The Department of Energy on Thursday released its final environmental impact statement on disposal options for greater-than-class C (GTCC) waste and GTCC-like waste, opting for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico and/or land disposal at generic commercial facilities.
The EIS evaluated potential environmental impacts associated with constructing and operating new facilities or using existing sites for disposal of GTCC and GTCC-like waste. The WIPP geologic repository, which is located near the city of Carlsbad, was drawn from a list that also included the Hanford Site in Washington state; the Idaho National Laboratory; the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico; the Nevada National Security Site; and the Savannah River Site in South Carolina. The department explored various disposal methods, including geologic repository, intermediate-depth boreholes, enhanced near-surface trenches, and above-grade vaults.
“DOE has determined the preferred alternative would satisfy its needs for the disposal of GTCC and GTCC-like waste,” DOE said in a statement.
GTCC waste is low-level radioactive waste (LLRW) with concentrations of radionuclides that exceed the limits for Class C LLRW established by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Currently there is no disposal capability for GTCC waste, which is commercially generated. The Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1985 dictated that the federal government is responsible for the disposal of GTCC LLRW.
Now that DOE has completed the EIS, it will submit a report to Congress on the alternatives that were considered, and lawmakers will make the final selection on the disposal destination. In 2011, the department issued a draft EIS, estimating total GTCC waste around the country at about 1,100 cubic meters, while projecting annual production of about 175 cubic meters from DOE and commercial activities over the next 60 years.
As a form of low-level waste, GTCC waste is a residual project of high-level waste and is produced through almost any activity involving radioactive materials. The waste comes from processing, creation, or handling of radioactive materials, including chemical conversions or separations and nuclear fabrication.
