NRC Update of Low Level Waste Emerging Issues October 22, 2015 LLW Forum Meeting Chicago, IL Melanie Wong, Senior Project Manager LLW Branch Division of Decommissioning, Uranium Recovery and Waste Programs Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards

Objective To discuss the overall Low Level Waste (LLW) Program with a focus on the Programmatic Assessment, Low-Activity Waste (LAW) Scoping Study, and International Activities 2

LLW Program Overview LLW Program Uniform Waste Manifest Programmatic Assessment Part 61 Rulemaking Next Part 61 Rulemaking?? Transuranic Waste LLW Program GTCC Waste CA BTP Implementation Byproduct Material Financial Scoping Study Waste Incidental to Reprocessing International 3

Update of LLW Programmatic Assessment

Status of the 2007 Strategic Assessment Strategic Assessment 7 high prioritized activities Review and Update Guidance on Extended Storage Develop Guidance on 10 CFR 20.2002 Alternate Disposal Requests * Determine if disposal of large quantities of depleted uranium would change waste classification tables * Update CA BTP Develop guidance on alternate waste classification (10 CFR 61.58) Develop Procedures for Import/Export Reviews Perform scoping study of the need to revise/expand byproduct material financial assurance Completed, * In progress

Stakeholder Comments Numerous comments were received, including comments on: Low activity waste Waste classification Clearance Disposal capacity Gap analysis New waste streams Sealed sources Waste attribution

14 Tasks Task Rank Complete and Implement 10 CFR Part 61 LLW Disposal Rulemaking High Update the Waste Classification Tables Implement the Updated CA BTP Perform scoping study of byproduct material financial assurance to account for life-cycle cost Clarify the regulatory authority of GTCC waste disposal and develop licensing criteria for a GTCC disposal facility Finalize internal procedure/Standard Review Plan for 10 CFR 20.2002 requests Update NUREG/BR-0204 for UWM Develop guidance that summarizes disposition options for LAW Med Update and consolidate LLW guidance into one NUREG Coordinate with other agencies on consistency in regulating LAW and determine the impact of LAW disposal from radiological dispersal devices (RDD) Promulgate rule for disposal of LAW Develop procedures for Import/Export Review Low Examine the need for guidance on defining when radioactive material becomes LLW Develop and implement the national waste tracking system

Next Steps Draft list of 14 tasks was published in the Federal Register on March 13, 2015 Comment period expired on April 13, 2015 Staff is evaluating comments received Once comments are evaluated, final step is to issue information paper to Commission with the staff’s conclusions

LAW Scoping Study

LAW Scoping Study Overview 2015 Assessment combined them into one medium priority LAW scoping study Coordinate with other agencies Develop consistent approach for regulating LAW Determine the impact of LAW disposal from radiological dispersal devices Develop regulatory options that would define the conditions under which LAW, including mixed waste, could be disposed of in RCRA Subtitle C hazardous waste facilities 10

LAW Scoping Study Methodology Study will consider the divergent stakeholder comments as part of the programmatic assessment Lessons learned from the revoked below regulatory concern policy statements of the NRC published in the Federal Register on July 3, 1990 (55 FR 27522), and August 29, 1986 (51 FR 30839) Lessons learned from the Commission’s 2005 disapproval of publication of a proposed rule (the "Clearance" rule) Learning from other countries with LAW disposal 11

LAW Scoping Study Possible Results Rulemaking Update guidance Further analysis may be needed No action taken 12

International LLW Programs

International programs Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Bilateral Cooperation

Joint Convention US is a contracting party to Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management. Every 3 years, report on the status of safety at spent fuel and radioactive waste management facilities

Overarching Issues Maintenance Mode Project AIM Knowledge management Forecasting uncertainties

Questions? 17