Frequently Asked Questions
New Information from EPA - April 2007 |
Background on Proposed Facility at Yucca Mountain (2pp, 315 Kb) Agency Roles in the Approval, Monitoring, and Operation of a Potential Yucca Mountain Repository (1pp, 454 Kb) |
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| Facts about Yucca Mountain | Project Oversight | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
State of Nevada - State of Nevada Draft Yucca Mountain Environmental Impact Statement Comments State Of Nevada Comments -- Office Of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management Strategic Plan
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Federal law makes
the Yucca Mountain Project subject to external regulations by
the Nuclear Regulatory Commission C).
The NRC reviews every aspect of the Project, which includes evaluating our scientific work and system performance. The formal NRC licensing process will involve external experts in the technical review that will occur when the NRC considers issuing licenses to construct and operate a repository. Federal law also provides funds to state and local oversight groups and to groups of independent scientists to assure the accuracy of the Project's scientific methods and results. For example, Congress created the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board, an independent federal agency, to evaluate the technical and scientific validity of Project studies and findings. Twice a year, this Board reports its conclusions and recommendations to Congress and to the Secretary of Energy and points out concerns from outside parties. Ten counties belong to what is known as the Affected Units of Local Government (AULG). This group are funded by the NEPA act through congress to do oversight on the construction and authorization of a high-level nuclear waste repository in Nevada. Nye County, Nevada is the siting county where Yucca Mountain and the proposed nuclear waste repository resides. This link contains an excerpt from the NEPA Act explaining the Provisions Participation of State Government, Affected Units of Local Government and Affected Indian Tribes. AULG. NRC 63.113. (5) Subpart C—Participation by State Government, Affected Units of Local Government, and Affected Indian Tribes § 63.61 Provision of information. Repository Sites Considered In The United States In researching the option of deep geologic disposal,
scientists considered various geologic media in which to locate a repository,
including salt, volcanic rock (such as basalt and tuff), and crystalline
rock (such as granite).
For example, one Department of Energy program examined areas underlain by crystalline rocks in 17 eastern and mid-western states. In 1983, the U.S. Department of Energy selected nine candidate sites for the first geologic repository: Vacherie Dome, Louisiana (salt dome); Richton Dome, Mississippi (salt dome); Cyprus Creek Dome, Mississippi (salt dome); Deaf Smith County, Texas (bedded salt); Swisher County, Texas (bedded salt); Davis Canyon, Utah (bedded salt); Lavender Canyon, Utah (bedded salt); Yucca Mountain, Nevada (volcanic tuff); and Hanford, Washington (basalt). SOURCE: OCRWM DOE
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| List of independent oversight entities (this is not a complete list) | The
chart below shows the percentage of the worlds reactors in operation |
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Nuclear radioactive
waste canister |
Click on the following links for more information and varying views of nuclear energy and it's impacts. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Spent radioactive waste cask |
give the following information about Used Nuclear Fuel & High-Level Waste: |
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Nuclear Reactor Towers |
The 104 U.S. nuclear power plants are licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to operate for 40 years, and can renew their licenses for an additional 20 years. To date, 47 have received license renewal and 34 more are expected to have their licenses renewed. Eventually, virtually all U.S. nuclear plants are expected to apply for license renewal. Learn more |







