Radioactive Waste Executive (NIREX) is not seen as having any more credibility than the other nuclear authorities involved (BNFL, UKAEA, CEGB). Until an adequate, publically acceptable, method of disposing of the wastes already created has been found the author states that no more should be created. (U.K.)

YUCCA MOUNTAIN SITE DESCRIPTION

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simmons, A.M.

2004-01-01

The ''Yucca Mountain Site Description'' summarizes, in a single document, the current state of knowledge and understanding of the natural system at Yucca Mountain. It describes the geology; geochemistry; past, present, and projected future climate; regional hydrologic system; and flow and transport within the unsaturated and saturated zones at the site. In addition, it discusses factors affecting radionuclide transport, the effect of thermal loading on the natural system, and tectonic hazards. The ''Yucca Mountain Site Description'' is broad in nature. It summarizes investigations carried out as part of the Yucca Mountain Project since 1988, but it also includes work done at the site in earlier years, as well as studies performed by others. The document has been prepared under the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management quality assurance program for the Yucca Mountain Project. Yucca Mountain is located in Nye County in southern Nevada. The site lies in the north-central part of the Basin and Range physiographic province, within the northernmost subprovince commonly referred to as the Great Basin. The basin and range physiography reflects the extensional tectonic regime that has affected the region during the middle and late Cenozoic Era. Yucca Mountain was initially selected for characterization, in part, because of its thick unsaturated zone, its arid to semiarid climate, and the existence of a rock type that would support excavation of stable openings. In 1987, the United States Congress directed that Yucca Mountain be the only site characterized to evaluate its suitability for development of a geologic repository for high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel

Prospects of nuclear waste management and radioactive waste management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koprda, V.

2015-01-01

The policy of radioactive waste management in the Slovak Republic is based on the principles defined by law on the National Nuclear Fund (NJF) and sets basic objectives: 1 Safe and reliable nuclear decommissioning; 2 The minimization of radioactive waste; 3. Selection of a suitable fuel cycle; 4 Safe storage of radioactive waste (RAW) 5 Security chain management of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel (SNF); 6 Nuclear safety; 7 The application of a graduated approach; 8 Respect of the principle 'a polluter pays'; 9 Objective decision-making process; 10 Responsibility. In connection with the above objectives, it appears necessary to build required facilities that are listed in this article.

Yucca Mountain Biological Resources Monitoring Program. Progress report, October 1992--December 1993

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-05-01

The US Department of Energy (DOE) is required by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of (as amended in 1987) to study and characterize the suitability of Yucca Mountain as a potential geologic repository for high-level nuclear waste. During site characterization, the DOE will conduct a variety of geotechnical, geochemical, geological, and hydrological studies to determine the suitability of Yucca Mountain as a potential repository. To ensure that site characterization activities do not adversely affect the environment at Yucca Mountain, a program has been implemented to monitor and mitigate potential impacts and ensure activities comply with applicable environmental regulations. This report describes the activities and accomplishments of EG ampersand G Energy Measurements, Inc. (EG ampersand G/EM) from October 1992 through December 1993 for six program areas within the Terrestrial Ecosystem component of the environmental program for the Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project (YMP): Site Characterization Effects, Desert Tortoises (Gopherus agassizii), Habitat Reclamation, Monitoring and Mitigation, Radiological Monitoring, and Biological Support

Yucca Mountain Biological Resources Monitoring Program. Progress report, January 1994--December 1994

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-07-01

The US Department of Energy (DOE) is required by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (as amended in 1987) to study and characterize the suitability of Yucca Mountain as a potential geological repository for high-level nuclear waste. During site characterization, the DOE will conduct a variety of geotechnical, geochemical, geological, and hydrological studies to determine the suitability of Yucca Mountain as a potential repository. To ensure that site characterization activities do not adversely affect the environment at Yucca Mountain, a program has been implemented to monitor and mitigate potential impacts and ensure activities comply with applicable environmental regulations. This report describes the activities and accomplishments of EG and G Energy Measurements, Inc. (EG and G/EM) from January 1994 through December 1994 for six program areas within the Terrestrial Ecosystem component of the environmental program for the Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project (YMP): Site Characterization Effects, Desert Tortoises (Gopherus agassizii), Habitat Reclamation, Monitoring and Mitigation, Radiological Monitoring, and Biological Support

Cost Comparison for the Transfer of Select Calcined Waste Canisters to the Monitored Geologic Repository at Yucca Mountain, NV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Michael B. Heiser; Clark B. Millet

2005-01-01

This report performs a life-cycle cost comparison of three proposed canister designs for the shipment and disposition of Idaho National Laboratory high-level calcined waste currently in storage at the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center to the proposed national monitored geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Concept A (2 x 10-ft) and Concept B (2 x 15-ft) canisters are comparable in design, but they differ in size and waste loading options and vary proportionally in weight. The Concept C (5.5 x 17.5-ft) canister (also called the ''super canister''), while similar in design to the other canisters, is considerably larger and heavier than Concept A and B canisters and has a greater wall thickness. This report includes estimating the unique life-cycle costs for the three canister designs. Unique life-cycle costs include elements such as canister purchase and filling at the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center, cask preparation and roundtrip consignment costs, final disposition in the monitored geologic repository (including canister off-loading and placement in the final waste disposal package for disposition), and cask purchase. Packaging of the calcine ''as-is'' would save $2.9 to $3.9 billion over direct vitrification disposal in the proposed national monitored geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Using the larger Concept C canisters would use 0.75 mi less of tunnel space, cost $1.3 billion less than 10-ft canisters of Concept A, and would be complete in 6.2 years

Mineralogy and clinoptilolite K/Ar results from Yucca Mountain, Nevada, USA: A potential high-level radioactive waste repository site

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

WoldeGabriel, G.; Broxton, D.E.; Bish, D.L.; Chipera, S.J.

1993-11-01

The Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project is investigating Yucca Mountain, Nevada, as a potential site for a high-level nuclear waste repository. An important aspect of this evaluation is to understand the geologic history of the site including the diagenetic processes that are largely responsible for the present-day chemical and physical properties of the altered tuffs. This study evaluates the use of K/Ar geochronology in determining the alteration history of the zeolitized portions of Miocene tuffs at Yucca Mountain. Clinoptilolite is not generally regarded as suitable for dating because of its open structure and large ion-exchange capacity. However, it is the most abundant zeolite at Yucca Mountain and was selected for this study to assess the feasibility of dating the zeolitization process and/or subsequent processes that may have affected the zeolites. In this study we examine the ability of this mineral to retain all or part of its K and radiogenic Ar during diagenesis and evaluate the usefulness of the clinoptilolite K/Ar dates for determining the history of alteration

A conceptual subsurface facility design for a high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McKenzie, D.G., III; Bhattacharyya, K.K.; Segrest, A.M.

1996-01-01

The US Department of Energy is responsible for the design, construction, operation and closure of a repository in which to permanently dispose of the nation's high level nuclear waste. In addition to the objective of safely isolating the waste inventory, the repository must provide a safe working environment for its workforce, and protect the public. The conceptual design for this facility is currently being developed. Tunnel Boring Machine will be used to excavate 228 kilometers of tunneling to construct the facility over a 30 year period. The excavation operations will be physically separated from the waste emplacement operations, and each operation will have its own dedicated ventilation system. The facility is being designed to remain open for 150 years

Storage - Nuclear wastes are overflowing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dupin, Ludovic

2016-01-01

This article highlights that the dismantling of French nuclear installations will generate huge volumes of radioactive wastes and that France may lack space to store them. The Cigeo project (underground storage) only concerns 0.2 per cent of the nuclear waste volume produced by France in 50 years. If storage solutions exist for less active wastes, they will soon be insufficient, notably because of the quantity of wastes produced by the dismantling of existing reactors and fuel processing plants. Different assessments of these volumes are evoked. In order to store them, the ANDRA made a second call for innovating projects which would enable a reduction of this volume by 20 to 30 per cent. The article also evokes projects selected after the first call for projects. They mainly focus on nuclear waste characterization which will result in a finer management of wastes regarding their storage destination. Cost issues and the opposition of anti-nuclear NGOs are still obstacles to the development of new sites

REMOTE MATERIAL HANDLING IN THE YUCCA MOUNTAIN WASTE PACKAGE CLOSURE CELL AND SUPPORT AREA GLOVEBOX

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

K.M. Croft; S.M. Allen; M.W. Borland

2005-01-01

The Yucca Mountain Waste Package Closure System (WPCS) cells provide for shielding of highly radioactive materials contained in unsealed waste packages. The purpose of the cells is to provide safe environments for package handling and sealing operations. Once sealed, the packages are placed in the Yucca Mountain Repository. Closure of a typical waste package involves a number of remote operations. Those involved typically include the placement of matched lids onto the waste package. The lids are then individually sealed to the waste package by welding. Currently, the waste package includes three lids. One lid is placed before movement of the waste package to the closure cell; the final two are placed inside the closure cell, where they are welded to the waste package. These and other important operations require considerable remote material handling within the cell environment. This paper discusses the remote material handling equipment, designs, functions, operations, and maintenance, relative to waste package closure

Attitudes of the public about nuclear wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rankin, W.L.; Nealey, S.M.

1978-01-01

The disposal of nuclear wastes has become an important public issue in the past few years. In 1960, only a very small percentage of the American public questioned the safety of waste disposal methods, and no one opposed nuclear power for waste disposal reasons. By 1974, however, a slight majority of the public believed that the disposal of nuclear wastes was a serious problem associated with nuclear power, and from 1975 on, a small percentage of the public has opposed nuclear power for waste disposal reasons. More individuals believe that the technology is not available for acceptable waste management compared to the number of individuals who believe that the technology does exist. However, a majority of the public believe that modern technology can solve the waste disposal problem. Finally, nuclear technologists evaluate waste disposal problems differently from other groups. For instance, nuclear technologists believe that short-term safety is more important than long-term safety regarding waste disposal, while other groups, especially environmentalists, believe that long-term safety is more important than short-term safety. Nuclear technologists are willing to accept a higher level of waste management-related risk than other groups and evaluate waste disposal problems as being less severe than other societal problems

Science, Society, and America's Nuclear Waste: Nuclear Waste, Unit 1. Teacher Guide. Second Edition.

Science.gov (United States)

Department of Energy, Washington, DC. Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, Washington, DC.

This guide is Unit 1 of the four-part series Science, Society, and America's Nuclear Waste produced by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management. The goal of this unit is to help students establish the relevance of the topic of nuclear waste to their everyday lives and activities. Particular attention is…

Science, Society, and America's Nuclear Waste: The Nuclear Waste Policy Act, Unit 3. Teacher Guide. Second Edition.

Science.gov (United States)

Department of Energy, Washington, DC. Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, Washington, DC.

This guide is Unit 3 of the four-part series, Science, Society, and America's Nuclear Waste, produced by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management. The goal of this unit is to identify the key elements of the United States' nuclear waste dilemma and introduce the Nuclear Waste Policy Act and the role of the…

Release modes and processes relevant to source-term calculations at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Apted, M.J.

1994-01-01

The feasibility of permanent disposal of radioactive high-level waste (HLW) in repositories located in deep geologic formations is being studied world-wide. The most credible release pathway is interaction between groundwater and nuclear waste forms, followed by migration of radionuclide-bearing groundwater to the accessible environment. Under hydrologically unsaturated conditions, vapor transport of volatile radionuclides is also possible. The near-field encompasses the waste packages composed of engineered barriers (e.g. man-made materials, such as vitrified waste forms, corrosion-resistant containers), while the far-field includes the natural barriers (e.g. host rock, hydrologic setting). Taken together, these two subsystems define a series of multiple, redundant barriers that act to assure the safe isolation of nuclear waste. In the U.S., the Department of energy (DOE) is investigating the feasibility of safe, long-term disposal of high-level nuclear waste at the Yucca Mountain site in Nevada. The proposed repository horizon is located in non-welded tuffs within the unsaturated zone (i.e. above the water table) at Yucca Mountain. The purpose of this paper is to describe the source-term models for radionuclide release from waste packages at Yucca Mountain site. The first section describes the conceptual release modes that are relevant for this site and waste package design, based on a consideration of the performance of currently proposed engineered barriers under expected and unexpected conditions. No attempt is made to asses the reasonableness nor probability of occurrence for any specific release mode. The following section reviews the waste-form characteristics that are required to model and constrain the release of radionuclides from the waste package. The next section present mathematical models for the conceptual release modes, selected from those that have been implemented into a probabilistic total system assessment code developed for the Electric Power

The use of performance assessments in Yucca Mountain repository waste package design activities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jardine, L.J.

1990-01-01

The Yucca Mountain Project is developing performance assessment approaches as part of the evaluations of the suitability of Yucca Mountain as a repository site. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is developing design concepts and the scientific performance assessment methodologies and techniques used for the waste package and engineered barrier system components. This paper presents an overview of the approach under development for postclosure performance assessments that will guide the conceptual design activities and assist in the site suitability evaluations. This approach includes establishing and modeling for the long time periods required by regulations: near-field environment characteristics surrounding the emplaced wastes; container materials performance responses; and waste form properties. All technical work is being done under a fully qualified quality assurance program

[Rocky Mountain regional low-level waste compact development and establishment of disposals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-01-01

This Compact Issue Study was intended to determine if state institutions in the Rocky Mountain region could reduce low-level radioactive waste shipping and disposal costs through jointly shipping their low-level radioactive wastes. Public institutions in the state of Colorado were used as a test case for this study

Swedish nuclear waste efforts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rydberg, J.

1981-09-01

After the introduction of a law prohibiting the start-up of any new nuclear power plant until the utility had shown that the waste produced by the plant could be taken care of in an absolutely safe way, the Swedish nuclear utilities in December 1976 embarked on the Nuclear Fuel Safety Project, which in November 1977 presented a first report, Handling of Spent Nuclear Fuel and Final Storage of Vitrified Waste (KBS-I), and in November 1978 a second report, Handling and Final Storage of Unreprocessed Spent Nuclear Fuel (KBS II). These summary reports were supported by 120 technical reports prepared by 450 experts. The project engaged 70 private and governmental institutions at a total cost of US $15 million. The KBS-I and KBS-II reports are summarized in this document, as are also continued waste research efforts carried out by KBS, SKBF, PRAV, ASEA and other Swedish organizations. The KBS reports describe all steps (except reprocessing) in handling chain from removal from a reactor of spent fuel elements until their radioactive waste products are finally disposed of, in canisters, in an underground granite depository. The KBS concept relies on engineered multibarrier systems in combination with final storage in thoroughly investigated stable geologic formations. This report also briefly describes other activities carried out by the nuclear industry, namely, the construction of a central storage facility for spent fuel elements (to be in operation by 1985), a repository for reactor waste (to be in operation by 1988), and an intermediate storage facility for vitrified high-level waste (to be in operation by 1990). The R and D activities are updated to September 1981

The political challenges of nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Andren, Mats; Strandberg, Urban

2005-01-01

This anthology is made up of nine essays on the nuclear waste issue, both its political, social and technical aspects, with the aim to create a platform for debate and planning of research. The contributions are titled: 'From clean energy to dangerous waste - the regulatory management of nuclear power in the Swedish welfare society. An economic-historic review , 'The course of the high-level waste into the national political arena', 'The technical principles behind the Swedish repository for spent fuels', 'Waste, legitimacy and local citizenship', 'Nuclear issues in societal planning', 'Usefulness or riddance - transmutation or just disposal?', 'National nuclear fuel policy in an European Union?', 'Conclusion - the challenges of the nuclear waste issue', 'Final words - about the need for critical debate and multi-disciplinary research'

Nuclear chemistry research for the safe disposal of nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fanghaenel, Thomas

2011-01-01

The safe disposal of high-level nuclear waste and spent nuclear fuel is of key importance for the future sustainable development of nuclear energy. Concepts foresee the isolation of the nuclear waste in deep geological formations. The long-term radiotoxicity of nuclear waste is dominated by plutonium and the minor actinides. Hence it is essential for the performance assessment of a nuclear waste disposal to understand the chemical behaviour of actinides in a repository system. The aqueous chemistry and thermodynamics of actinides is rather complex in particular due to their very rich redox chemistry. Recent results of our detailed study of the Plutonium and Neptunium redox - and complexation behaviour are presented and discussed. (author)

High level nuclear wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lopez Perez, B.

1987-01-01

The transformations involved in the nuclear fuels during the burn-up at the power nuclear reactors for burn-up levels of 33.000 MWd/th are considered. Graphs and data on the radioactivity variation with the cooling time and heat power of the irradiated fuel are presented. Likewise, the cycle of the fuel in light water reactors is presented and the alternatives for the nuclear waste management are discussed. A brief description of the management of the spent fuel as a high level nuclear waste is shown, explaining the reprocessing and giving data about the fission products and their radioactivities, which must be considered on the vitrification processes. On the final storage of the nuclear waste into depth geological burials, both alternatives are coincident. The countries supporting the reprocessing are indicated and the Spanish programm defined in the Plan Energetico Nacional (PEN) is shortly reviewed. (author) 8 figs., 4 tabs

Use of One-On Analysis to Evaluate Total System Performance of the Proposed Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saulnier, G.J. Jr.; Lee, K.P.; Mehta, S.; Sevougian, S.D.; Kalinich, D.; McNeish, J.A.

2002-01-01

The Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project is currently evaluating the future performance of the proposed U.S. high-level nuclear waste repository. Using the Total System Performance Assessment (TSPA) model, a stylized analysis was conducted to evaluate the relative importance of natural and engineered barriers to movement of radionuclides from the proposed repository. These stylized ''one-on'' analyses consist of sequentially adding features, components, and processes, associated with the natural and engineered barriers, incorporated within the TSPA model and evaluating the effect of these elements on repository performance, as measured by the total mean annual dose to a reasonably maximally exposed individual. The analyses are ''stylized'' in the sense that they are performed to gain insight only. They are not meant to represent a real physical system in most cases, and in some cases allow the TSPA model to simulate results using parameter ranges outside the normal bounds of the TSPA model. In particular, the analyses provide insight into the relative contributions of repository features and processes in a way that is not possible using the full TSPA performance-assessment model. For example, in the nominal scenario of the TSPA model, the contribution of the natural system is masked by the contribution of the engineered system

Yucca Mountain biological resources monitoring program; Annual report FY92

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1993-02-01

The US Department of Energy (DOE) is required by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (as amended in 1987) to study and characterize Yucca Mountain as a potential site for a geologic repository for high-level nuclear waste. During site characterization, the DOE will conduct a variety of geotechnical, geochemical, geological, and hydrological studies to determine the suitability of Yucca Mountain as a potential repository. To ensure that site characterization activities (SCA) do not adversely affect the environment at Yucca Mountain, an environmental program has been implemented to monitor and mitigate potential impacts and ensure activities comply with applicable environmental regulations. This report describes the activities and accomplishments of EG&G Energy Measurements, Inc. (EG&G/EM) during fiscal year 1992 (FY92) for six program areas within the Terrestrial Ecosystem component of the YMP environmental program. The six program areas are Site Characterization Effects, Desert Tortoises, Habitat Reclamation, Monitoring and Mitigation, Radiological Monitoring, and Biological Support.

Report of the State of Nevada Commission on Nuclear Projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-11-01

Chapter One of the report presents a brief overview of the commission's functions and statutory charges. It also contains a summary of developments which have affected the overall nuclear waste disposal issue since the last Commission report was published. This chapter summarizes the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987 (NWPAA), which significantly modified federal waste disposal policy and identified Nevada's Yucca Mountain as the only site to be evaluated for suitability as a nuclear waste repository. Chapter Two contains a synthesis of Commission activities and reports on the findings of the Commission relative to the geotechnical, environmental, socioeconomic, transportation, intergovernmental and legal aspects of federal and state nuclear waste program efforts. Chapter Three of the report presents recommendations which the Commission is making to the 1989 Nevada Legislature, the governor, and others concerned with matters surrounding the proposed high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain and with repository-related activities, such as the transportation of radioactive materials

Pre-construction geologic section along the cross drift through the potential high-level radioactive waste repository, Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Potter, C.J.; Day, W.C.; Sweetkind, D.S.; Juan, C.S.; Drake, R.M. II

1998-01-01

As part of the Site Characterization effort for the US Department of Energy's Yucca Mountain Project, tunnels excavated by tunnel boring machines provide access to the volume of rock that is under consideration for possible underground storage of high-level nuclear waste beneath Yucca Mountain, Nevada. The Exploratory Studies Facility, a 7.8-km-long, 7.6-m-diameter tunnel, has been excavated, and a 2.8-km-long, 5-m-diameter Cross Drift will be excavated in 1998 as part of the geologic, hydrologic and geotechnical evaluation of the potential repository. The southwest-trending Cross Drift branches off of the north ramp of the horseshoe-shaped Exploratory Studies Facility. This report summarizes an interpretive geologic section that was prepared for the Yucca Mountain Project as a tool for use in the design and construction of the Cross Drift

Waste package performance in unsaturated rock

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pigford, T.H.; Lee, W.W.-L.

1989-03-01

The unsaturated rock and near-atmospheric pressure of the potential nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain present new problems of predicting waste package performance. In this paper we present some illustrations of predictions of waste package performance and discuss important data needs. 11 refs., 9 figs., 1 tab

Nuclear waste and nuclear ethics. Societal and ethical aspects of retrievable storage of nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Damveld, H.; Van den Berg, R.J.

2000-01-01

The aim of the literature study on the title subject is to provide information to researchers, engineers, decision makers, administrators, and the public in the Netherlands on the subject of retrievable storage of nuclear waste, mainly from nuclear power plants. Conclusions and recommendations are formulated with respect to retrievability and ethics, sustainability, risk assessment, information transfer, environmental impacts, and discussions on radioactive waste storage. 170 refs

Recent Developments in Nuclear Waste Management in Canada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

King, F.

2002-01-01

This paper describes recent developments in the field of nuclear waste management in Canada with a focus on management of nuclear fuel waste. Of particular significance is the April 2001 tabling in the Canadian House of Commons of Bill C-27, An Act respecting the long-term management of nuclear fuel waste. At the time of finalizing this paper (January 15, 2002), Bill C-27 is in Third Reading in the House of Commons and is expected to move to the Senate in February. The Nuclear Fuel Waste Act is expected to come into force later in 2002. This Act requires the three nuclear utilities in Canada owning nuclear fuel waste to form a waste management organization and deposit funds into a segregated fund for nuclear fuel waste long-term management. The waste management organization is then required to perform a study of long-term management approaches for nuclear fuel waste and submit the study to the federal government within three years. The federal government will select an approach for implementation by the waste management organization. The paper discusses the activities that the nuclear fuel waste owners currently have underway to prepare for the formation of the waste management organization. As background, the paper reviews the status of interim storage of nuclear fuel waste in Canada, and describes previous initiatives related to the development of a national strategy for nuclear fuel waste long-term management

Spotlight back on LHW with Yucca Mountain on Trump's horizon

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shepherd, John [nuclear 24, St George' s Redditch (United Kingdom)

2017-08-15

After years of argument and delay could the US be edging closer to resurrecting proposals to build a national repository for high level nuclear waste (HLW) at Yucca Mountain in Nevada? The federal government has looked at the site with a view to establishing a repository since the 1970s. However, after pouring billions of dollars into projects and studies over the decades, the project remained bogged down in legal battles and opposition from politicians and pressure groups. Now, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said it had directed its staff to use the equivalent of about EUR 95,000 from the national Nuclear Waste Fund on ''information-gathering activities'' that could pave the way for resuming a licensing review of Yucca Mountain as a potential deep geologic repository (DGR).

Nuclear waste management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodger, W.A.

1985-01-01

Most of our activities have always produced waste products of one sort or another. Huxley gives a humorous account of wastes throughout antiquity. So it should come as no surprise that some radioactive materials end up as waste products requiring management and disposal. Public perception of nuclear waste hazards places them much higher on the ''worry scale'' than is justified by the actual hazard involved. While the public perception of these hazards appears to revolve mostly around high-level wastes, there are several other categories of wastes that must also be controlled and managed. The major sources of radioactive wastes are discussed

Nuclear waste. Storage at Vaalputs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1984-01-01

The Vaalputs nuclear waste dump site in Namaqualand is likely to be used to store used fuel from Koeberg, as well as low and intermediate waste. It is argued that Vaalputs is the most suitable site in the world for the disposal of nuclear waste. The Vaalputs site is sparsely populated, there are no mineral deposits of any value, the agricultural potential is minimal. It is a typical semi-desert area. Geologically it lend itself towards the ground-storage of used nuclear fuel

SUMO, System performance assessment for a high-level nuclear waste repository: Mathematical models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eslinger, P.W.; Miley, T.B.; Engel, D.W.; Chamberlain, P.J. II.

1992-09-01

Following completion of the preliminary risk assessment of the potential Yucca Mountain Site by Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) in 1988, the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) of the US Department of Energy (DOE) requested the Performance Assessment Scientific Support (PASS) Program at PNL to develop an integrated system model and computer code that provides performance and risk assessment analysis capabilities for a potential high-level nuclear waste repository. The system model that has been developed addresses the cumulative radionuclide release criteria established by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and estimates population risks in terms of dose to humans. The system model embodied in the SUMO (System Unsaturated Model) code will also allow benchmarking of other models being developed for the Yucca Mountain Project. The system model has three natural divisions: (1) source term, (2) far-field transport, and (3) dose to humans. This document gives a detailed description of the mathematics of each of these three divisions. Each of the governing equations employed is based on modeling assumptions that are widely accepted within the scientific community

Nuclear waste management, reactor decommisioning, nuclear liability and public attitudes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Green, R.E.

1982-01-01

This paper deals with several issues that are frequently raised by the public in any discussion of nuclear energy, and explores some aspects of public attitudes towards nuclear-related activities. The characteristics of the three types of waste associated with the nuclear fuel cycle, i.e. mine/mill tailings, reactor wastes and nuclear fuel wastes, are defined, and the methods currently being proposed for their safe handling and disposal are outlined. The activities associated with reactor decommissioning are also described, as well as the Canadian approach to nuclear liability. The costs associated with nuclear waste management, reactor decommissioning and nuclear liability are also discussed. Finally, the issue of public attitudes towards nuclear energy is addressed. It is concluded that a simple and comprehensive information program is needed to overcome many of the misconceptions that exist about nuclear energy and to provide the public with a more balanced information base on which to make decisions

Nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-01-01

Each year, nuclear power plants, businesses, hospitals, and universities generate more than 1 million cubic feet of hardware, rags, paper, liquid waste, and protective clothing that have been contaminated with radioactivity. While most of this waste has been disposed of in facilities in Nevada, South Carolina, and Washington state, recent legislation made the states responsible - either individually, or through groups of states called compacts - for developing new disposal facilities. This paper discusses the states' progress and problems in meeting facility development milestones in the law, federal and state efforts to resolve issues related to mixed waste (low-level waste that also contains hazardous chemicals) and waste with very low levels of radioactivity, and the Department of Energy's progress in discharging the federal government's responsibility under the law to manage the most hazardous low-level waste

Nuclear waste: The 10,000-year challenge

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dolan, E.F.; Scariano, M.M.

1993-01-01

Treatment, storage, and disposal of nuclear waste has a long history and presents immediate issues to be resolved. This book attempts to inform a broadly based readership of the complexities of nuclear waste management by summarizing (1) physics of radioactive energy; (2) its potential health and environmental effects; and (3) the treatment, storage, and disposal options for different types of radioactive waste. However, the longest section in the book deals with DOE's plans for transportation and permanent storage of nuclear powerplant wastes under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982. The book's presentation of the problem of nuclear waste is uncritical and based primarily on dramatic anecdotes and confidently worded DOE documents

YUCCA MOUNTAIN SITE DESCRIPTION

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A.M. Simmons

2004-04-16

The ''Yucca Mountain Site Description'' summarizes, in a single document, the current state of knowledge and understanding of the natural system at Yucca Mountain. It describes the geology; geochemistry; past, present, and projected future climate; regional hydrologic system; and flow and transport within the unsaturated and saturated zones at the site. In addition, it discusses factors affecting radionuclide transport, the effect of thermal loading on the natural system, and tectonic hazards. The ''Yucca Mountain Site Description'' is broad in nature. It summarizes investigations carried out as part of the Yucca Mountain Project since 1988, but it also includes work done at the site in earlier years, as well as studies performed by others. The document has been prepared under the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management quality assurance program for the Yucca Mountain Project. Yucca Mountain is located in Nye County in southern Nevada. The site lies in the north-central part of the Basin and Range physiographic province, within the northernmost subprovince commonly referred to as the Great Basin. The basin and range physiography reflects the extensional tectonic regime that has affected the region during the middle and late Cenozoic Era. Yucca Mountain was initially selected for characterization, in part, because of its thick unsaturated zone, its arid to semiarid climate, and the existence of a rock type that would support excavation of stable openings. In 1987, the United States Congress directed that Yucca Mountain be the only site characterized to evaluate its suitability for development of a geologic repository for high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel.

Safeguards on nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crawford, D.W.

1995-01-01

Safeguards and security policies within the Department of Energy (DOE) have been implemented in a graded fashion for the protection, control and accountability of nuclear materials. This graded philosophy has meant that safeguards on low-equity nuclear materials, typically considered of low diversion attractiveness such as waste, has been relegated to minimal controls. This philosophy has been and remains today an acceptable approach for the planning and implementation of safeguards on this material. Nuclear waste protection policy and guidance have been issued due to a lack of clear policy and guidance on the identification and implementation of safeguards controls on waste. However, there are issues related to safe-guarding waste that need to be clarified. These issues primarily stem from increased budgetary and resource pressures to remove materials from safeguards. Finally, there may be an unclear understanding, as to the scope and content of vulnerability assessments required prior to terminating safeguards on waste and other discardable materials and where the authority should lie within the Department for making decisions regarding safeguards termination. This paper examines these issues and the technical basis for Departmental policy for terminating safeguards on waste

The safety and environmental impact of nuclear wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luo Shanggeng

2001-01-01

Radioactive matters were discovered in 1989. Exploitation and using of nuclear energy and nuclear technologies bring mankind huge benefits, but the disposal of radioactive wastes is becoming one of the safety and environmental problems. The author describes six issues related to nuclear wastes. They are as follows: (1) The origin and characteristics of the nuclear wastes; (2) The principles of management of nuclear wastes established by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as well as the Chinese '40 words principles' and the major tasks of Chinese nuclear waste management; (3) The treatment and disposal technologies of nuclear wastes and the emphasis on new technologies, waste minimization and exemption and clean release; (4) The safety management of spent radiation sources including technical and administrative measures; (5) The safety management of spent nuclear fuel and the emphasis on high level radioactive wastes to be safety disposed of; (6) The environmental impact of nuclear waste. The author takes the Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant and the Daya bay Nuclear Power Plant I, China, as two examples to prove that nuclear wastes can be safely controlled and managed to ensure environmental safety. The Chinese north-west disposal land of nuclear wastes under operation recently is also discussed. It is believed that the suggested disposal land can ensure the isolation of radioactive wastes and the surrounding environment according to the present standards. The north-west disposal land and the Beilong disposal land, Guangdong province, China, are built according to the international standard and advanced technologies

Nuclear fuel waste policy in Canada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brown, P.A.; Letourneau, C.

1999-01-01

The 1996 Policy Framework for Radioactive Waste established the approach in Canada for dealing with all radioactive waste, and defined the respective roles of Government and waste producers and owners. The Policy Framework sets the stage for the development of institutional and financial arrangements to implement long-term waste management solutions in a safe, environmentally sound, comprehensive, cost-effective and integrated manner. For nuclear fuel waste, a 10-year environmental review of the concept to bury nuclear fuel waste bundles at a depth of 500 m to 1000 m in stable rock of the Canadian Shield was completed in March 1998. The Review Panel found that while the concept was technically safe, it did not have the required level of public acceptability to be adopted at this time as Canada's approach for managing its nuclear fuel waste. The Panel recommended that a Waste Management Organization be established at arm's length from the nuclear industry, entirely funded by the waste producers and owners, and that it be subject to oversight by the Government. In its December 1998 Response to the Review Panel, the Government of Canada provided policy direction for the next steps towards developing Canada's approach for the long-term management of nuclear fuel waste. The Government chose to maintain the responsibility for long-term management of nuclear fuel waste close with the producers and owners of the waste. This is consistent with its 1996 Policy Framework for Radioactive Waste. This approach is also consistent with experience in many countries. In addition, the federal government identified the need for credible federal oversight. Cabinet directed the Minister of NRCan to consult with stakeholders, including the public, and return to ministers within 12 months with recommendations on means to implement federal oversight. (author)

Nuclear waste solutions

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Darrel D.; Ebra, Martha A.

1987-01-01

High efficiency removal of technetium values from a nuclear waste stream is achieved by addition to the waste stream of a precipitant contributing tetraphenylphosphonium cation, such that a substantial portion of the technetium values are precipitated as an insoluble pertechnetate salt.

Can we talk? Communications management for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, a complex nuclear waste management project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goldstein, S.A.; Pullen, G.M.; Brewer, D.R.

1995-01-01

Sandia Nuclear Waste Management Program is pursuing for DOE an option for permanently disposing radioactive waste in deep geologic repositories. Included in the Program are the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) Project for US defense program mixed waste the Yucca Mountain Project (YMP) for spent power reactor fuel and vitrified high-level waste, projects for other waste types, and development efforts in environmental decision support technologies. WIPP and YMP are in the public arena, of a controversial nature, and provide significant management challenges. Both projects have large project teams, multiple organization participants, large budgets, long durations, are very complex, have a high degree of programmatic risk, and operate in an extremely regulated environment requiring legal defensibility. For environmental projects like these to succeed, SNL's Program is utilizing nearly all areas in PMI's Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) to manage along multiple project dimensions such as the physical sciences (e.g., geophysics and geochemistry; performance assessment; decision analysis) management sciences (controlling the triple constraint of performance, cost and schedule), and social sciences (belief systems; public participation; institutional politics). This discussion focuses primarily on communication challenges active on WIPP. How is the WIPP team meeting the challenges of managing communications?'' and ''How are you approaching similar challenges?'' will be questions for a dialog with the audience

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1988-01-01

Chapter six describes the basis for facility design, the completed facility conceptual design, the completed analytical work relating to the resolution of design issues, and future design-related work. The basis for design and the conceptual design information presented in this chapter meet the requirements of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, for a conceptual repository design that takes into account site-specific requirements. This information is presented to permit a critical evaluation of planned site characterization activities. Chapter seven describes waste package components, emplacement environment, design, and status of research and development that support the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigation (NNWSI) Project. The site characterization plan (SCP) discussion of waste package components is contained entirely within this chapter. The discussion of emplacement environment in this chapter is limited to considerations of the environment that influence, or which may influence, if perturbed, the waste packages and their performance (particularly hydrogeology, geochemistry, and borehole stability). The basis for conceptual waste package design as well as a description of the design is included in this chapter. The complete design will be reported in the advanced conceptual design (ACD) report and is not duplicated in the SCP. 367 refs., 173 figs., 68 tabs.

Site characterization plan: Yucca Mountain site, Nevada research and development area, Nevada: Consultation draft, Nuclear Waste Policy Act

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-01-01

Chapter six describes the basis for facility design, the completed facility conceptual design, the completed analytical work relating to the resolution of design issues, and future design-related work. The basis for design and the conceptual design information presented in this chapter meet the requiremenrs of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, for a conceptual repository design that takes into account site-specific requirements. This information is presented to permit a critical evaluation of planned site characterization activities. Chapter seven describes waste package components, emplacement environment, design, and status of research and development that support the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigation (NNWSI) Project. The site characterization plan (SCP) discussion of waste package components is contained entirely within this chapter. The discussion of emplacement environment in this chapter is limited to considerations of the environment that influence, or which may influence, if perturbed, the waste packages and their performance (particularly hydrogeology, geochemistry, and borehole stability). The basis for conceptual waste package design as well as a description of the design is included in this chapter. The complete design will be reported in the advanced conceptual design (ACD) report and is not duplicated in the SCP. 367 refs., 173 figs., 68 tabs

The status of Yucca Mountain site characterization activities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gertz, Carl P.; Larkin, Erin L.; Hamner, Melissa

1992-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) is continuing its studies to determine if Yucca Mountain, Nevada, can safely isolate high-level nuclear waste for the next ten thousand years. As mandated by Congress in 1987, DOE is studying the rocks, the climate, and the water table at Yucca Mountain to ensure that the site is suitable before building a repository adopt 305 meters below the surface. Yucca Mountain, located 160.9 kilometers northwest of Las Vegas, lies on the western edge of the Nevada Test Site. Nevada and DOE have been in litigation over environmental permits needed to conduct studies, but recent court decisions have allowed limited new work to begin. This paper will examine progress made on the Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project (YMP) during 1991 and continuing into 1992, discuss the complex legal issues and describe new site drilling work. Design work on the underground exploratory studies facility (ESF) will also be discussed. (author)

Challenges and issues with building a potential railroad to Yucca Mountain

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sweeney, R.L.

2004-07-01

On July 23, 2002, the President of the United States signed into law a joint resolution of the United States Congress designating the Yucca Mountain site in Nye County, Nevada, for development as a geologic repository for the disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. If the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission authorizes construction of the repository and receipt and possession of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive at Yucca Mountain, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) would be responsible for transporting these materials to the Yucca Mountain repository as part of its obligation under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act. Part of the site recommendation decision included the analysis of a nation-wide shipping campaign to the proposed repository site. The Final Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada'' (February 2002) (Repository EIS) evaluated the potential impacts of the transportation of 70,000 Metric Tons of Heavy Metal spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste from 77 locations around the nation to the potential repository in Nevada over a 24 year shipping campaign. DOE believes that the Repository EIS provides the environmental impact information necessary to make certain broad transportation-related decisions, namely the choice of a national mode of transportation outside Nevada (mostly rail or mostly legal-weight truck), the choice among alternative transportation modes in Nevada (mostly rail, mostly legal-weight truck, or heavy-haul truck with use of an associated intermodal transfer station), and the choice among alternative rail corridors or heavy-haul truck routes with use of an associated intermodal transfer station in Nevada. In the Repository EIS, DOE identified mostly rail as its preferred mode of transportation, both nationally and in the State of Nevada. In December 2003, based

Challenges and issues with building a potential railroad to Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sweeney, R.L.

2004-01-01

On July 23, 2002, the President of the United States signed into law a joint resolution of the United States Congress designating the Yucca Mountain site in Nye County, Nevada, for development as a geologic repository for the disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. If the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission authorizes construction of the repository and receipt and possession of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive at Yucca Mountain, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) would be responsible for transporting these materials to the Yucca Mountain repository as part of its obligation under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act. Part of the site recommendation decision included the analysis of a nation-wide shipping campaign to the proposed repository site. The Final Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada'' (February 2002) (Repository EIS) evaluated the potential impacts of the transportation of 70,000 Metric Tons of Heavy Metal spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste from 77 locations around the nation to the potential repository in Nevada over a 24 year shipping campaign. DOE believes that the Repository EIS provides the environmental impact information necessary to make certain broad transportation-related decisions, namely the choice of a national mode of transportation outside Nevada (mostly rail or mostly legal-weight truck), the choice among alternative transportation modes in Nevada (mostly rail, mostly legal-weight truck, or heavy-haul truck with use of an associated intermodal transfer station), and the choice among alternative rail corridors or heavy-haul truck routes with use of an associated intermodal transfer station in Nevada. In the Repository EIS, DOE identified mostly rail as its preferred mode of transportation, both nationally and in the State of Nevada. In December 2003, based on public

The Proposed Yucca Mountain Repository From A Corrosion Perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

J.H. Payer

2005-01-01

Corrosion is a primary determinant of waste package performance at the proposed Yucca Mountain Repository and will control the delay time for radionuclide transport from the waste package. Corrosion is the most probable and most likely degradation process that will determine when packages will be penetrated and the shape, size, and distribution of those penetrations. The general issues in corrosion science, materials science and electrochemistry are well defined, and the knowledge base is substantial for understanding corrosion processes. In this paper, the Yucca Mountain Repository is viewed from a corrosion perspective. A major component of the long-term strategy for safe disposal of nuclear waste at the Yucca Mountain Repository is first to completely isolate the radionuclides in the waste packages for long times and to greatly retard the egress and transport of radionuclides from penetrated packages. Therefore, long-lived waste packages are important. The corrosion resistance of the waste package outer canister is reviewed, and a framework for the analysis of localized corrosion processes is presented. An overview is presented of the Materials Performance targeted thrust of the U.S. Department of Energy/Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management's Office of Science and Technology and International. The thrust program strives for increased scientific understanding, enhanced process models and advanced technologies for corrosion control

Sedimentary modelling and nuclear-waste disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Loon, A.J.

1982-01-01

Nuclear energy is an important source of energy. Recently a slow down is experienced in its growth rate, due to the following factors: a) the supposed shortage of uranium; b) the fear for the consequences of nuclear accident, and c) the problem of nuclear wastes. Two types of waste are distinguished: a) fission products and actinides, and b) operational waste. The United States have started a program that must lead in 1989 to the first final storage of such waste in salt. Open-pit mines and oil-well drilling are discussed as possible solutions for operational waste storage

Legal aspects of nuclear waste management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hofmann, H.

1981-01-01

The result of the study is that the nuclear waste management defined by sect. 9a of the Atomic Energy Law cannot be realized without violating the constitution or other relevant laws. This evaluation of the nuclear waste management concept is based on an in-depth discussion of technological difficulties involved in nuclear waste management, and on the examination of all existing rules and regulations (Radiation Protection Ordinance, intermediate storage and burial, and reprocessing) at home and abroad, which lead to legal aspects of nuclear waste management which, according to established German law, are to be characterized as being 'unclear'. The author demonstrates especially the lack of precision in law of the term 'radioactive waste'. He points out that a sufficient regulation on the dismantlement of nuclear reactors is missing and he sets forth uncertainties relating to administrative law which are involved in bringing in private companies for burial as it is provided by law. The concluding constitutional assessment of the nuclear waste management regulation of the Atomic Energy Law shows that sect. 9a of the Atomic Energy Law does not meet completely constitutional requirements. (orig./HP) [de

The future of the nuclear wastes and the spent fuels at the United States; Le devenir des dechets nucleaires et des combustibles uses aux Etats-Unis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2006-07-01

The USA regulation distinguishes three classes of nuclear wastes: the low activity wastes under the federal states control, the wastes contaminated by long life radionuclides (transuranic elements) and the high activity wastes. The two last classes are controlled by the DOE (Department of energy). The different classes management are discussed as the DOE obligations towards the operators, the storage project of Yucca Mountain and Private fuel storage of Skull Valley. (A.L.B.)

An introduction to nuclear waste immobilisation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ojovan, M.I.; Lee, W.E.

2005-08-01

Safety and environmental impact is of uppermost concern when dealing with the movement and storage of nuclear waste. The 20 chapters in this book cover all important aspects of immobilisation, from nuclear decay, to regulations, to new technologies and methods. Significant focus is given to the analysis of the various matrices used in transport: cement, bitumen and glass, with the greatest attention being given to glass. The last chapter concentrates on the performance assessment of each matrix, and on new developments of ceramics and glass composite materials, thermochemical methods and in-situ metal matrix immobilisation. The book thoroughly covers all issues surrounding nuclear waste: from where to locate nuclear waste in the environment, through nuclear waste generation and sources, treatment schemes and technologies, immobilisation technologies and waste forms, disposal and long term behaviour. Particular attention is paid to internationally approved and worldwide-applied approaches and technologies

Science, society, and America's nuclear waste: Unit 4, The waste management system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

This is unit 4 (The Waste Management System) in a four-unit secondary curriculum. It is intended to provide information about scientific and societal issues related to the management of spent nuclear fuel from generation of electricity at nuclear powerplants and high-level radioactive waste from US national defense activities. The curriculum, supporting classroom activities, and teaching materials present a brief discussion of energy and electricity generation, including that produced at nuclear powerplants; information on sources, amounts, location, and characteristics of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste; sources, types and effects of radiation; US policy for managing and disposing of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste and what other countries are doing; and the components of the nuclear waste management system

Nuclear waste disposal in space

Science.gov (United States)

Burns, R. E.; Causey, W. E.; Galloway, W. E.; Nelson, R. W.

1978-01-01

Work on nuclear waste disposal in space conducted by the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and contractors are reported. From the aggregate studies, it is concluded that space disposal of nuclear waste is technically feasible.

Salvaging of nuclear waste by nuclear-optical converters

Science.gov (United States)

Karelin, A. V.; Shirokov, R. V.

2007-06-01

In modern conditions of power consumption growing in Russia, apparently, it is difficult to find alternative to further development of nuclear power engineering. The negative party of nuclear power engineering is the spent fuel of nuclear reactors (radioactive waste). The gaseous and fluid radioactive waste furbished of highly active impurity, dumps in atmosphere or pools. The highly active fluid radioactive waste stores by the way of saline concentrates in special tanks in surface layers of ground, above the level of groundwaters. A firm radioactive waste bury in pods from a stainless steel in underground workings, salt deposits, at the bottom of oceans. However this problem can be esteemed in a positive direction, as irradiation is a hard radiation, which one can be used as a power source in nuclear - optical converters with further conversion of optical radiation into the electric power with the help of photoelectric converters. Thus waste at all do not demand special processing and exposure in temporary storehouses. And the electricity can be worked out in a constant mode within many years practically without gang of a stimulus source, if a level of a residual radioactivity and the half-lives of component are high enough.

Waste management considerations in nuclear facility decommissioning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elder, H.K.; Murphy, E.S.

1981-01-01

Decommissioning of nuclear facilities involves the management of significant quantities of radioactive waste. This paper summarizes information on volumes of waste requiring disposal and waste management costs developed in a series of decommissioning studies performed for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission by the Pacific Northwest Laboratory. These studies indicate that waste management is an important cost factor in the decommissioning of nuclear facilities. Alternatives for managing decommissioning wastes are defined and recommendations are made for improvements in waste management practices

Initial studies to assess microbial impacts on nuclear waste disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horn, J.M.; Meike, A.; McCright, R.D.; Economides, B.

1996-01-01

The impacts of the native and introduced bacteria on the performance of geologic nuclear waste disposal facilities should be evaluated because these bacteria could promote corrosion of repository components and alteration of chemical and hydrological properties of the surrounding engineered and rock barriers. As a first step towards investigating these potentialities, native and introduced bacteria obtained from post-construction Yucca Mountain (YM) rock were isolated under varying conditions, including elevated temperature, low nutrient availability, and the absence of available oxygen. Individual isolates are being screened for activities associated with microbially induced corrosion of metals (MIC). Preliminary determination of growth rates of whole YM microbial communities under varying conditions was also undertaken

Nuclear power and radioactive waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grimston, M.

1991-03-01

The gap between the relative perceptions in the area of nuclear waste is wide. The broad view of the industry is that the disposal of nuclear waste is not a serious technical problem, and that solutions are already available to provide safe disposal of all our waste. The broad view of those who oppose the industry is that radioactive waste is so unpleasant, and will remain lethal for so long, that no acceptable policy will ever be developed, and so production of such waste (except, oddly, the significant amounts arising from uses of radioactive materials in medicine, agriculture, industrial safety research, etc) should stop immediately. This booklet will not attempt to describe in great detail the technicalities of the United Kingdom nuclear industry's current approach to radioactive waste: such issues are described in detail in other publications, especially those by Nirex. It is our intention to outline some of the main issues involved, and to associate these issues with the divergence in perceptions of various parties. (author)

Public attitudes about nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bisconti, A.S.

1991-01-01

There is general agreement that nuclear waste is an important national issue. It certainly is important to the industry. congress, too, gives high priority to nuclear waste disposal. In a recent pool by Reichman, Karten, Sword, 300 congressional staffers named nuclear waste disposal as the top nuclear energy-related legislative issue for Congress to address. In this paper most of the data the author discusses are from national polls that statistically represent the opinions of all American adults all across the country, as well as polls conducted in Nevada that statistically represent the opinions of all adults in that state. All the polls were by Cambridge Reports and have a margin of error of ± 3%

Attitudes to nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sjoeberg, L.; Drottz-Sjoeberg, B.M.

1993-08-01

This is a study of risk perception and attitudes with regard to nuclear waste. Two data sets are reported. In the first set, data were obtained from a survey of the general population, using an extensive questionnaire. The second set constituted a follow-up 7 years later, with a limited number of questions. The data showed that people considered the topic of nuclear waste risks to be very important and that they were not convinced that the technological problems had been solved. Experts associated with government agencies were moderately trusted, while those employed by the nuclear industry were much distrusted by some respondents, and very much trusted by others. Moral obligations to future generations were stressed. A large portion (more than 50 per cent) of the variances in risk perception could be explained by attitude to nuclear power, general risk sensitivity and trust in expertise. Most background variables, except gender, had little influence on risk perception and attitudes. The follow-up study showed that the attitude to nuclear power had become more positive over time, but that people still doubted that the problems of nuclear waste disposal had been solved. 49 refs

The wastes of nuclear fission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doubre, H.

2005-01-01

In this paper the author presents the problems of the radioactive wastes generated by the nuclear fission. The first part devoted to the fission phenomenon explains the incident neutron energy and the target nuclei role. The second part devoted to the nuclear wastes sources presents the production of wastes upstream of the reactors, in the reactors and why these wastes are dangerous. The third part discusses the radioactive wastes management in France (classification, laws). The last part details the associated research programs: the radionuclides separation, the disposal, the underground storage, the transmutation and the thorium cycle. (A.L.B.)

Yucca Mountain Site characterization project bibliography, January--June 1991

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lorenz, J.J.; Stephan, P.M.

1991-09-01

Following a reorganization of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management in 1990, the Yucca Mountain Project was renamed Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. The title of this bibliography was also changed to Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project Bibliography. Prior to August 5, 1988, this project was called the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations. This bibliography contains information on this ongoing project that was added to the Department of Energy's Energy Science and Technology Database from January 1991 through June 1991. The bibliography is categorized by principal project participating organization. Participant-sponsored subcontractor reports, papers, and articles are included in the sponsoring organization's list. Another section contains information about publications on the Energy Science and Technology Database that were not sponsored by the project but have some relevance to it

Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project bibliography, January--June 1992

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

Following a reorganization of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management in 1990, the Yucca Mountain Project was renamed Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. The title of this bibliography was also changed to Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project Bibliography. Prior to August 5, 1988, this project was called the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations. This bibliography contains information on this ongoing project that was added to the Department of Energy's Energy Science and Technology Database from January 1, 1993, through June 30, 1993. The bibliography is categorized by principal project participating organization. Participant-sponsored subcontractor reports, papers, and articles are included in the sponsoring organization's list. Another section contains information about publications on the Energy Science and Technology Database that were not sponsored by the project but have some relevance to it

Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project Bibliography, July--December 1990

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-05-01

Following a reorganization of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, the Yucca Mountain Project was renamed Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. The title of this bibliography was also changed to Yucca Mountains Site Characterization Project Bibliography. Prior to August 5, 1988, this project was called the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations. This bibliography contains information on this ongoing project that was added to the Department of Energy's Energy Science and Technology Database from July 1990 through December 1990. The bibliography is categorized by principal project participating organization. Participant-sponsored subcontractor reports, papers and articles are included in the sponsoring organizations list. Another section contains information about publications on the Energy Science and Technology Database that were not sponsored by the project but have some relevance to it

Yucca Mountain Site characterization project bibliography, January--June 1992

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-09-01

Following a reorganization of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management in 1990, the Yucca Mountain Project was renamed Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. The title of this bibliography was also changed to Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project Bibliography. Prior to August 5, 1988, this project was called the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations. This bibliography contains information on this ongoing project that was added to the Department of Energy's Energy Science and Technology Database from January 1, 1992, through June 30, 1992. The bibliography is categorized by principal project participating organization. Participant-sponsored subcontractor resorts, papers, and articles are included in the sponsoring organization's list. Another section contains information about publications on the Energy Science and Technology Database that were not sponsored by the project but have some relevance to it

Nuclear waste management programme 2003 for the Loviisa and Olkiluoto nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-09-01

A joint company Posiva Oy founded by nuclear energy producing Teollisuuden Voima Oy (TVO) and Fortum Power and Heat Oy coordinates the research work of the companies on nuclear waste management in Finland. In Posiva's Nuclear Waste Management Programme 2003, an account of the nuclear waste management measures of TVO and Fortum is given as required by the sections 74 and 75 of the Finnish Nuclear Energy Degree. At first, nuclear waste management situation and the programme of activities are reported. The nuclear waste management research for the year 2003 and more generally for the years 2003-2007 is presented

Understanding the Potential for Volcanoes at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

NA

2002-01-01

By studying the rocks and geologic features of an area, experts can assess whether it is vulnerable to future volcanic eruptions. Scientists have performed extensive studies at and near Yucca Mountain to determine whether future volcanoes could possibly affect the proposed repository for nuclear waste

Yucca Mountain program summary of research and technical review activities, July 1988--June 1989

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-11-01

The Desert Research Institute (DRI), through its Water Resources Center (WRC), since 1984 has supported the State of Nevada Nuclear Waste Project Office's activities related to the proposed high-level radioactive waste repository at Yucca Mountain on the Nevada Test Site (NTS). This effort is directed at providing the State Office with an unbiased evaluation of the Yucca Mountain Project (YMP) investigations performed by the US Department of Energy (DOE) and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The overall objective is to determine independently whether or not the site meets the performance criteria defined by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 and amendments for isolating and containing the wastes during emplacement and the proposed life of the repository. A particularly important area of concern with the proposed repository is the site's hydrology. The faculty of the DRI have long been involved with research throughout the State and have particular expertise in groundwater studies related to radionuclide migration and hydrologic safety of underground nuclear testing by DOE and predecessor agencies. In addition, we utilize laboratory personnel for chemical and isotopic analyses in both of the DRI-WMC water chemistry laboratories

Science, society, and America's nuclear waste: Unit 4, The waste management system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

This is the teachers guide to unit 4, (The Waste Management System), of a four-unit secondary curriculum. It is intended to provide information about scientific and societal issues related to the management of spent nuclear fuel from generation of electricity at nuclear powerplants and high-level radioactive waste from US national defense activities. The curriculum, supporting classroom activities, and teaching materials present a brief discussion of energy and electricity generation, including that produced at nuclear powerplants; information on sources, amounts, location, and characteristics of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste; sources, types and effects of radiation; US policy for managing and disposing of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste and what other countries are doing; and the components of the nuclear waste management system

Regulatory perspective on future climates at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coleman, N.M.; Eisenberg, N.A.; Brooks, D.J.

1996-01-01

Current regulations of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) require that any performance assessment supporting the license application for a high-level waste (HLW) repository must consider the potential for changes in hydrologic conditions caused by reasonably foreseeable climatic conditions. The requirement is important because the earth's climate will almost certainly change significantly during the thousands of years that disposed nuclear wastes will remain hazardous. More importantly, climate controls the range of precipitation, which in turn controls the rates of infiltration, deep percolation, and groundwater flux through a geologic repository located in an unsaturated environment. Therefore, future changes in climate could significantly influence waste isolation in a repository at Yucca Mountain

Nuclear waste in Seibersdorf

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1988-01-01

Forschungszentrum Seibersdorf (short: Seibersdorf) is the company operating the research reactor ASTRA. A controversy arose, initied by the Greens and some newspapers on the fact that the waste conditioning plant in Seibersdorf treated not only Austrian waste (from hospitals etc.) but also a large quantity of ion exchange resins from the Caorso nuclear power station, against payment. The author argues that it is untenable that an Austrian institution (peaceful use of nuclear energy in Austria being abandoned by a referendum) should support nuclear power abroad. There is also a short survey on nuclear waste conditioning and an account of an exchange of letters, between the Seibersdorf and the Ecology Institute on the claim of being an 'independent measuring institution' of food, soil, etc. samples. The author argues that the Ecology Institute is the sole independent institution in Austria because it is part of the ecology- and antinuclear movement, whereas Seibersdorf is dependent on the state. (qui)

Review of the nuclear waste disposal problem

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Poch, L.A.; Wolsko, T.D.

1979-10-01

Regardless of future nuclear policy, a nuclear waste disposal problem does exist and must be dealt with. Even a moratorium on new nuclear plants leaves us with the wastes already in existence and wastes yet to be generated by reactors in operation. Thus, technologies to effectively dispose of our current waste problem must be researched and identified and, then, disposal facilities built. The magnitude of the waste disposal problem is a function of future nuclear policy. There are some waste disposal technologies that are suitable for both forms of HLW (spent fuel and reprocessing wastes), whereas others can be used with only reprocessed wastes. Therefore, the sooner a decision on the future of nuclear power is made the more accurately the magnitude of the waste problem will be known, thereby identifying those technologies that deserve more attention and funding. It is shown that there are risks associated with every disposal technology. One technology may afford a higher isolation potential at the expense of increased transportation risks in comparison to a second technology. Establishing the types of risks we are willing to live with must be resolved before any waste disposal technology can be instituted for widespread commercial use

Perceived risks of nuclear fuel waste disposal: trust, compensation, and public acceptance in Canada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hine, D.W.; Summers, C.

1996-01-01

AECL's recommendation to place the high-level radioactive waste in corrosion resistant containers and bury it in underground vaults several hundred metres deep in the rock of the Canadian shield is presently under federal review. If and when the disposal concept is approved by the federal review panel, a search will begin for a suitable host community. Given that siting guidelines prevent the government from unilaterally imposing the waste on a reluctant community, identifying a suitable site may represent the single greatest obstacle to successfully implementing the disposal concept. Even if the concept is approved by the review panel, it may be very difficult to find a community that is willing to accept the waste. In the US, efforts to site an underground disposal facility for high-level nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain has run into strong opposition from local residents and politicians, resulting in long delays and major cost overruns

Final disposal of nuclear waste. An investigated issue

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Palmu, J.; Nikula, A.

1996-01-01

Since 1978, the nuclear power companies have co-ordinated joint studies of nuclear waste disposal through the Nuclear Waste Commission of Finnish Power Companies. The studies are done primarily to gather basic data, with a view to implementing nuclear waste management in a safe, economical and timely way. The power companies' research, development and design work with regard to nuclear waste has been progressing according to the schedule set by the Government, and Finland has received international recognition for its advanced nuclear waste management programme. Last year, the nuclear power companies set up a joint company, Posiva Oy, to manage the final disposal of spent uranium fuel. (orig.)

Development of rail access to the proposed repository site at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Standish, P.N.; Seidler, P.E.; Andrews, W.B.; Shearin, G.

1991-01-01

In accordance with the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendment Act of 1987, Yucca Mountain was designated as the initial site to be investigated as a potential repository for the disposal of high-level radioactive waste. The Yucca Mountain site is an undeveloped area located on the southwestern edge of the Nevada Test Site (NTS), about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas. The site currently lacks rail service or an existing right-of-way. If the Yucca Mountain site is found suitable for the repository, rail service is considered desirable by the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) program because of the potential of rail transportation to reduce (1) costs and (2) number of shipments, relative to highway transportation. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct a study to determine (1) that there are alignments for a potential rail line from existing mainline railroads to Yucca Mountain and (2) that these are consistent with present rail design standards and are acceptable relative to environmental and land access considerations

Plasma filtering techniques for nuclear waste remediation.

Science.gov (United States)

Gueroult, Renaud; Hobbs, David T; Fisch, Nathaniel J

2015-10-30

Nuclear waste cleanup is challenged by the handling of feed stocks that are both unknown and complex. Plasma filtering, operating on dissociated elements, offers advantages over chemical methods in processing such wastes. The costs incurred by plasma mass filtering for nuclear waste pretreatment, before ultimate disposal, are similar to those for chemical pretreatment. However, significant savings might be achieved in minimizing the waste mass. This advantage may be realized over a large range of chemical waste compositions, thereby addressing the heterogeneity of legacy nuclear waste. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Radiation Effects in Nuclear Waste Materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weber, William J.; Wang, Lumin; Hess, Nancy J.; Icenhower, Jonathan P.; Thevuthasan, Suntharampillai

2003-01-01

The objective of this project is to develop a fundamental understanding of radiation effects in glasses and ceramics, as well as the influence of solid-state radiation effects on aqueous dissolution kinetics, which may impact the performance of nuclear waste forms and stabilized nuclear materials. This work provides the underpinning science to develop improved glass and ceramic waste forms for the immobilization and disposition of high-level tank waste, excess plutonium, plutonium residues and scrap, other actinides, and other nuclear waste streams. Furthermore, this work is developing develop predictive models for the performance of nuclear waste forms and stabilized nuclear materials. Thus, the research performed under this project has significant implications for the immobilization of High-Level Waste (HLW) and Nuclear Materials, two mission areas within the Office of Environmental Management (EM). With regard to the HLW mission, this research will lead to improved understanding of radiation-induced degradation mechanisms and their effects on dissolution kinetics, as well as development of predictive models for waste form performance. In the Nuclear Materials mission, this research will lead to improvements in the understanding of radiation effects on the chemical and structural properties of materials for the stabilization and long-term storage of plutonium, highly-enriched uranium, and other actinides. The research uses plutonium incorporation, ion-beam irradiation, and electron-beam irradiation to simulate the effects of alpha decay and beta decay on relevant glasses and ceramics. The research under this project has the potential to result in improved glass and ceramic materials for the stabilization and immobilization of high-level tank waste, plutonium residues and scraps, surplus weapons plutonium, highly-enriched uranium, other actinides, and other radioactive materials

Radiation Effects in Nuclear Waste Materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weber, William J.

2005-01-01

The objective of this project is to develop a fundamental understanding of radiation effects in glasses and ceramics, as well as the influence of solid-state radiation effects on aqueous dissolution kinetics, which may impact the performance of nuclear waste forms and stabilized nuclear materials. This work provides the underpinning science to develop improved glass and ceramic waste forms for the immobilization and disposition of high-level tank waste, excess plutonium, plutonium residues and scrap, other actinides, and other nuclear waste streams. Furthermore, this work is developing develop predictive models for the performance of nuclear waste forms and stabilized nuclear materials. Thus, the research performed under this project has significant implications for the immobilization of High-Level Waste (HLW) and Nuclear Materials, two mission areas within the Office of Environmental Management (EM). With regard to the HLW mission, this research will lead to improved understanding of radiation-induced degradation mechanisms and their effects on dissolution kinetics, as well as development of predictive models for waste form performance. In the Nuclear Materials mission, this research will lead to improvements in the understanding of radiation effects on the chemical and structural properties of materials for the stabilization and long-term storage of plutonium, highly-enriched uranium, and other actinides. The research uses plutonium incorporation, ion-beam irradiation, and electron-beam irradiation to simulate the effects of alpha decay and beta decay on relevant glasses and ceramics. The research under this project has the potential to result in improved glass and ceramic materials for the stabilization and immobilization of high-level tank waste, plutonium residues and scraps, surplus weapons plutonium, highly-enriched uranium, other actinides, and other radioactive materials

Aspects of nuclear waste management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moberg, L.

1990-10-01

Six areas of concern in nuclear waste management have been dealt with in a four-year Nordic research programme. They include work in two international projects, Hydrocoin dealing with modelling of groundwater flow in crystalline rock, and Biomovs, concerned with biosphere models. Geologic questions of importance to the prediction of future behaviour are examined. Waste quantities from the decommissioning of nuclear power stations are estimated, and total amounts of waste to be transported in the Nordic countries are evaluated. Waste amounts from a hypothetical reactor accident are also calculated. (au)

Nuclear waste problem: does new Europe need new nuclear energy?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alekseev, P.; Dudnikov, A.; Subbotin, S.

2003-01-01

Nuclear Energy for New Europe - what does it mean? New Europe - it means in first order joined Europe. And it is quite clear that also efforts in nuclear energy must be joined. What can be proposed as a target of joint efforts. Improvement of existing plants, technologies, materials? - Certainly, but it is performed already by designers and industry themselves. There exists a problem, which each state using nuclear energy faces alone. It is nuclear waste problem. Nowadays nuclear waste problem is not completely solved in any country. It seems reasonable for joining Europe to join efforts in solving this problem. A satisfactory solution would reduce a risk connected with nuclear waste. In addition to final disposal problem solution it is necessary to reduce total amount of nuclear waste, that means: reducing the rates of accumulation of long-lived dangerous radionuclides; reducing the existing amounts of these radionuclides by transmutation. These conditions can be satisfied in reasonable time by burning of minor actinides and, if possible, by transmutation of long-lived fission products. However we can use this strategy effectively if we will design and construct nuclear energy as a system of which components are united by nuclear fuel cycle as a system-forming factor. The existing structures and approaches may become insufficient for new Europe. Therefore among the initial steps in considering nuclear waste problem must be considering possible promising fuel cycles for European nuclear energy. So, does new Europe need new nuclear energy? It seems, yes. (author)

A plan for Soviet nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stone, R.

1992-01-01

If environmentalist forces are successful, the Russian government may soon establish the country's first comprehensive program for dealing with nuclear waste. Later this month the Russian parliament, back from its summer recess, is expected to begin considering a bill on this topic. A draft copy indicates that Russia is starting with the basics: It orders the government to develop a means of insulting waste from the environment, to form a national waste processing program, and to create a registry for tracking where spent atomic fuel is stored or buried. The bill comes on the heels of a November 1991 decree by Russian President Boris Yeltsin to step up efforts to deal with nuclear waste issues and to create a government registry of nuclear waste disposal sites by 1 January 1993. The former Soviet Union has come under fire from environmentalists for dumping low- and intermediate-level nuclear wastes in the Arctic Ocean and for improperly storing waste at sites in the southern Urals and Belarus. Adding to the bill's urgency is the fact that Russia is considering sites for underground repositories for high-level waste at Tomsk, Krasnoyarsk, Chelyabinsk, and on the Kola Peninsula

Radioactive waste management from nuclear facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-06-01

This report has been published as a NSA (Nuclear Systems Association, Japan) commentary series, No. 13, and documents the present status on management of radioactive wastes produced from nuclear facilities in Japan and other countries as well. Risks for radiation accidents coming from radioactive waste disposal and storage together with risks for reactor accidents from nuclear power plants are now causing public anxiety. This commentary concerns among all high-level radioactive waste management from nuclear fuel cycle facilities, with including radioactive wastes from research institutes or hospitals. Also included is wastes produced from reactor decommissioning. For low-level radioactive wastes, the wastes is reduced in volume, solidified, and removed to the sites of storage depending on their radioactivities. For high-level radioactive wastes, some ten thousand years must be necessary before the radioactivity decays to the natural level and protection against seismic or volcanic activities, and terrorist attacks is unavoidable for final disposals. This inevitably results in underground disposal at least 300 m below the ground. Various proposals for the disposal and management for this and their evaluation techniques are described in the present document. (S. Ohno)

Chemical risks from nuclear waste repositories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Persson, L.

1988-01-01

Studies concerning the chemical risks of nuclear waste are reviewed. The radiological toxicity of the material is of primary concern but the potential nonradiological toxicity should not be overlooked as the chemotoxic substances may reach the biosphere from a nuclear waste repository. In the report is concluded that the possible chemotoxic effects of a repository for nuclear waste should be studied as a part of the formal risk assessment of the disposal concept. (author)

State of nuclear waste management of German nuclear power stations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1983-01-01

The waste management of nuclear power plants in the Federal Republic of Germany is today prevailing in the public discussion. Objections raised in this connection, e.g. that the nuclear waste management has been omitted from the development of peaceful utilization of nuclear energy or remained insolved, are frequently accepted without examination, and partly spread as facts. This is, however, not the truth: From the outset in 1955 the development of nuclear technology in the Federal Republic of Germany has included investigations of the problems of reprocessing and non-detrimental disposal of radioactive products, and the results have been compiled in a national nuclear waste management concept. (orig.) [de

Initial Q-list for the prospective Yucca Mountain repository based on items important to safety and waste isolation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laub, T.W.; Jardine, L.J.

1987-01-01

A method for identifying items important to safety based on a probabilistic risk assessment approach was developed and implemented for the conceptual design of the Yucca Mountain repository. No items were classified as important to safety; however, six items were classified as potentially important to safety. These were the shipping cask, the cranes and the truck or rail-care vehicle stops in the cask receiving and preparation area, the hot cell structure of the waste packaging hot cells, the cranes in the waste packaging hot cells, and the waste-handling building fire protection system. In addition, a method for identifying items important to waste isolation was developed and implemented. Two hydrogeologic units of the Yucca Mountain site were classified as important to waste isolation: the Calico Hills nonwelded zeolitic unit and the Calico Hills nonwelded vitric unit. The preliminary Q-list for the Yucca Mountain repository is comprised of the two units of the site classified as important to waste isolation and contains no items important to safety

Initial Q-list for the prospective Yucca Mountain repository based on items important to safety and waste isolation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laub, T.W.; Jardine, L.J.

1987-01-01

A method for identifying items important to safety based on a probabilistic risk assessment approach was developed and implemented for the conceptual design of the Yucca Mountain repository. No items were classified as important to safety; however, six items were classified as potentially important to safety. These were the shipping cask, the cranes and the truck or rail-car vehicle stops in the cask receiving and preparation area, the hot cell structure of the waste packaging hot cells, the cranes in the waste packaging hot cells, and the waste-handling building fire protection system. In addition, a method for identifying items important to waste isolation was developed and implemented. Two hydrogeologic units of the Yucca Mountain site were classified as important to waste isolation: the Calico Hills nonwelded zeolitic unit and the Calico Hills nonwelded vitric unit. The preliminary Q-list for the Yucca Mountain repository is comprised of the two units of the site classified as important to waste isolation and contains no items important to safety

Uncertainty and sensitivity analysis in performance assessment for the proposed high-level radioactive waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Helton, Jon C.; Hansen, Clifford W.; Sallaberry, Cédric J.

2012-01-01

Extensive work has been carried out by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in the development of a proposed geologic repository at Yucca Mountain (YM), Nevada, for the disposal of high-level radioactive waste. As part of this development, a detailed performance assessment (PA) for the YM repository was completed in 2008 and supported a license application by the DOE to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for the construction of the YM repository. The following aspects of the 2008 YM PA are described in this presentation: (i) conceptual structure and computational organization, (ii) uncertainty and sensitivity analysis techniques in use, (iii) uncertainty and sensitivity analysis for physical processes, and (iv) uncertainty and sensitivity analysis for expected dose to the reasonably maximally exposed individual (RMEI) specified the NRC’s regulations for the YM repository. - Highlights: ► An overview of performance assessment for the proposed Yucca Mountain radioactive waste repository is presented. ► Conceptual structure and computational organization are described. ► Uncertainty and sensitivity analysis techniques are described. ► Uncertainty and sensitivity analysis results for physical processes are presented. ► Uncertainty and sensitivity analysis results for expected dose are presented.

The waste bin: nuclear waste dumping and storage in the Pacific

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Branch, J.B.

1984-01-01

Relatively small amounts of nuclear waste have been stored on Pacific islands and dumped into the Pacific Ocean since 1945. Governments of Pacific countries possessing nuclear power plants are presently seeking permanent waste storage and disposal solutions at Pacific sites including subseabed emplacement of high-level nuclear wastes and ocean dumping of low-level wastes. This article examines these plans and the response of Pacific islanders in their development of policies and international strategies to ban the proposed dumping on a regional basis. Island governments are preparing for a Regional Convention during which a treaty concerned with radioactive waste storage and disposal will be signed. (Author)

Social impacts of hazardous and nuclear facilities and events: Implications for Nevada and the Yucca Mountain high-level nuclear waste repository

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Freudenburg, W.R.; Carter, L.F.; Willard, W.; Lodwick, D.G.; Hardert, R.A.; Levine, A.G.; Couch, S.R.; Edelstein, M.R.

1992-05-01

Social impacts of a nuclear waste repository are described. Various case studies are cited such as Rocky Flats Plant, the Feed Materials Production Center, and Love Canal. The social impacts of toxic contamination, mitigating environmental stigma and loss of trust are also discussed

Building world-wide nuclear industry success stories - Safe management of nuclear waste and used nuclear fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saint-Pierre, S.

2005-01-01

Full text: This WNA Position Statement summarizes the worldwide nuclear industry's record, progress and plans in safely managing nuclear waste and used nuclear fuel. The global industry's safe waste management practices cover the entire nuclear fuel-cycle, from the mining of uranium to the long-term disposal of end products from nuclear power reactors. The Statement's aim is to provide, in clear and accurate terms, the nuclear industry's 'story' on a crucially important subject often clouded by misinformation. Inevitably, each country and each company employs a management strategy appropriate to a specific national and technical context. This Position Statement reflects a confident industry consensus that a common dedication to sound practices throughout the nuclear industry worldwide is continuing to enhance an already robust global record of safe management of nuclear waste and used nuclear fuel. This text focuses solely on modern civil programmes of nuclear-electricity generation. It does not deal with the substantial quantities of waste from military or early civil nuclear programmes. These wastes fall into the category of 'legacy activities' and are generally accepted as a responsibility of national governments. The clean-up of wastes resulting from 'legacy activities' should not be confused with the limited volume of end products that are routinely produced and safely managed by today's nuclear energy industry. On the significant subject of 'Decommissioning of Nuclear Facilities', which is integral to modern civil nuclear power programmes, the WNA will offer a separate Position Statement covering the industry's safe management of nuclear waste in this context. The safe management of nuclear waste and used nuclear fuel is a widespread, well-demonstrated reality. This strong safety record reflects a high degree of nuclear industry expertise and of industry responsibility toward the well-being of current and future generations. Accumulating experience and

Waste management in the nuclear engineering curriculum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tulenko, J.S.

1989-01-01

One of the most significant challenges facing the nuclear industry is to successfully close the nuclear fuel cycle and effectively demonstrate to the public that nuclear wastes do not present a health risk. This issue is currently viewed by many as the most important issue affecting public acceptance of nuclear power, and it is imperative that nuclear engineers be able to effectively address the question of nuclear waste from both a generation and disposal standpoint. To address the issue, the area of nuclear waste management has been made one of the fields of specialized study in the Department of Nuclear Engineering Sciences at the University of Florida. The study of radioactive waste management at the University of Florida is designed both for background for the general nuclear engineering student and for those wishing to specialize in it as a multidiscipline study area involving the Departments of Nuclear Engineering Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Material Science and Engineering, Geology, Civil Engineering, and Industrial Engineering

Nuclear Waste Fund management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mills, L.

1984-01-01

The Nuclear Waste Policy Acts requires that DOE enter into contracts with nuclear utilities and others to accept their nuclear wastes at some unspecified date, at some unspecified rate, hopefully starting in 1998. Contracts between DOE and the states, and with civilian and other government agencies must be sufficiently detailed to secure competitive bids on definable chunks of work at a fixed-cost basis with incentives. The need is stressed for a strong central program for the selection of contractors on the basis of competitive bidding on a fixed price basis to perform the task with defined deliverables

Overview of the United States' nuclear waste repository programme

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Surles, T.G.

2002-01-01

Regardless of the future of civilian or defense-based nuclear materials, the United States will be responsible for a vast array of these materials for generations to come. The cornerstone programme for the disposal of waste materials is the Yucca Mountain Programme. Based on the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as amended in 1987, it has been the United States' policy to develop a geological repository for the permanent disposal of radioactive waste materials. This presentation will discuss the process and strategy leading to the present and will include the scientific and management activities required to support the recent Viability Assessment. Also to be discussed are the timeline and milestones leading to the opening of the repository. The focus will be on the scientific and engineering studies required for a successful Site Recommendation, and then for a similarly successful License Application. Both of these activities will require considerable management efforts in addressing legal and regulatory issues. Finally, the presentation will discuss projections for the future operation of the facility, including emplacement projections, coupled with the required locations of nuclear materials. Additional scientific research and engineering studies will also be conducted to determine the longer-term viability of the facility, which is designed, by policy, for permanent storage. Retrievability is currently not an option, although access to the facility will be maintained for several decades. The focus of the discussion will be on the scientific and engineering advances made on understanding the natural systems for preventing migration of radionuclides, coupled with new developments in engineered systems in areas such as cask cladding, drip shields, and related materials engineering developments. The coupling of engineered and natural systems is designed to offer safety factors that are several orders of magnitude greater than what is estimated to be necessary

Nuclear waste: Quarterly report on DOE's Nuclear Waste Program as of March 31, 1987

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-01-01

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act established a national program and policy for safely storing, transporting, and disposing of nuclear waste. This fact sheet provides the status of the Department of Energy's program activities. They include (1) the release of a draft amendment to the mission plan in which DOE extends by 5 years its target date for beginning first repository operations and information on DOE's decision to postpone site-specific activities for the second repository; (2) a monitored retrievable storage proposal and related documents; (3) receipts of comments from utilities, state regulators, and others on its Notice of Inquiry on proposals for the calculation of fees for defense waste disposal; and (4) information on the Nuclear Waste Fund collection of over /135.4 million in fees and investment income and obligations of $139 million for program activities. The fund balance as of March 31, 1987, was about $1.5 billion

The importance of independent research and evaluation in assessing nuclear fuel cycle and waste management facility safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Downing, Walter D.; Patrick, Wesley C.; Sagar, Budhi

2009-01-01

In 1987, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) established at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) a federally funded research and development center. Known as the Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analyses (CNWRA), its overall mission is to provide NRC with an independent assessment capability on technical and regulatory issues related to a potential geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste, as well as interim storage and other nuclear fuel-cycle facilities. For more than 20 years, the CNWRA has supported NRC through an extensive pre-licensing period of establishing the framework of regulations and guidance documents, developing computer codes and other review tools, and conducting independent laboratory, field, and numerical analyses. In June 2008, the United States Department of Energy (DOE) submitted a license application and final environmental impact statement to NRC seeking authorization to construct the nation's first geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. The CNWRA will assist NRC in conducting a detailed technical review to critically evaluate the DOE license application to assess whether the potential repository has been designed and can be constructed and operated to safely dispose spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. NRC access to independent, unbiased, technical advice from the CNWRA is an important aspect of the evaluation process. This paper discusses why an independent perspective is important when dealing with nuclear fuel cycle and waste management issues. It addresses practical considerations such as avoiding conflicts of interest while at the same time maintaining a world-class research program in technical areas related to the nuclear fuel cycle. It also describes an innovative approach for providing CNWRA scientists and engineers a creative outlet for professional development through an internally funded research program that is focused on future nuclear waste

Ice ages and nuclear waste disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ahonen, L.; Ruskeeniemi, T.; Luukkonen, A.; Pitkaenen, P.; Rasilainen, K.

2002-01-01

This report is an overview of Quaternary Ice Age and its potential consequences for nuclear waste disposal. Geological information on past climatic changes is shortly reviewed, based on the following records: geomorphological information, loessic deposits, deep-sea carbonate sediments, ice-core records, and continental calcite precipitates. Even though the present 'Great Ice Age' has lasted more that two million years, the present variation in cycles of about 100 000 years seems to have commenced only about 600 - 700 thousands years ago. According to the present understanding, southern Finland was during a major span of Weichsel free of continental ice sheet. However, the conditions may have been very cold, periglacial, when the continental ice sheet covered the Caledonian mountains and large areas of central Fennoscandia. The last glacial maximum of Weichsel glaciation was shorter than estimated earlier. Periglacial conditions are characterized by deep permafrost, reaching even the depth of nuclear waste disposal. Calculations of the advancement of permafrost indicate that the permafrost-front may reach the depth of about 500 meters in less than 10 000 years. The crust beneath the continental ice cover depresses, and rebounds when the ice sheet retreats. During the most intensive vertical movement of the crust, some crush zones may be activated and bedrock movements may take place along them. Due to the growth of ice sheets, ocean water table also depresses during glacial maximum, thus changing hydrogeological conditions in non-glaciated terrains. Increase in global ice volume is manifested in the stable oxygen and hydrogen isotope ratios. Based on isotope signals, as well other hydrogeochemical interpretation methods, indications of the earlier glaciations have been recognized in present groundwaters. (orig.)

Development of nuclear waste concrete drum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wen Yinghui

1995-06-01

The raw materials selection and the properties for nuclear waste concrete drum, the formula and properties of the concrete, the specification and technical quality requirement of the drum were described. The manufacture essentials and technology, the experiments and checks as well as the effective quality control and quality assurance carried out in the course of production were presented. The developed nuclear waste drum has a simple structure, easily available raw materials and rational formula for concrete. The compressive strength of the drum is more than 70 MPa, the tensile strength is more than 5 MPa, the nitrogen permeability is (2.16∼3.6) x 10 -18 m 2 . The error of the drum in dimensions is +-2 mm. The external surface of the drum is smooth. The drum accords with China standards in the sandy surface, void and crack. The results shows China has the ability to develop and manufacture nuclear waste concrete container and lays the foundation for standardization and series of the nuclear waste container for packing and transporting nuclear wastes in China. (5 figs., 10 tabs.)

Can we talk? Communications management for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, a complex nuclear waste management project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Goldstein, S.A.; Pullen, G.M.; Brewer, D.R.

1995-07-01

Sandia Nuclear Waste Management Program is pursuing for DOE an option for permanently disposing radioactive waste in deep geologic repositories. Included in the Program are the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) Project for US defense program mixed waste the Yucca Mountain Project (YMP) for spent power reactor fuel and vitrified high-level waste, projects for other waste types, and development efforts in environmental decision support technologies. WIPP and YMP are in the public arena, of a controversial nature, and provide significant management challenges. Both projects have large project teams, multiple organization participants, large budgets, long durations, are very complex, have a high degree of programmatic risk, and operate in an extremely regulated environment requiring legal defensibility. For environmental projects like these to succeed, SNL`s Program is utilizing nearly all areas in PMI`s Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) to manage along multiple project dimensions such as the physical sciences (e.g., geophysics and geochemistry; performance assessment; decision analysis) management sciences (controlling the triple constraint of performance, cost and schedule), and social sciences (belief systems; public participation; institutional politics). This discussion focuses primarily on communication challenges active on WIPP. How is the WIPP team meeting the challenges of managing communications?`` and ``How are you approaching similar challenges?`` will be questions for a dialog with the audience.

Nuclear wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

This scientific document presents an introduction to the nuclear wastes problems, the separation process and the transmutation, the political and technical aspects of the storage, the radioprotection standards and the biological effects. (A.L.B.)

Selection of barrier metals for a waste package in tuff

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Russell, E.W.; McCright, R.D.; O'Neal, W.C.

1983-09-01

The Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigation (NNWSI) project under the Civilian Radioactive Waste Management Program is planning a repository at Yucca Mountain at the Nevada Test Site for isolation of high-level nuclear waste. LLNL is developing designs for an engineered barrier system containing several barriers such as the waste form, a canister and/or an overpack, packing, and near field host rock. The selection of metal containment barriers is addressed. 13 references

The IAEA project on nuclear and non-nuclear wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seitz, Roger

1998-01-01

Radioactive and chemotoxic agents are common in electricity generation waste. Data and assessments illustrate that nuclear and non-nuclear fuel chains result in waste posing potential long-term hazards. Efforts are focussed on filling data gaps and approaches for comparing impacts of radioactive and chemotoxic agents

Nuclear waste: good news

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gay, Michel

2014-01-01

The author states that the problem of nuclear wastes is solved. He states that 90 per cent of radioactive wastes are now permanently managed and that technical solutions for deep geological storage and for transmutation will soon solve the problem for the remaining 10 pc. He states that geological storage will be funded (it is included in electricity price). He denounces why these facts which he consider as good news, do not prevail. He proposes several documents in appendix: a text explaining the nuclear fuel cycle in France, and an extract of a report made by the national inventory of radioactive materials and wastes

Yucca Mountain site characteriztion project bibliography. Progress Report, 1994--1995

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-08-01

Following a reorganization of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management in 1990, the Yucca Mountain Project was renamed Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. The title of this bibliography was also changed to Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project Bibliography. Prior to August 5, 1988, this project was called the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations. This bibliography contains information on this ongoing project which was added to the Department of Energy's Energy Science and Technology Database from January 1, 1994, through December 31, 1995. The bibliography is categorized by principal project participating organization. Participant-sponsored subcontractor reports, papers, and articles are included in the sponsoring organization's list. Another section contains information about publications on the Energy Science and Technology database which were not sponsored by the project but have some relevance to it

Yucca Mountain site characteriztion project bibliography. Progress Report, 1994--1995

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1996-08-01

Following a reorganization of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management in 1990, the Yucca Mountain Project was renamed Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. The title of this bibliography was also changed to Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project Bibliography. Prior to August 5, 1988, this project was called the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations. This bibliography contains information on this ongoing project which was added to the Department of Energy`s Energy Science and Technology Database from January 1, 1994, through December 31, 1995. The bibliography is categorized by principal project participating organization. Participant-sponsored subcontractor reports, papers, and articles are included in the sponsoring organization`s list. Another section contains information about publications on the Energy Science and Technology database which were not sponsored by the project but have some relevance to it.

Tectonic stability and expected ground motion at Yucca Mountain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-01-01

A workshop was convened on August 7-8, 1984 at the direction of DOE to discuss effects of natural and artificial earthquakes and associated ground motion as related to siting of a high-level radioactive waste (HLW) repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. A panel of experts in seismology and tectonics was assembled to review available data and analyses and to assess conflicting opinions on geological and seismologic data. The objective of the meeting was to advise the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations (NNWSI) Project about how to present a technically balanced and scientifically credible evaluation of Yucca Mountain for the NNWSI Project EA. The group considered two central issues: the magnitude of ground motion at Yucca Mountain due to the largest expected earthquake, and the overall tectonic stability of the site given the current geologic and seismologic data base. 44 refs

Tectonic stability and expected ground motion at Yucca Mountain

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1984-10-02

A workshop was convened on August 7-8, 1984 at the direction of DOE to discuss effects of natural and artificial earthquakes and associated ground motion as related to siting of a high-level radioactive waste (HLW) repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. A panel of experts in seismology and tectonics was assembled to review available data and analyses and to assess conflicting opinions on geological and seismologic data. The objective of the meeting was to advise the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations (NNWSI) Project about how to present a technically balanced and scientifically credible evaluation of Yucca Mountain for the NNWSI Project EA. The group considered two central issues: the magnitude of ground motion at Yucca Mountain due to the largest expected earthquake, and the overall tectonic stability of the site given the current geologic and seismologic data base. 44 refs.

Nuclear waste management policy in France

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lefevre, J.F.

1983-01-01

The object of the nuclear waste management policy in France has always been to protect the worker and the public from unacceptable risks. The means and the structures developed to reach this objective, however, have evolved with time. One fact has come out ever more clearly over the years: Nuclear waste problems cannot be considered in a piecemeal fashion. The French nuclear waste management structure and policy aim at just this global approach. Responsibilities have been distributed between the main partners: the waste producers and conditioners, the research teams, the safety authorities, and the long-term waste manager, National Radioactive Waste Management Agency. The main technical options adopted for waste forms are embedding in hydraulic binders, bitumen, or thermosetting resins for low-level waste (LLW) and medium-level waste (MLW), and vitrification for high-level, liquid wastes. One shallow land disposal site for LLW and MLW has been in operation since 1969, the Centre of La Manche. Alpha-bearing and high-level waste will be disposed of by deep geological storage, possibly in granite formations. Further RandD aims mainly at improving present-day practices, developing more durable, long-term, alpha-bearing waste for all solid waste forms and going into all aspects of deep geological disposal characterization

Civil engineering challenge with nuclear waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Day, D.

1985-01-01

The civil engineer can help to solve the problems in disposing of nuclear waste in a deep geologic formation. The site for a nuclear waste repository must be carefully selected so that the geology provides the natural barrier between the waste and the accessible environment specified by the NRC and the EPA. This engineer is familiar with the needed structure and conditions of the host and surrounding rocks, and also the hydraulic mechanisms for limiting the migration of water in the rocks. To dispose of the nuclear waste underground requires stable and long-lasting shafts and tunnels such as civil engineers have designed and constructed for many other uses. The planning, design and construction of the ground surface facilities for a nuclear waste repository involves civil engineering in many ways. The transporation of heavy, metal shielded casks requires special attention to the system of highways and railroads accessing the repository. Structures for handling the shipping casks and transferring the waste onsite and into the deep geologic formation need special considerations. The structures must provide the NRC required containment, including hot cells for remote handling. Therefore, structural design strives for buildings, ventilation structures, shaft headframes, etc., to be earthquake and tornado-proof. These important design bases and considerations for the civil engineer working on a nuclear waste repository are discussed in this paper

NUCLEAR WASTE state-of-the-art reports 2004

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2004-01-01

The report is organized in three parts. First part: 'The nuclear waste question in international and Swedish perspective' takes up questions about how the handling of nuclear waste is organized. This part starts with an international overview of nuclear waste handling in several countries. The overview gives a hint about how countries look for solutions that are judged to be appropriate in the own country. The overview shows clearly that the responsibility for the nuclear waste includes both private and public operators, in varying degrees from country to country. A detailed review is presented of the Swedish process in the chapter 'The municipalities - major stakeholders in the nuclear waste issue'. In the light of the the international overview it is shown that great efforts are spent in order to reach mutual understanding and agreement at the local basis in the Swedish consultation procedure. Part two 'To handle nuclear waste risks: An overview over methods, problems and possibilities' contains an overview of our knowledge in estimating and handling risks and about methods to produce data for assessments associated with the disposal of nuclear waste from a scientific perspective. This part first presents two geoscientific methods that are used to calculate stability and hydraulic conductivity of the bedrock. In the chapter 'Fractioning of different isotopes' the possibility to consider properties of different isotopes for estimation of transport velocities of radioactive substances is discussed, for a repository for spent nuclear fuel or other radioactive wastes. In the chapter 'Copper canisters - production, sealing, durability' an overview is given of the methods used for manufacture and control of those copper canisters that constitute one of the protective barriers around the waste at geologic disposal according to the KBS-3-method. In the last chapter, an experiment to compare classification of radioactive wastes and chemical wastes, is discussed. 'The

Nuclear waste management. Pioneering solutions from Finland

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rasilainen, Kari

2016-01-01

Presentation outline: Background: Nuclear energy in Finland; Nuclear Waste Management (NWM) Experiences; Low and Intermediate Level Waste (LILW); High Level Waste - Deep Geological Repository (DGR); NWM cost estimate in Finland; Conclusions: World-leading expert services

Questioning nuclear waste substitution: a case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Marshall, Alan

2007-03-01

This article looks at the ethical quandaries, and their social and political context, which emerge as a result of international nuclear waste substitution. In particular it addresses the dilemmas inherent within the proposed return of nuclear waste owned by Japanese nuclear companies and currently stored in the United Kingdom. The UK company responsible for this waste, British Nuclear Fuels Limited (BNFL), wish to substitute this high volume intermediate-level Japanese-owned radioactive waste for a much lower volume of much more highly radioactive waste. Special focus is given to ethical problems that they, and the UK government, have not wished to address as they move forward with waste substitution. The conclusion is that waste substitution can only be considered an ethical practice if a set of moderating conditions are observed by all parties. These conditions are listed and, as of yet, they are not being observed.