[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Yucca Mountain timeline
fyi
background info.
norm
> RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL 1/11/2002
>
> http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2002/01/11/5740.php
>
> 1946: Atomic Energy Act establishes a federal monopoly over the use,
> control, and ownership of nuclear technology.
>
> 1955: The U.S. Atomic Energy Commission asks the National Academy of
> Sciences to study disposal methods for radioactive wastes from nuclear
> weapons production in the United States. (AEC was disbanded in 1974, and
> some of its functions eventually became the responsibility of the Department
> of Energy, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Environmental
> Protection Agency.)
>
> 1957: An NAS report to the AEC recommends that transuranic and high-level
> radioactive wastes be buried in geologic formations and that the feasibility
> of using salt beds or salt domes as a disposal medium be investigated.
>
> 1964: Congress amends Atomic Energy Act to allow private ownership of
> nuclear materials (i.e., fuel) but maintains certain controls over its
> possession and use in the interest of public health and safety—including the
> obligation for disposal.
>
> 1970: The AEC tentatively selects a nuclear waste repository site in salt
> deposits near Lyons, Kan.
>
> 1972: The federal government withdraws the Lyons, Kan., site from
> consideration for the repository because of concerns that drilling in the
> vicinity might have compromised the salt deposits’ geologic integrity.
>
> 1974: The Energy Reorganization Act specifically charges the Energy Research
> and Development Agency (forerunner of DOE) with the responsibility to
> construct and operate a facility for disposal of civilian high-level nuclear
> waste.
>
> 1981: After extensively evaluating numerous alternatives, DOE issues a
> Record of Decision opting for geologic disposal of civilian high-level
> waste.
>
> 1982: The Nuclear Waste Policy Act directs DOE to begin disposing of used
> nuclear fuel in a geologic repository by Jan. 31, 1998, and prescribes a
> process for selecting a disposal site.
>
> 1983: DOE selects nine sites in six states for study as potential sites for
> a first repository. In accordance with the NWPA, DOE identifies sites in 17
> eastern states as potential location for a second repository.
>
> 1986: The energy secretary nominates five of the nine sites for further
> consideration, and the president approves three sites (Hanford, Washington;
> Deaf Smith County, Texas; and Yucca Mountain, Nev.) for further study.
>
> 1987: The Nuclear Waste Policy Act is amended to direct DOE to study only
> Yucca Mountain as a potential repository for geologic disposal.
>
> 1992: The Energy Policy Act is enacted, requiring the EPA to develop
> site-specific public health and safety standards for Yucca Mountain.
>
> 1997: The Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act directs that by
> Sept. 30, 1998, the energy secretary must provide to the president and
> Congress a Yucca Mountain Viability Assessment.
>
> 1998: The federal government defaults on its obligation to begin removing
> used nuclear fuel from reactor sites by Jan. 31, 1998. DOE issues its
> Viability Assessment (VA) of Yucca Mountain, drawing upon two decades of
> scientific research to conclude that a geologic repository capable of
> protecting public health and safety for thousands of years can be designed
> and built at Yucca Mountain. The VA also publishes DOE’s schedule for moving
> forward with such a repository.
>
> 1999: NRC and EPA proposes regulations for the licensing of Yucca Mountain,
> should it be selected. DOE issues its Draft Environmental Impact Statement
> of Yucca Mountain, concluding that the proposed project would have
> essentially no adverse impact on public health and safety. (Radiation levels
> for 10,000 years would be well below EPA & NRC’s proposed limits and less
> than 1 percent of natural background in the vicinity of Yucca Mountain.)
>
> 2001: DOE releases its Science and Engineering report for Yucca Mountain,
> providing updated scientific results, describing an enhanced design, and
> opening the public comment period preceding a site recommendation decision.
>
> 2001: DOE releases its Preliminary Site Suitability Report, comparing its
> scientific results to site selection criteria and concluding that the
> proposed repository will be capable of meeting EPA's stringent Radiation
> Protection Standard. This report ends DOE's 20-year, $7 billion scientific
> site characterization program.
>
> 2002: DOE makes its final Site Recommendation on Yucca Mountain. Should DOE
> recommend the site, the president would decide whether to go forward. Should
> the State of Nevada object to the president’s decision, Congress then must
> also approve the site for it to move forward.
>
> 2003: DOE is scheduled to apply to NRC for a license to construct and
> operate a repository at Yucca Mountain.
>
> 2007: Expected date that NRC would issue a license for construction of a
> repository at Yucca Mountain, if regulatory requirements for public health
> and safety protection are satisfied.
>
> 2010: Expected date that DOE would complete construction of a repository and
> that NRC would license its operation, if regulatory requirements for public
> health and safety protection are satisfied.
>
> 2060 to 2300: DOE expected to apply to the NRC for a license to close the
> repository, if all requirements for assuring public health and safety for
> thousands of years into the future are met, NRC would issue a license
> allowing the repository to be closed. This would be the final decision on
> geologic disposal of nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain.
>
> Sources: Nuclear Energy Institute, National Safety Council, Environmental
> Health Center
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> RELATED WEB SITES:
> Yucca Mountain Draft Environmental Impact Statement
> http://www.unlv.edu/Colleges/Liberal_Arts/Ethics_and_Policy/yucca.html
>
> ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~-->
> Tiny Wireless Camera under $80!
> Order Now! FREE VCR Commander!
> Click Here - Only 1 Day Left!
> http://us.click.yahoo.com/WoOlbB/7.PDAA/ySSFAA/7gSolB/TM
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------~->
>
>
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
--
Coalition for Peace and Justice and the UNPLUG Salem Campaign; 321 Barr Ave.,
Linwood, NJ 08221; 609-601-8537 or 609-601-8583 (8583: fax, answer machine);
ncohen12@home.com UNPLUG SALEM WEBSITE: http://www.unplugsalem.org/ COALITION
FOR PEACE AND JUSTICE WEBSITE: http:/www.coalitionforpeaceandjustice.org The
Coalition for Peace and Justice is a chapter of Peace Action.
"First they ignore you; Then they laugh at you; Then they fight you; Then you
win. (Gandhi) "Why walk when you can fly?" (Mary Chapin Carpenter)
************************************************************************
You are currently subscribed to the Radsafe mailing list. To unsubscribe,
send an e-mail to Majordomo@list.vanderbilt.edu Put the text "unsubscribe
radsafe" (no quote marks) in the body of the e-mail, with no subject line. You can view the Radsafe archives at http://www.vanderbilt.edu/radsafe/