Department of Energy May 11, 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is providing advance notice of its intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) on the disposal of Greater-Than-Class-C (GTCC) low-level radioactive waste (LLW) generated by activities licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The primary purpose of this EIS is to address the disposal of wastes with concentrations greater than Class C, as defined in NRC regulations at 10 CFR part 61, resulting from NRC or Agreement State licensed activities (hereafter referred to as NRC licensed activities). DOE also plans to review its waste inventories with a view toward including those wastes with characteristics similar to GTCC waste and which otherwise do not have a path to disposal in the scope of the EIS, as appropriate. DOE intends that this EIS will enable DOE to select any new or existing disposal locations, facilities, and methods for disposal of GTCC LLW and DOE waste with similar characteristics. The Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1985 (LLRWPAA) assigned to the Federal Government responsibility for the disposal of GTCC radioactive waste. This EIS will evaluate alternative locations and methods for disposal of these wastes. Potential disposal locations include deep geologic disposal facilities; existing LLW disposal facilities, both commercial and DOE; and new facilities at DOE or other government sites, or on private land. Methods to be considered include deep geologic disposal, greater confinement disposal configurations, and enhanced near-surface disposal facilities. DOE is issuing this Advance Notice of Intent (ANOI), pursuant to 10 CFR 1021.311(b), in order to inform, and request early comments from, the public and interested agencies about the proposed action, the preliminary range of alternatives, and the potential issues related to DOE's decisions for this category of waste. Following the issuance of this ANOI, DOE intends to conduct further activities to collect updated information from licensees and DOE sites on waste characteristics and projections to support the EIS analysis. As part of that effort, DOE may seek assistance from industry trade associations, Agreement States, NRC, and other appropriate entities. DOE intends to invite the NRC and the Environmental Protection Agency to participate as cooperating agencies in the preparation of this EIS.