Nuclear Waste

Congressional interest in nuclear waste is generally focused on managing commercial spent nuclear fuel (SNF), the waste produced from commercial nuclear power plants, and other high-level nuclear wastes (HLW), largely from Cold War-era nuclear weapons materials production. Chapter 1 examines the management of spent nuclear fuel, concerns related to the storage of nuclear waste, and the need for long-term solutions. Chapter 2 discusses a permanent geologic repository for disposal of commercial spent nuclear fuel and other high-level nuclear wastes. Chapter 3 is a draft of a bill to find a solution for the safe disposal of nuclear waste. The United States currently has no permanent disposal facility for spent nuclear fuel or other highly radioactive waste. The draft makes critical reforms to our Nation's nuclear waste management policy. Chapter 4 reports on The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (NWPA) which calls for disposal of spent nuclear fuel in a deep geologic repository. Chapter 5 examines the extent to which the Office of Environmental Management's (EM's) management of the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit follows selected project management best practices; challenges EM faces in disposing of the sodium-bearing waste; and challenges EM faces in treating and disposing of the calcine waste.