Jeremy L. Dillon
RW Monitor
2/7/2014
Waste Control Specialists has received the first of three Type B casks— capable of shipping Class B and C low-level radioactive waste—and will begin entering into contracts with customers for its cask transportation services. The new casks, manufactured by Robatel, fill a glaring industry need as only four casks are currently in rotation to ship Class B and C low-level waste, and no new casks have been designed and built in the last 30 years. “The first of our three new casks is on the site and ready for operations,” WCS spokesman Chuck McDonald told RW Monitor this week. “We are only awaiting final Nuclear Regulatory Commission certification of compliance, and we expect to begin transportation services in the near future. WCS has begun entering contracts with customers for its cask transportation services.”
According to McDonald, the other two casks should be delivered by May of this year. “Ultimately, WCS will operate a fleet of three of these cask, tractor & trailer sets,” McDonald said. “The second one should arrive in April, followed by the last one in May.”
Casks Specifics
According to McDonald, this cask is larger than anything currently in use in the United States. The internal volume is 160 cubic feet, and the shielding limit is 500 R/hour. The cask stands 11 feet high with a diameter of 8.5 feet. The cask weighs 76,500 pounds empty and has a maximum payload of 15,000 pounds. Fully loaded, the cask and trailer will be up to 13-feet high and weigh over 120,000 pounds, McDonald said. Intrastate Ventures will be responsible for hauling the trucks with a team of drivers and escorts. The trailer itself is 64.5 feet long, but McDonald said it has a front and back segment that can be removed for easier maneuverability at plant sites.
WCS’s new Type-B Cask. Photo provided by WCS
