Proposed Disposal Locations for Greater-Than-Class C Low-Level Radioactive Waste (GTCC LLRW)
DOE is planning to identify one or more locations for developing disposal capability for GTCC LLRW and GTCC-like waste using one or more disposal methods.
DOE has been assigned responsibility for developing disposal capability for GTCC LLRW. GTCC LLRW is LLRW generated in the commercial sector under licenses issued by NRC or Agreement States that have radionuclide concentrations exceeding the limits for Class C LLRW. No disposal capability is currently available for these wastes. DOE is planning to identify one or more locations for developing disposal capacity for GTCC LLRW using one or more disposal methods. The total volume (stored and projected) of GTCC LLRW is estimated to be about 7,300 m3.
DOE generates LLRW and transuranic (TRU) waste having characteristics similar to GTCC LLRW and which may not have an identified path to disposal (referred to as GTCC-like waste). The total volume (stored and projected) of GTCC-like waste is estimated to be about 3,700 m3. DOE is planning to address disposal needs for GTCC LLRW and GTCC-like waste (totalling about 11,000 m3) in this EIS.
Disposal Alternatives Proposed for Evaluation
DOE proposed to evaluate GTCC LLRW and GTCC-like waste disposal in a geologic repository, in intermediate depth boreholes, and in enhanced near surface facilities.
For deep geologic disposal, DOE intends to analyze disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico. For intermediate depth disposal and enhanced near surface disposal, DOE intends to evaluate disposal at new facilities at the Hanford Site in Washington, Idaho National Laboratory in Idaho, Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, Nevada Test Site in Nevada, Oak Ridge Reservation in Tennessee, Savannah River Site in South Carolina, and WIPP vicinity. Generic commercial locations or facilities will also be analyzed in the EIS to allow DOE to make a programmatic decision regarding the disposal of GTCC waste should one or more commercial facilities be identified at a later time.
In the GTCC LLRW EIS, DOE will describe the statutory and regulatory requirements for each disposal alternative and whether legislation or regulatory modifications may be needed to implement the alternative under consideration.
Potential DOE GTCC LLRW Disposal Sites Proposed for Analysis in the EIS
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP)
The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, or WIPP, is the world's first underground repository licensed to safely and permanently dispose of defense transuranic radioactive waste associated with the research and production of nuclear weapons. WIPP began operations on March 26, 1999, and is located in the remote Chihuahuan Desert of Southeastern New Mexico. WIPP project facilities include disposal rooms mined 2,150 feet underground in a 2,000-foot thick salt formation that has been stable for more than 200 million years.
For the WIPP Vicinity alternative, DOE will evaluate disposal of GTCC waste in a new enhanced near surface facility or intermediate depth borehole facility either within the WIPP Land Withdrawal perimeter which is under the jurisdiction of DOE or on government property in the vicinity of WIPP.
Hanford Site (Hanford)
The 586-square-mile Hanford Site (Hanford) is located along the Columbia River in southeastern Washington State. A plutonium production complex with nine nuclear reactors and associated processing facilities, Hanford played a pivotal role in the nation's defense for more than 40 years, beginning in the 1940s with the Manhattan Project. Today Hanford is engaged in a very large environmental cleanup project, with a number of overlapping technical, political, regulatory, financial and cultural issues.
Current waste management activities at Hanford include the treatment and disposal of LLRW on-site, processing and certification of transuranic waste pending disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, and the storage of high-level waste on-site pending disposal in a geologic repository. The Hanford 200 Area activities include operation of lined trenches for the disposal of LLRW and mixed LLRW (waste containing hazardous constituents in addition to radionuclides) and the Environmental Restoration Disposal Facility for the disposal of LLRW generated by environmental restoration activities that are being conducted to comply with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act.
Idaho National Laboratory (INL)
In operation since 1949, the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is a science-based, applied engineering national laboratory dedicated to supporting DOE's missions in nuclear and energy research, science, and national defense. INL consists of an 890-square-mile area in southeastern Idaho, along with laboratories and administrative buildings located in the city of Idaho Falls.
Current waste management activities at INL include the treatment and storage of mixed LLRW on-site, treatment and disposal of LLRW on-site, storage of transuranic waste on-site, and the storage of high-level waste and spent nuclear fuel on-site pending disposal in a geologic repository. These wastes originate from DOE activities, as well as from the on-site Naval Reactors Program. Low-level waste from INL site operations is disposed at the Subsurface Disposal Area at the Radioactive Waste Management Complex (RWMC). Storage and treatment of transuranic waste is also conducted at the RWMC to prepare the waste for disposal at the WIPP.
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL)
The Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) located in Los Alamos, New Mexico, is part of the National Nuclear Security Administration, and contributes to meeting the nation's nuclear deterrence capability and other security needs. The laboratory is one of the largest multidisciplinary institutions in the world.
Current waste management activities at LANL include the storage of mixed LLRW, disposal of LLRW on-site, and storage of transuranic waste on-site. The LANL Technical Area 54 Area G accepts on-site LLRW for disposal, although in special cases off-site waste has been accepted from DOE sites. Engineered shafts are actively used to dispose of remote-handled LLRW.
Nevada Test Site (NTS)
Covering 1,375 square miles, the Nevada Test Site (NTS) was initially established by the Atomic Energy Commission as a proving ground, and has seen more than four decades of nuclear weapons testing. Since the nuclear weapons testing moratorium in 1992, use of NTS land and facilities has diversified into many other programs such as stockpile stewardship, hazardous chemical spill testing, emergency response training, conventional weapons testing, environmental cleanup, and radioactive waste management.
Current radioactive waste management activities at the NTS include LLRW and mixed LLRW disposal and the temporary storage of transuranic waste destined for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant. LLRW and mixed LLRW received from on-site and off-site generators is currently disposed in engineered cells at the Area 5 Radioactive Waste Management Complex which is located in the southeastern portion of the NTS. Greater Confinement borehole was also used at the Area 5 facility for the disposal of LLRW and transuranic waste from 1984 through 1989.
Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR)
The Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR) is situated in eastern Tennessee, occupying 33,725 acres in and adjacent to the city of Oak Ridge. DOE operates three sites on the Reservation: the East Tennessee Technology Park (formerly the K-25 Site), Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and the Y-12 National Security Complex, which is under the National Nuclear Security Administration. The three sites are government-owned, contractor-operated facilities.
Current waste management activities at ORR include the treatment and storage of mixed LLRW on-site, treatment and disposal of LLRW on-site, management of transuranic waste on-site pending disposal, and treatment of hazardous waste on-site.
Savannah River Site (SRS)
The Savannah River Site (SRS) was established in the early 1950s as a nuclear materials production and processing center. It occupies about 200,000 acres in South Carolina adjacent to the Savannah River near Augusta, Georgia. None of the five production reactors on-site have operated since the early 1990s. The site is engaged in nuclear material stabilization and safe storage, liquid waste management including operation of the Defense Waste Processing Facility, and decontamination and decommissioning of surplus facilities. Several new facilities are planned for the SRS, including the Salt Waste Processing Facility and the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility.
Current waste management activities at SRS include shipping hazardous, mixed LLRW and transuranic waste off site for treatment and disposal. High-level waste is stored pending disposal in a geologic repository. LLRW is treated and disposed of on site as well as at other DOE or commercial facilities. In addition, mixed LLRW may be treated and stored prior to shipping offsite. Other on site activities includes treatment of LLRW prior to disposal and preparation of transuranic waste for shipment to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant for disposal. Onsite disposal facilities at SRS include engineered vaults for the permanent disposal of solid LLRW including one for low-activity waste (waste having surface dose rates of less than 200 mrem/hour) and one for intermediate-activity waste (waste having surface dose rates of greater than 200 mrem/hour), and engineered trenches for LLRW not requiring more stringent isolation form the environment.
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