RE: Uranium Ore

["Christepher A. McKenney" <CAM1@nrc.gov>]

On Aug 14 you asked:

>is uranium ore, unprocessed and unrefined, and buried under 
>10CFR20.304, radioactive waste?

>thanks,

>Denny

Yes - but that still has implications -

First, the material is defined as waste (i.e., you had no further use and 'declared' it waste by
disposing of it) and second, uranium ore is radioactive.

But there are more important questions - 

1) is it NRC-licensed material?
If the uranium ore was less than 0.05 wt % of uranium and thorium then the ore itself is NORM
and not licensed by NRC.  If it is greater than 0.05% wt%, then it is Atomic Energy Act (1954)
source material (or should have been). 

2) Is it mixed with any licensed material in the 20.304?
If the uranium ore is not source material but is mixed with other Atomic Energy Act (1954)
radioactive materials (byproduct, source, or special nuclear material), it  needs to be considered
as part of the performance assessment on the 20.304 burial.  If it is not source material and is not
mixed with other AEA (1954) radioactive materials, the burial itself is not a 20.304 and would be
licensed by the State (if they actually have regulations on the disposal of NORM).

Christepher McKenney
NMSS/DWM
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