Panel Session 126: US and International Waste Classifications; Differences and Issues
The panel focused and addressed the existing US waste classification scheme set forth in US 10 CFR Part 61 and DOE Order 435.1 focusing upon the commensurate risk associated with the disposal of radioactive Low-Level (LLW) and High-Level Waste (HLW). The panel provided insights on the ongoing efforts by the NRC in conducting its Very LLW Scoping Study, the waste classification scheme used by the IAEA with a comparison of that system to the waste classification regulatory process in the US and the increasing role of RCRA sites in disposal of LLW in the US. The process used for very low activity waste disposal known as Bulk Survey for Release in the State of Tennessee was discussed as well as various studies conducted by EPRI addressing the relative risks of very low activity waste will be addressed. The panel strived to compare the risks of radioactive LLW and HLW to the operational process used for its disposal in the US and Internationally and determine if changes are needed in the process. The audience heard the perspectives from six panelists that addressed issues ranging from the technical basis used to establish the waste classification system specified in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 61 developed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; the approaches and impacts for dispositioning materials with Very Low Levels of Radioactive Waste (VLLRW); approaches used by the Department of Energy (DOE) to disposition Low-Level Radioactive Waste (LLW) in accordance with Order 435.1; and methods adopted by the international community to classify and disposition LLW and Intermediate Level Waste (ILW). A summary of each of the presentations given by the panelists is provided herein. Presentations proposed include: 1 - U.S. Low-Level Radioactive Waste Classification System 10 CFR Part 61 - Basis, Updates, and Issues (Rateb (Boby) Abu Eid, US NRC (USA)); 2 - EPRI Research on the Technical Basis for VLLW Classification (Lisa Edwards, EPRI (USA)); 3 - Division of Radiological Health (Anthony Hogan, State of Tennessee (USA)); 4 - Perspectives on VLLW Based on EPA's Low Activity Waste Effort (Thomas Peake, US EPA (USA)); 5 - US Department of Energy Perspectives on Waste Classification (Justin Marble, US DOE (USA))