Council of State Governments - Eastern Regional Conference
Northeast High-Level Radioactive Waste Transportation Task Force
Fall Business Meeting; Miami, FL; October 24, 2007
[A luncheon was held Monday, October 22 with Dale Klein, Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Comments were provided "off the record," but a formal written response to committee questions will be made available soon.]
~ MEETING SUMMARY ~
Business Session
Task Force Future Priorities:
- Acquire legislative liaison appointments this fall. Agency contacts may help, although some states have different parties running their executive and legislative branches and therefore keep them quite separate.
- Expand the Northeast Compact for Health Radiological Protection - to share emergency response personnel and resources among northeastern states in the event of a major radiological incident. States must be contiguous to join, so in order for PA, DE, NJ to join, NY must too.
- State shipment fees - review state laws requiring fees for the transport of radioactive waste within or through the state.
Next DOE Transportation External Coordination (TEC) Working Group meeting will likely be held in early February in San Antonio.
The Office of Environmental Management (EM) Transportation Emergency Preparedness Program (TEPP) is developing a Radiation Specialist Training Program and a full course will be piloted in Idaho in Spring 2008.
Northeast Update
Not a lot of radioactive waste shipments are occurring in the Northeast, other than low-level waste and some research waste.
CSG-Northeast and Midwest completed a radioactive waste transportation article for their organization's magazine. A newly updated website for the Northeast project can be found here: www.csgeast.org/radwaste.
Considering planning a public meeting within the region on the Yucca Mountain shipping campaign - no timeframe yet. Comment: It is way too early at this point to do one with shipments at least 10 years out.
Northeast is interested in seeing whether the Southeast would like to coordinate on a study of barge transportation of radioactive waste.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Security
Adelaide Giantelli, Team Leader, Division of Security Policy, Nuclear Security and Incident Response; NRC
No significant differences in the threat environment since Sept. 11. Rouge parties are still interested in procuring radioactive materials, but are not necessarily aware of the locations of viable sources.
Staff has conducted comprehensive reviews of existing transport security regulations and has issued safeguards advisories. Most licensees have complied voluntarily with the enhanced security measures on transport.
NRC Orders to 202 licensees transporting Radioactive Materials Quantities of Concern (RAMQC) were issued in July 2005. The Commission directed staff to proceed toward a rulemaking. A technical basis is underway and stakeholder meetings are scheduled for January 2008 (IL, CA, DC) on rulemakings. These meetings will only apply to NRC materials.
NRC will provide more information on their website (http://www.nrc.gov/) when the rulemaking roll out occurs in the Federal Register.
DOE Environmental Management (EM) Office of Transportation Update
Ella McNeil, Office of Transportation; DOE-EM 63
Eric Huang is doing a comprehensive review of all radiological and other hazmat shipments to evaluate their record compared with "like" industry shipments. It is proving difficult to compare since DOE-EM has a lower threshold of reporting incidents.
Current EM Shipments:
- Low-level radioactive waste (LLW) and mixed low-level (MLLW) shipments continue from West Valley, Oak Ridge, and Mound.
- Sodium Bonded Fuel is being shipped from Hanford to Idaho National Lab.
- Brookhaven National Lab will begin radiological shipments to the Nevada Test Site and EnergySolutions in Clive, Utah.
Spent nuclear fuel (SNF) shipments between Idaho National Lab and Savannah River Site are to begin in 2009. A new TEC EM Topic Group may be created for stakeholders to provide input on these shipments.
The uranium oxide transfer from Portsmouth (OH) and Paducah (KY) are still being planned and there is no decision yet on a disposal facility. Plans include 11 railcar shipments per week (5-6 railcars from each site), with six cylinders per rail car.
A formal review of the Radioactive Material Transportation Practices Manual (DOE Manual 460.2-1) was completed in April 2007 and changes to the manual are now in formal concurrence.
Prospective Shipment Reports:
- States have voiced concern about materials/campaigns that are not included on these biannual reports. The Office of Transportation is working with the Waste Disposal Office in EM, which has a comprehensive online system [Waste Information Management System (WIMS)], to be more comprehensive. Plan to tie transportation information to the disposition report at: http://wims.arc.fiu.edu/wims.
- Will continue to send the prospective shipment report twice a year as well, but it will not include spent nuclear fuel shipments. Those can be viewed on the secured TRANSCOM online system.
Revised Event Reporting Criteria - A working group was established in January 2007 to define "event, incident, accident." States indicated they were more interested in immediate notification of an event, rather than in how the incidents are reported.
Latest transportation event: A September 19 shipment to the Nevada Test Site did not follow the preferred routes.
The Modular Emergency Response Radiological Transportation Training (MERRTT) program is being revised to clarify and add practical exercises. New CDs should be available in Fall 2007.
Brookhaven Graphite Research Reactor (BGRR) Decommissioning Project
Terri Kneitel, Project Engineer, Waste & Transportation Programs Manager; Brookhaven EM Completion Project
A Final Record of Decision was signed in March 2005 to remove more than 99 percent of the radiological inventory at the BGRR. So far, the project has completed: pumping of 58,000 gallons of water; characterization of structures, systems, and soils for radiation and other hazardous materials; removal of various equipment, pipes, fans, soil; disposal of wastes; etc.
Post decontamination and decommissioning actions will include inspection, surveillance, and maintenance, as well as cap maintenance and groundwater monitoring.
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) Update
William Mackie; WIPP-Carlsbad Field Office
As of October 14, 2007, 6,089 shipments of contact-handled transuranic (TRU) waste and 73 shipments of remote-handled transuranic waste (from Idaho National Lab) have been received at WIPP.
Over 7 million loaded miles have occurred without any kind of material release. Some mechanical problems and traffic accidents have occurred, but there have been no driver or other serious injuries or deaths.
WIPP is planning to receive approximately 25 shipments per week in September and October, and 17 over the holiday months of November and December.
Remote-handled TRU waste near-term projections:
- Los Alamos National Lab - 16 shipments, 2/week
- Savannah River Site - 2 shipments of RH-72B, 1/week and 17 shipments of CNS 10-160B, 1/3 weeks
- Argonne National Lab - 24 shipments, 1-2/week
- Oak Ridge National Lab - 24 shipments, 1/week
As the federal government is operating under a continuing resolution through Nov. 16, and likely after that on an incremental basis, no new programs may be started.
The TRUPACTIII shipping container is being reviewed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which may request additional information by Feb. 2008.
A second carrier contract was awarded to Visionary Solutions in September. They and CAST company will handle all TRU waste shipments.
The WIPP training program is offering a new course for medical examiners, crime scene investigators, and coroners' on handling radiation deaths.
WIPP is planning outreach road shows, including one along I-70 outside of Argonne National Lab.
State Reports
Connecticut
- Constructed a dock at Millstone nuclear power plant with a barge slip.
- Millstone must use the best available technologies for cooling, and may decide to construct cooling towers.
- Millstone and CT Yankee have dry cask storage, and hold monthly correspondence with Charles Pray of Maine about shipments to Yucca Mountain.
- Security meetings at Millstone are also held monthly with emergency personnel.
Delaware
- The state has no reactors and has experienced no shipments recently.
- The dry cask storage pad at Hope Creek in NJ is expected to add eight more casks in 2008.
- State received more potassium iodide (KI) from the NRC, and has a distribution population of 25,000 in a 10-mile radius from the nearest plant. Not near as many citizens are requesting it as did 5 years ago.
- State Radiological Incident Response Plan was upgraded for procedures with dirty bombs, and should be published in 2008.
Massachusetts
- A new director of emergency mgmt. began service in September.
- A graded exercise was conducted at Vermont Yankee recently, and involved MA, NH, and VT personnel.
- Seabrook nuclear power plant in New Hampshire underwent a station drill.
- Pilgrim and VT Yankee are undergoing re-licensing. Concerns about underground tanks leaking into the bay will lead to public meetings around Plymouth in the near future. Meetings already conducted have seen strong anti-nuclear sentiment.
- The decommissioned Yankee Rowe nuclear power plant has completed its dry cask storage project.
- The state legislature decided in 2002 to distribute potassium iodide (KI) to Cape Cod and Cape Anne for ingestion in the event of a reactor accident. That project will be completed this year.
- There was a false siren alarm in MA, leading to questions about the need for a reverse 911 system to automatically notify the public of events or false alarms.
New Jersey
- Press interest in Oyster Creek license renewal efforts for 2009. The Attorney General has a contention with the NRC decision to deny a petition to examine terrorist attacks in the environmental impact statement of a nuclear plant. The state has submitted briefs to the Federal Court of Appeals on the matter.
- The Atomic Safety and Licensing Board has held hearings addressing a contention of the four-year frequency of inspections of a reactor containment vessel. A decision is expected in November about the adequacy of the four-year frequency.
- The state must certify that Oyster Creek nuclear power plant is in compliance with state coastal zone regulations (Excelon was required to provide additional info). A decision is expected soon.
- Oyster Creek is considering constructing a cooling tower (a draft permit was submitted in 2002). The Hope Creek/Salem nuclear power plant may also consider such a move.
- Hope Creek is also considering the addition of a new reactor at its existing location. An upgrade of Hope Creek is planned for 2008.
- State fees related to the transportation of radioactive waste are causing a lot of administrative hold ups, costs, problems.
Pennsylvania
- Peach Bottom nuclear power plant received a lot of press coverage recently regarding sleeping guards at the facility. Apparently the problem is somewhat widespread and reviews are being conducted.
- The state has conducted many emergency response exercises, and would like to hold next CSG-ERC meeting in Pittsburgh in Spring 2008.
- Limerick nuclear power plant is planning to build dry cask spent fuel storage. Peach Bottom and Susquehanna already have dry storage.
Vermont
- One cell of a cooling tower at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant collapsed recently. The plant then reduced power to 50%, and later experienced a power trip.
- Talk in the state now of conducting independent inspections of VT Yankee (similar to Maine Yankee). The VT congressional delegation has written to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission about it, and the governor is now on board too.
- The VT legislature is to determine whether Vermont Yankee may continue operations past 2012. The plant will be moving fuel to dry storage in December and January.
Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA)
A CVSA radioactive materials subgroup was created through a cooperative agreement with DOE in 2005 and 2006 to study states practices. The peer review project was conducted to find lessons learned and best practices. The subgroup would like to discover how state practices and inspections can translate to rail shipments.
CVSA is planning a meeting in Denver in March, where agency employees will talk about what technologies/instruments work best.
DOE Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) Update
Corinne Macaluso, Office of Logistics Management; DOE-OCRWM
Director Ward Sproat has been talking with Congress and the Office of Management and Budget about the mounting financial liability of not removing waste from reactor sites, and its exponential increase as the opening date for Yucca Mountain is delayed. See fourth strategic objective below.
OCRWM four programmatic strategic objectives:
- Yucca Mountain license application - Submit to the NRC by June 2008.
- Staffing culture - Ensure the staff makeup, expertise, and philosophy matches the evolving needs of the project.
- Liability - Address the federal government's contractual obligations to pick up spent nuclear fuel from utilities. The financial burdens to taxpayers of not doing so are mounting.
- Transportation - Develop and begin implementation of a comprehensive National Transportation Plan (see detail below) that accommodates state/tribal/local concerns and input to the greatest extent practicable.
The Licensing Support Network (LSN) is an online database of millions of documents supporting DOE's work on the Yucca Mountain license application (the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has already opened its hearing facility in Las Vegas and offers LSN search training.)
Transportation Priorities:
- National Transportation Plan - The NTP brings the capital projects, operational planning efforts, and stakeholder collaboration together into one living document. Plan to release the second revision (currently under review) this fall.
- Draft EISs - Progress on rail line construction will be dependent on congressional appropriation. The supplemental environmental impact statements for Yucca Mountain and Rail were recently released and open for public comment.
- Routing Criteria - Working with the TEC Routing Topic Group to determine criteria and routes; process will provide information to support 180(c) decisions (see below). DOE is trying to address recommendations in the National Academies study on the safe transportation of radioactive waste, Going the Distance?, such as involving states and tribes and identifying a suite of routes as soon as practicable to support planning. Need to understand actual rail options and not force flexibility where there is none. The Federal Railroad Administration is undertaking a survey of routes for hazards.
- Benchmarking Study - The initial study produced a best practices report from a review of successful nuclear waste transportation campaigns such as the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program, Foreign Research Reactor, and AREVA shipments in France. Later phases will evaluate integrated domestic and international commercial radioactive operations. May expand search to other high quantity hazardous materials shipments.
- Transportation, Aging, and Disposal canisters (TADs) - Working with industry on this multi-purpose canister concept. DOE is currently reviewing design proposals from vendors. TAD specifications are available on the OCRWM website, www.ocrwm.doe.gov/receiving/wat.shtml.
- 180(c) - Section 180(c) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act requires payments to states and tribes along Yucca Mountain transportation routes for emergency preparedness. DOE released a Federal Register Notice detailing eligibility, state allocation, etc., and the comment period has been extended. DOE plans to work on the tribal allocation early next year (probably based on a needs assessment rather than a standard formula).
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