Notice of Availability of Draft Waste Incidental to Reprocessing Evaluation for Vitrified Low Activity Waste for Onsite Disposal at the Hanford Site, Washington, 31479-31481 [2020-11192]

Download as PDF Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 101 / Tuesday, May 26, 2020 / Notices extending the deadline date for transmittal of applications in order to allow applicants more time to prepare and submit their applications. Additionally, the NIA indicated that proof of approval of all modifications to court-ordered desegregation plans could be submitted to the Department following the application due date. The new deadline for proof of modifications is July 28, 2020. Please also note that Grants.gov has relaxed the requirement for applicants to have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) in order to apply for funding during the COVID–19 pandemic. An applicant that does not have an active SAM registration can still register with Grants.gov, but must contact the Grants.gov Support Desk, toll-free, at 1– 800–518–4726, in order to take advantage of this flexibility. Note: While applications must be transmitted in the FY 2020 year, which ends on September 30, 2020, any awards granted will be made only after all applicable reviews and certifications have been completed. All other information in the NIA for this competition remains the same, except for the deadline for the transmittal of applications, intergovernmental review, and proof of modified desegregation plans, if court ordered. Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 7231– 7231j. Accessible Format: Individuals with disabilities can obtain this document and a copy of the application package in an accessible format (e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, or compact disc) on request to the program contact person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this document is the document published in the Federal Register. You may access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations at www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can view this document, as well as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal Register, in text or Portable Document Format (PDF). To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the site. You may also access documents of the Department published in the Federal Register by using the article search feature at: www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search feature at this site, you can limit VerDate Sep<11>2014 19:08 May 22, 2020 Jkt 250001 your search to documents published by the Department. Frank T. Brogan, Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education. [FR Doc. 2020–11212 Filed 5–22–20; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4000–01–P DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Environmental Management SiteSpecific Advisory Board, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, Department of Energy. ACTION: Notice of open meeting. AGENCY: This notice announces a meeting of the Environmental Management Site-Specific Advisory Board (EM SSAB), Oak Ridge. The Federal Advisory Committee Act requires that public notice of this meeting be announced in the Federal Register. DATES: Wednesday, June 10, 2020; 6:00 p.m. ADDRESSES: DOE Information Center, Office of Science and Technical Information, 1 Science.gov Way, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melyssa P. Noe, Alternate Deputy Designated Federal Officer, U.S. Department of Energy, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM), P.O. Box 2001, EM–942, Oak Ridge, TN 37831. Phone (865) 241–3315; Fax (865) 241–6932; E-Mail: Melyssa.Noe@ orem.doe.gov. Or visit the website at https://www.energy.gov/orem/services/ community-engagement/oak-ridge-sitespecific-advisory-board. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Purpose of the Board: The purpose of the Board is to make recommendations to DOE–EM and site management in the areas of environmental restoration, waste management, and related activities. SUMMARY: Tentative Agenda • Welcome and Announcements • Comments from the Deputy Designated Federal Officer (DDFO) • Comments from the DOE, Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, and Environmental Protection Agency Liaisons • Presentation: East Tennessee Technology Park Main Plant Groundwater Remedy Selections • Public Comment Period • Motions/Approval of February 12, 2020 Meeting Minutes • Status of Outstanding Recommendations PO 00000 Frm 00049 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 31479 • Alternate DDFO Report • Committee Reports • Adjourn Public Participation: The meeting is open to the public. The EM SSAB, Oak Ridge, welcomes the attendance of the public at its advisory committee meetings and will make every effort to accommodate persons with physical disabilities or special needs. If you require special accommodations due to a disability, please contact Melyssa P. Noe at least seven days in advance of the meeting at the telephone number listed above. Written statements may be filed with the Board either before or after the meeting. Individuals who wish to make oral statements pertaining to the agenda item should contact Melyssa P. Noe at the address or telephone number listed above. Requests must be received five days prior to the meeting and reasonable provision will be made to include the presentation in the agenda. The Deputy Designated Federal Officer is empowered to conduct the meeting in a fashion that will facilitate the orderly conduct of business. Individuals wishing to make public comments will be provided a maximum of five minutes to present their comments. Minutes: Minutes will be available by writing or calling Melyssa P. Noe at the address and phone number listed above. Minutes will also be available at the following website: https:// www.energy.gov/orem/listings/oakridge-site-specific-advisory-boardmeetings. Signed in Washington, DC, on May 19, 2020. LaTanya Butler, Deputy Committee Management Officer. [FR Doc. 2020–11189 Filed 5–22–20; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6450–01–P DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Notice of Availability of Draft Waste Incidental to Reprocessing Evaluation for Vitrified Low Activity Waste for Onsite Disposal at the Hanford Site, Washington U.S. Department of Energy. Notice of availability. AGENCY: ACTION: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announces the availability of the Draft Waste Incidental to Reprocessing Evaluation for Vitrified Low Activity Waste Disposed Onsite at the Hanford Site, Washington (Draft WIR Evaluation). The Draft WIR Evaluation demonstrates that the vitrified low activity waste (VLAW), from which long-lived insoluble SUMMARY: E:\FR\FM\26MYN1.SGM 26MYN1 31480 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 101 / Tuesday, May 26, 2020 / Notices radionuclides and cesium has been or will be removed before vitrification at the Low Activity Waste Vitrification Facility and subsequent disposal onsite at the Integrated Disposal Facility (IDF), is waste that is incidental to reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel, is not high-level radioactive waste (HLW), and may be managed (disposed of onsite) as mixed low-level radioactive waste (MLLW). DOE prepared the Draft WIR Evaluation pursuant to DOE Order 435.1, Radioactive Waste Management, and the criteria in DOE Manual 435.1– 1, Radioactive Waste Management Manual. DOE is consulting with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) before finalizing this evaluation. DOE is also making the Draft WIR Evaluation available for comments from States, Tribal Nations, stakeholders and the public. After consultation with NRC, carefully considering comments received, and performing any necessary revisions of analyses and technical documents, DOE will prepare a final WIR evaluation. Based on the final WIR Evaluation, DOE may determine, in a future WIR Determination, whether the VLAW is incidental to reprocessing, is non-HLW, and may be managed (disposed of onsite at the IDF) as MLLW. DATES: DOE invites comments on the Draft WIR Evaluation during a 120-day comment period beginning May 26, 2020, and ending on September 26, 2020. DOE will consider all comments received by September 26, 2020. DOE will also consider comments received after that date to the extent practical. A public webex meeting on the Draft WIR Evaluation will be held on June 10, 2020. Before the meeting, DOE will issue stakeholder and media notifications and publish an additional notice in the local newspaper providing the date, time, and webex information of the public meeting. Information on the public meeting date and webex information also will be available before the meeting at the website listed in https://www.hanford.gov/ pageAction.cfm/calendar. ADDRESSES: The Draft WIR Evaluation is available on the internet at https:// www.hanford.gov/page.cfm/ VitrifiedLowActivityWaste and will be publicly available for review at the following locations once these facilities re-open following resolution of public health concerns associated with the coronavirus: U.S. DOE Public Reading Room, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585, phone: (202) 586–5955, or fax: (202) 586–0575; and U.S. DOE Public Reading Room located at 2770 University Drive, Consolidated VerDate Sep<11>2014 19:08 May 22, 2020 Jkt 250001 Information Center (CIC), Room 101L, Richland, WA 99354, phone: (509) 372– 7303. Written comments should be submitted to: Ms. Jennifer Colborn, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of River Protection, 2440 Stevens Drive, Richland, WA 99354. Alternatively, comments may also be filed electronically by email to: VLAWDraftWIR@rl.gov. For further information about this Draft WIR Evaluation, please contact Ms. DaBrisha Smith by mail at U.S. Department of Energy, Office of River Protection, 2440 Stevens Drive, Richland, WA 99354, by phone at 509–376–4306, or by email at dabrisha_m_smith@orp.doe.gov. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The Hanford site currently stores radioactive waste in underground storage tanks. The waste was generated, in part, by the prior reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel during the Manhattan Project and Cold War eras, for defense-related nuclear research, development and weaponsproduction activities. Hanford’s current mission focuses on the cleanup and remediation of those wastes and ultimate closure of the site. As part of that mission, DOE is retrieving waste from the Hanford tanks, and has decided to separate the tank waste into a low-activity waste stream and a highlevel radioactive waste stream. The Draft WIR Evaluation concerns approximately 23.5 million gallons (Mgal) of separated, pretreated and vitrified low activity waste (VLAW), from some of the underground tanks at the Hanford Site in the State of Washington. For the low-activity tank waste at issue in this Draft WIR Evaluation, DOE plans to use the directfeed low-activity waste (DFLAW) approach. The DFLAW approach is a two-phased approach that will separate and pretreat supernate (essentially the upper-most layer of tank waste that contains low concentrations of longlived radionuclides) from the Hanford tanks, to generate a low-activity waste (LAW) stream. For Phase 1, the DFLAW approach will begin with in-tank settling, separation (removal by decanting) of the supernate (including dissolved saltcake and interstitial liquids), filtration, and then cesium removal using ion-exchange columns in a tank-side cesium removal (TSCR) unit. For Phase 2, DOE will treat additional supernate (including dissolved saltcake and interstitial liquids) using the same processes with either an additional TSCR unit or a filtration and cesium removal facility. The DFLAW approach is expected to remove more than 99% of SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: PO 00000 Frm 00050 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 the cesium and remove other key radionuclides. After pretreatment, the LAW stream will be sent by transfer lines to the Low Activity Waste Vitrification Facility at the Hanford Site, where it will be vitrified (immobilized in borosilicate glass). Approximately 13,500 containers of vitrified waste will be produced using the DFLAW approach. DOE plans to dispose of the pretreated and vitrified LAW in the onsite IDF, a land disposal facility at the Hanford Site for MLLW. DOE Manual 435.1–1, which accompanies DOE Order 435.1, Radioactive Waste Management, provides for a rigorous evaluation process that DOE uses to determine whether or not certain waste from the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel is incidental to reprocessing, is not HLW and may be managed as LLW. This process, in relevant part, requires demonstrating that: (1) The wastes have been processed, or will be processed, to remove key radionuclides to the maximum extent that is technically and economically practical; (2) The waste will be managed to meet safety requirements comparable to the performance objectives set out in 10 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 61, Subpart C, Performance Objectives; and (3) The waste will be managed, pursuant to DOE authority under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and in accordance with the provisions of Chapter IV of DOE Manual 435.1–1, provided the waste will be incorporated in a solid physical form at a concentration that does not exceed the applicable concentration limits for Class C LLW as set out in 10 CFR 61.55, Waste Classification. The Draft WIR Evaluation documents and demonstrates that the disposal of VLAW at IDF will meet the abovereferenced criteria in DOE Manual 435.1–1. DOE is predicating this Draft WIR Evaluation on extensive analysis and scientific rationale, using a riskinformed approach, including analyses presented in the ‘‘Performance Assessment for the Integrated Disposal Facility, Hanford Site, Washington’’ (IDF PA). Specifically, this Draft WIR Evaluation shows that key radionuclides (those radionuclides which contribute most significantly to radiological dose to workers, the public, and the environment as well as radionuclides listed in 10 CFR 61.55) have been or will have been removed to the maximum extent technically and economically practical. Based on the analyses in the IDF PA, this Draft WIR Evaluation also projects that potential E:\FR\FM\26MYN1.SGM 26MYN1 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 101 / Tuesday, May 26, 2020 / Notices doses to a hypothetical member of the public and hypothetical inadvertent intruder for 1,000 years (and beyond) after IDF closure will be well below the doses specified in the performance objectives and performance measures for LLW. In addition, the analyses demonstrate that there is reasonable expectation that safety requirements comparable to the NRC performance objectives at 10 CFR part 61, subpart C will have been met. As also shown in the Draft WIR Evaluation, the VLAW will have been incorporated into a solid form that does not exceed concentration limits for Class C LLW. DOE is consulting with NRC on this Draft WIR Evaluation and also making the Draft WIR Evaluation available for comments from the States, Tribal Nations, stakeholders and the public. After consultation with NRC, carefully considering comments received, and performing any necessary revisions of analyses and technical documents, DOE plans to issue a final WIR Evaluation. Based on the final WIR Evaluation, DOE may determine, in a future WIR Determination, whether the VLAW is incidental to reprocessing, is non-HLW, and may be managed (disposed of onsite at IDF) as LLW. Signing Authority This document of the Department of Energy was signed on May 15, 2020, by Elizabeth A. Connell, Associate Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Regulatory and Policy Affairs, pursuant to delegated authority from the Secretary of Energy. That document with the original signature and date is maintained by DOE. For administrative purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DOE Federal Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit the document in electronic format for publication, as an official document of the Department of Energy. This administrative process in no way alters the legal effect of this document upon publication in the Federal Register. Signed in Washington, DC, on May 20, 2020. Treena V. Garrett, Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy. [FR Doc. 2020–11192 Filed 5–22–20; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6450–01–P VerDate Sep<11>2014 19:08 May 22, 2020 Jkt 250001 DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY [Case Number 2019–004; EERE–2019–BT– WAV–0009] Energy Conservation Program: Decision and Order Granting a Waiver to GD Midea Air Conditioning Equipment Co. LTD. From the Department of Energy Room Air Conditioner Test Procedure Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of Energy. ACTION: Notice of decision and order. AGENCY: The U.S. Department of Energy (‘‘DOE’’) gives notice of a Decision and Order (Case Number 2019–004) that grants to GD Midea Air Conditioning Equipment Co. LTD. (‘‘Midea’’) a waiver from specified portions of the DOE test procedure for determining the energy efficiency of specified room air conditioner basic models. Under the Decision and Order, Midea is required to test and rate the specified basic models of its room air conditioners in accordance with the alternate test procedure specified in the Decision and Order. DATES: The Decision and Order is effective on May 26, 2020. The Decision and Order will terminate upon the compliance date of any future amendment to the test procedure for room air conditioners located at title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (‘‘CFR’’), part 430, subpart B, appendix F that addresses the issues presented in this waiver. At that time, Midea must use the relevant test procedure for this product for any testing to demonstrate compliance with the applicable standards, and any representations of energy use. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Lucy deButts, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Building Technologies Office, EE–5B, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585–0121. Email: AS_Waiver_ Requests@ee.doe.gov. Ms. Sarah Butler, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the General Counsel, Mail Stop GC–33, Forrestal Building, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585–0103. Telephone: (202) 586–1777. Email: Sarah.Butler@hq.doe.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR 430.27(f)(2)), DOE gives notice of the issuance of its Decision and Order as set forth below. The Decision and Order grants Midea a waiver from the SUMMARY: PO 00000 Frm 00051 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 31481 applicable test procedure at 10 CFR part 430, subpart B, appendix F for specified basic models of room air conditioners and provides that Midea must test and rate such room air conditioners using the alternate test procedure specified in the Decision and Order. Midea’s representations concerning the energy efficiency of the specified basic models must be based on testing according to the provisions and restrictions in the alternate test procedure set forth in the Decision and Order, and the representations must fairly disclose the test results. Distributors, retailers, and private labelers also must comply with the same requirements when making representations regarding the energy efficiency of these products. (42 U.S.C. 6293(c)) Manufacturers not currently distributing room air conditioners in commerce in the United States that employ a technology or characteristic that results in the same need for a waiver from the applicable test procedure must petition for and be granted a waiver prior to the distribution in commerce of those products in the United States. 10 CFR 430.27(j). Manufacturers may also submit a request for interim waiver pursuant to the requirements of 10 CFR 430.27. Signing Authority This document of the Department of Energy was signed on May 8, 2020, by Alexander N. Fitzsimmons, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, pursuant to delegated authority from the Secretary of Energy. That document with the original signature and date is maintained by DOE. For administrative purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DOE Federal Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit the document in electronic format for publication, as an official document of the Department of Energy. This administrative process in no way alters the legal effect of this document upon publication in the Federal Register. E:\FR\FM\26MYN1.SGM 26MYN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 101 (Tuesday, May 26, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31479-31481]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-11192]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY


Notice of Availability of Draft Waste Incidental to Reprocessing 
Evaluation for Vitrified Low Activity Waste for Onsite Disposal at the 
Hanford Site, Washington

AGENCY: U.S. Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announces the availability 
of the Draft Waste Incidental to Reprocessing Evaluation for Vitrified 
Low Activity Waste Disposed Onsite at the Hanford Site, Washington 
(Draft WIR Evaluation). The Draft WIR Evaluation demonstrates that the 
vitrified low activity waste (VLAW), from which long-lived insoluble

[[Page 31480]]

radionuclides and cesium has been or will be removed before 
vitrification at the Low Activity Waste Vitrification Facility and 
subsequent disposal onsite at the Integrated Disposal Facility (IDF), 
is waste that is incidental to reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel, is 
not high-level radioactive waste (HLW), and may be managed (disposed of 
onsite) as mixed low-level radioactive waste (MLLW). DOE prepared the 
Draft WIR Evaluation pursuant to DOE Order 435.1, Radioactive Waste 
Management, and the criteria in DOE Manual 435.1-1, Radioactive Waste 
Management Manual. DOE is consulting with the Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission (NRC) before finalizing this evaluation. DOE is also making 
the Draft WIR Evaluation available for comments from States, Tribal 
Nations, stakeholders and the public. After consultation with NRC, 
carefully considering comments received, and performing any necessary 
revisions of analyses and technical documents, DOE will prepare a final 
WIR evaluation. Based on the final WIR Evaluation, DOE may determine, 
in a future WIR Determination, whether the VLAW is incidental to 
reprocessing, is non-HLW, and may be managed (disposed of onsite at the 
IDF) as MLLW.

DATES: DOE invites comments on the Draft WIR Evaluation during a 120-
day comment period beginning May 26, 2020, and ending on September 26, 
2020. DOE will consider all comments received by September 26, 2020. 
DOE will also consider comments received after that date to the extent 
practical. A public webex meeting on the Draft WIR Evaluation will be 
held on June 10, 2020. Before the meeting, DOE will issue stakeholder 
and media notifications and publish an additional notice in the local 
newspaper providing the date, time, and webex information of the public 
meeting. Information on the public meeting date and webex information 
also will be available before the meeting at the website listed in 
https://www.hanford.gov/pageAction.cfm/calendar.

ADDRESSES: The Draft WIR Evaluation is available on the internet at 
https://www.hanford.gov/page.cfm/VitrifiedLowActivityWaste and will be 
publicly available for review at the following locations once these 
facilities re-open following resolution of public health concerns 
associated with the coronavirus: U.S. DOE Public Reading Room, 1000 
Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585, phone: (202) 586-5955, or 
fax: (202) 586-0575; and U.S. DOE Public Reading Room located at 2770 
University Drive, Consolidated Information Center (CIC), Room 101L, 
Richland, WA 99354, phone: (509) 372-7303. Written comments should be 
submitted to: Ms. Jennifer Colborn, U.S. Department of Energy, Office 
of River Protection, 2440 Stevens Drive, Richland, WA 99354. 
Alternatively, comments may also be filed electronically by email to: 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information about this 
Draft WIR Evaluation, please contact Ms. DaBrisha Smith by mail at U.S. 
Department of Energy, Office of River Protection, 2440 Stevens Drive, 
Richland, WA 99354, by phone at 509-376-4306, or by email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Hanford site currently stores 
radioactive waste in underground storage tanks. The waste was 
generated, in part, by the prior reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel 
during the Manhattan Project and Cold War eras, for defense-related 
nuclear research, development and weapons-production activities. 
Hanford's current mission focuses on the cleanup and remediation of 
those wastes and ultimate closure of the site. As part of that mission, 
DOE is retrieving waste from the Hanford tanks, and has decided to 
separate the tank waste into a low-activity waste stream and a high-
level radioactive waste stream.
    The Draft WIR Evaluation concerns approximately 23.5 million 
gallons (Mgal) of separated, pretreated and vitrified low activity 
waste (VLAW), from some of the underground tanks at the Hanford Site in 
the State of Washington. For the low-activity tank waste at issue in 
this Draft WIR Evaluation, DOE plans to use the direct-feed low-
activity waste (DFLAW) approach. The DFLAW approach is a two-phased 
approach that will separate and pretreat supernate (essentially the 
upper-most layer of tank waste that contains low concentrations of 
long-lived radionuclides) from the Hanford tanks, to generate a low-
activity waste (LAW) stream. For Phase 1, the DFLAW approach will begin 
with in-tank settling, separation (removal by decanting) of the 
supernate (including dissolved saltcake and interstitial liquids), 
filtration, and then cesium removal using ion-exchange columns in a 
tank-side cesium removal (TSCR) unit. For Phase 2, DOE will treat 
additional supernate (including dissolved saltcake and interstitial 
liquids) using the same processes with either an additional TSCR unit 
or a filtration and cesium removal facility. The DFLAW approach is 
expected to remove more than 99% of the cesium and remove other key 
radionuclides.
    After pretreatment, the LAW stream will be sent by transfer lines 
to the Low Activity Waste Vitrification Facility at the Hanford Site, 
where it will be vitrified (immobilized in borosilicate glass). 
Approximately 13,500 containers of vitrified waste will be produced 
using the DFLAW approach. DOE plans to dispose of the pretreated and 
vitrified LAW in the onsite IDF, a land disposal facility at the 
Hanford Site for MLLW.
    DOE Manual 435.1-1, which accompanies DOE Order 435.1, Radioactive 
Waste Management, provides for a rigorous evaluation process that DOE 
uses to determine whether or not certain waste from the reprocessing of 
spent nuclear fuel is incidental to reprocessing, is not HLW and may be 
managed as LLW. This process, in relevant part, requires demonstrating 
that:
    (1) The wastes have been processed, or will be processed, to remove 
key radionuclides to the maximum extent that is technically and 
economically practical;
    (2) The waste will be managed to meet safety requirements 
comparable to the performance objectives set out in 10 Code of Federal 
Regulations (CFR) Part 61, Subpart C, Performance Objectives; and
    (3) The waste will be managed, pursuant to DOE authority under the 
Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and in accordance with the 
provisions of Chapter IV of DOE Manual 435.1-1, provided the waste will 
be incorporated in a solid physical form at a concentration that does 
not exceed the applicable concentration limits for Class C LLW as set 
out in 10 CFR 61.55, Waste Classification.
    The Draft WIR Evaluation documents and demonstrates that the 
disposal of VLAW at IDF will meet the above-referenced criteria in DOE 
Manual 435.1-1. DOE is predicating this Draft WIR Evaluation on 
extensive analysis and scientific rationale, using a risk-informed 
approach, including analyses presented in the ``Performance Assessment 
for the Integrated Disposal Facility, Hanford Site, Washington'' (IDF 
PA). Specifically, this Draft WIR Evaluation shows that key 
radionuclides (those radionuclides which contribute most significantly 
to radiological dose to workers, the public, and the environment as 
well as radionuclides listed in 10 CFR 61.55) have been or will have 
been removed to the maximum extent technically and economically 
practical. Based on the analyses in the IDF PA, this Draft WIR 
Evaluation also projects that potential

[[Page 31481]]

doses to a hypothetical member of the public and hypothetical 
inadvertent intruder for 1,000 years (and beyond) after IDF closure 
will be well below the doses specified in the performance objectives 
and performance measures for LLW. In addition, the analyses demonstrate 
that there is reasonable expectation that safety requirements 
comparable to the NRC performance objectives at 10 CFR part 61, subpart 
C will have been met. As also shown in the Draft WIR Evaluation, the 
VLAW will have been incorporated into a solid form that does not exceed 
concentration limits for Class C LLW.
    DOE is consulting with NRC on this Draft WIR Evaluation and also 
making the Draft WIR Evaluation available for comments from the States, 
Tribal Nations, stakeholders and the public. After consultation with 
NRC, carefully considering comments received, and performing any 
necessary revisions of analyses and technical documents, DOE plans to 
issue a final WIR Evaluation. Based on the final WIR Evaluation, DOE 
may determine, in a future WIR Determination, whether the VLAW is 
incidental to reprocessing, is non-HLW, and may be managed (disposed of 
onsite at IDF) as LLW.

Signing Authority

    This document of the Department of Energy was signed on May 15, 
2020, by Elizabeth A. Connell, Associate Principal Deputy Assistant 
Secretary for Regulatory and Policy Affairs, pursuant to delegated 
authority from the Secretary of Energy. That document with the original 
signature and date is maintained by DOE. For administrative purposes 
only, and in compliance with requirements of the Office of the Federal 
Register, the undersigned DOE Federal Register Liaison Officer has been 
authorized to sign and submit the document in electronic format for 
publication, as an official document of the Department of Energy. This 
administrative process in no way alters the legal effect of this 
document upon publication in the Federal Register.

    Signed in Washington, DC, on May 20, 2020.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2020-11192 Filed 5-22-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P


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