Page 32 - Nuclear Plant Journal Digital Edition: January - February 2013
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Nuclear Plant Journal, January-February 2013
deployment of the system elements noted
above. Legislation should also include the
requirements for consent-based siting; a
reformed funding approach that provides
sufficient and timely resources; and the
establishment of a new organization to
implement the program, the structure of
which should balance greater autonomy
with the need for continued Executive
and Legislative branch oversight. The
Administration looks forward to engaging
Congress on comprehensive legislation to
move forward on this important national
responsibility.
In the meantime, the Administration,
through the Department of Energy (DOE),
is undertaking activities within existing
Congressional authorization to plan for
the eventual transportation, storage, and
disposal of used nuclear fuel. Activities
range from examining waste management
system design concepts, to developing
plans for consent-based siting processes,
to conducting research and development
on the suitability of various geologies for
a repository. These activities are designed
to not limit the options of either the
Administration or Congress and could be
transferred to the new waste management
and disposal organization when it is
established.
Background
TheNWPAestablished a broad policy
framework for the permanent disposal
of used nuclear fuel and high-level
radioactive waste derived from nuclear
power generation. The NWPA authorized
the government to enter into contracts
with reactor operators – the generators
and current owners of used nuclear fuel
– providing that, in exchange for the
payment of fees, the government would
assume responsibility for permanent
disposal. The fees were to ensure that the
reactor owners and power generators pay
the full cost of the disposal of their used
nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive
waste. The federal government did not
meet its contractual obligation to begin
accepting used nuclear fuel by 1998. As a
result of litigation by contract holders, the
government was found in partial breach
of contract, and is now liable for damages
to some utilities to cover the costs of on-
site, at-reactor storage.
Currently more than 68,000 metric
tons heavy metal (MTHM) of used
nuclear fuel are stored at 72 commercial
power plants around the country with
approximately 2,000 MTHM added
to that amount every year. The sooner
that legislation enables progress on
implementing this Strategy, the lower
the ultimate cost will be to the taxpayers.
This document outlines a strategy that is
intended to limit, and then end, liability
costs by making it possible for the
government to begin performing on its
contractual obligations.
The NWPA specified a process
for evaluating sites for a repository.
The Administration concurs with the
conclusion of the BRC that a fundamental
flaw of the 1987 amendments to the
NWPA was the imposition of a site for
characterization, rather than directing
a siting process that is, as the BRC
recommends, “explicitly adaptive, staged,
and consent-based…” In practical terms,
this means encouraging communities
to volunteer to be considered to host a
nuclear waste management facility while
also allowing for the waste management
organization to approach communities
that it believes can meet the siting
requirements. Under such an arrangement,
communities could volunteer to provide a
consolidated interim storage facility and a
repository in expectation of the economic
activity that would result from the siting,
construction, and operation of such a
facility in their communities.
In addition to commercial used
nuclear fuel, high-level radioactive wastes
that are the by-products of the production
of the nation’s nuclear weapons and used
fuel from the Navy’s nuclear powered
combat vessels also require a defined
disposal path. These wastes are currently
stored at sites in Idaho, South Carolina,
and Washington. Also, significant
quantities of weapons-capable plutonium
and highly enriched uranium have
become surplus to our national security
needs, and in some form will be destined
for disposal in a repository.
Strategy Elements
This Strategy provides a basis for the
Administration to work with Congress
to design and implement a program to
meet the government’s obligation to take
title to and permanently dispose of used
nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive
waste. It also provides near-term steps to
be implemented by DOE System Design.
The Administration supports an
approach to system design that integrates
consent-based siting principles and
makes progress in demonstrating the
federal commitment to addressing used
nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive
waste disposal, including building
the capability to begin executing that
commitment within the next 10 years. The
Administration supports a nuclear waste
management system with the following
elements:
A pilot interim storage facility with
•
limited capacity capable of accepting
used nuclear fuel and high-level
radioactive waste and initially
focused on serving shut-down reactor
sites;
A larger, consolidated interim storage
•
facility, potentially co-located with
the pilot facility and with a geologic
repository, that provides the needed
flexibility in the waste management
system and allows for important
near-term progress in implementing
the federal commitment; and
A permanent geologic repository for
•
the disposal of used nuclear fuel and
high-level radioactive waste.
The objective is to implement a
flexible waste management system
incrementally in order to ensure safe
and secure operations, gain trust among
stakeholders, and adapt operations based
on lessons learned. The Administration
agrees with the Blue Ribbon Commission
that a consent-based siting process offers
the promise of sustainable decisions for
both storage and disposal facilities.
Implementation
Critical elements for successful
implementation of this Strategy include
the establishment of a consent-based
siting process, a new organization to
execute the waste management mission
and implementation of a process for long-
term, stable funding. The design of both
the new organization and the funding
source should strike an appropriate
balance between independence of the new
organization and the need for oversight
by Congress and the Executive branch.
High-Level...
