Southern States Energy Board. DOE Proposes Section 180(c) Funding Policy. SSEB s Committees Hold Joint Meeting -- Will Remain Separate Entities

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1 AlabamaArkansasFloridaGeorgiaKentuckyLouisianaMarylandMississippiMissouriNorthCarolinaOklahomaPuertoRicoSouthCarolinaTennesseeTexasVirginiaWestVirginiaVirginIslands Southern States Energy Board A Bi-Monthly Publication of SSEB's Advisory Committee on Radioactive Materials Transportation 96-2 June 1996 DOE Proposes Section 180(c) Funding Policy The Department of Energy s (DOE) Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste (OCRWM) issued a Federal Register notice on May 16, 1996, outlining its draft policy for implementing Section 180(c) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA). Section 180(c) mandates that DOE provide technical and financial assistance to states for training public safety officials of appropriate units of local government and to Indian tribes through whose jurisdiction the Department plans to transport spent nuclear fuel or highlevel radioactive waste. DOE proposes to use an OCRWM grants program as the funding mechanism for providing Section 180(c) assistance to states and tribes. These grants will not be combined with any other federal or DOE sponsored transportation preparedness or training programs. DOE will initiate the application process for grants and technical assistance four years prior to the first shipment of spent fuel. Although DOE will not select the actual shipping routes until two years prior to a shipment, the department will notify potential corridor jurisdictions of their eligibility to receive Section 180(c) assistance four years in advance. Funds will be available three years prior to shipments and will be provided in base amounts and variable amounts. If a change in route is made close to the shipment date, DOE may opt to use escorts until a reasonable time period for training has expired. The deadline for submitting comments on this proposed policy is August 15, DOE plans to issue the final policy and procedures in June SSEB s Committees Hold Joint Meeting -- Will Remain Separate Entities The Southern States Energy Board s (SSEB) Advisory Committee on Radioactive Materials Transportation and Transuranic Waste Transportation Working Group held a joint meeting on March 13-14, 1996, at the Union Station Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. The committee discussed the status of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) program, the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) program, and other Department of Energy (DOE) shipping campaigns. The next meeting of the two committees is tentatively scheduled for early October. At the March meeting, members agreed to merge the two committees if SSEB and DOE could resolve the administrative and financial issues. Other cooperative agreement groups also were exploring this same concept of developing one regional committee to address broad transportation issues with DOE. Mr. Markus Popa, the OCRWM contact for SSEB s cooperative agreement, however, announced at the May meeting of the Midwestern High-Level Radioactive Waste Committee that DOE will not pursue combining WIPP and OCRWM cooperative agreements at the regional level because of administrative restrictions on the Nuclear Waste Fund. As a result, SSEB will continue to host two separate radioactive materials transportation committees, combining meetings and activities when appropriate.

2 S Still On Hold Senate Bill 1271, the legislation that would direct DOE to construct an interim storage site for spent nuclear fuel in Nevada, is still awaiting floor action in the Senate. With the departure of Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, it is uncertain when the bill may be scheduled for a vote. OCRWM to Privatize Transportation DOE s Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) issued a request for Expression of Interest and Comments in the May 24, 1996, Commerce Business Daily and the May 28, 1996, Federal Register regarding plans for privatizing its spent fuel transportation and storage activities. DOE will sponsor a pre-solicitation conference on July 9, 1996, in Washington, D.C. to obtain input on technical and contractual issues. OCRWM Revises Program Plan The Department of Energy (DOE) released its draft Program Plan for the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM). The revised plan outlines how OCRWM will carry out its activities based upon the Fiscal Year (FY) 97 budget request and the direction of Congress in the FY 96 appropriation s legislation. OCRWM plans to focus on determining the viability of Yucca Mountain before designating a location for an interim storage site. Prior to the completion of the viability assessment, all actions concerning interim storage will be limited to non-site specific design and engineering and the preparation for transportation. OCRWM plans to recommend a repository site to the President in 2001 and submit a repository license application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission by Additionally, OCRWM is developing a waste acceptance and transportation strategy that will rely on private sector implementation. Copies of this revised plan can be obtained via the OCRWM Home Page at or by contacting the Civilian Radioactive Waste Information Center at Water Problems at Yucca Mountain? DOE released a report in early May that contains the preliminary reports of chlorine-36 sampling at the Yucca Mountain site in Nevada. Researchers from Los Alamos National Laboratory have detected elevated levels of chlorine-36 as deep as 600 feet in the Exploratory Studies Facility, a test tunnel at the site. Chlorine-36 is a radioisotope created naturally by the interaction of cosmic radiation on water in the atmosphere. Chlorine-36 was artificially generated during the 1950 s by the atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons that occurred in the Pacific Ocean. The elevated levels of chlorine-36 may indicate that a small amount of water carried the radioisotope to some locations at Yucca Mountain within the last 50 years. The department has not reached a conclusion on the significance of these findings. At the time of the preliminary report, about half of the 52 rock samples had been analyzed. DOE will issue a final report once all the samples have been analyzed. The final report is due to be released in August Mescaleros / Utilities Suspend Negotiations The joint venture between the Mescalero Apache Tribe and a group of utilities led by Northern States Power (NSP) to construct a private interim storage facility on the tribe s reservation in New Mexico has been terminated. The Board of Managers of the Mescalero Fuel Storage, Limited Liability Corporation (LLC), representing 11 nuclear utilities, voted April 16 to indefinitely suspend negotiations with the tribe to build the facility. Mr. Scott Northard, Project Manager for NSP, noted that the utilities...were unable to reach agreement with the Mescalero Apache Tribe on the contract terms for this complex, first-of-a-kind project. Despite the split, both sides are continuing to work independently towards developing an interim storage facility. British Nuclear Fuels Limited has expressed interest in the Mescalero project and has had preliminary discussions with the tribe. The Mescaleros indicate that they will make an announcement concerning the future of

3 the project within the next 90 days. NSP plans to pursue options with other parties. NSP and other utilities continue to support S.1271, the legislation pending in the Senate that mandates the construction of a federal interim storage facility in Nevada. Explosion Occurs at Nuclear Plant During Dry Cask Loading Operations An explosion occurred during cask welding operations of a dry storage cask at Wisconsin Electric s Point Beach nuclear power plant on May 28. The cask lid was being fused onto the container when an automated welding arc sparked hydrogen gas inside the cask. The resulting explosion moved the 4,400 pound lid about an inch out of place. Welding operations were suspended as soon as the blast happened. No one was injured in the incident. Air monitors revealed that there was no release of radiation and the spent fuel remained intact. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is investigating the incident and reported that zinc-based coating used on internal surfaces of the container...may have reacted chemically with the acidic water from the spent fuel storage pool to produce hydrogen. The agency is ordering utilities who are using, or plan to use, the same cask technology to take certain precautionary safety measures when loading the spent fuel. Entergy Operations, Inc., operator of the Arkansas Nuclear plant, plans to use the same Sierra Nuclear VSC-24 cask design and to begin dry cask loading operations in mid-june. Navy Issues Draft EIS on SNF Container The Department of the Navy released its draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) regarding a container system for the Navy s spent nuclear fuel on May 1, The Navy assumed the task of developing this EIS from DOE following the budget cuts in DOE s multi-purpose canister program. The draft EIS evaluates multiple purpose canisters, dual-purpose canisters, transportable storage casks and small multi-purpose canisters, in addition to current technology and current technology supplemented by high-capacity rail. The document addresses the manufacturing, handling, storage, and transportation aspects of spent fuel container systems, but does not identify a preferred alternative. In early June, the Navy held three public meetings in Idaho and Utah. The comment period ends on July 3, Other DOE Shipping Campaigns DOE Issues ROD on Foreign Fuel Acceptance The Department of Energy (DOE) issued its Record of Decision (ROD) regarding the acceptance of spent nuclear fuel from foreign research reactors on May 13, DOE will accept approximately 20 metric tons of foreign spent fuel over a 13 year period. Nineteen metric tons of spent fuel will be sent to the Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina and one metric ton to the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) in Idaho. DOE selected the Charleston Naval Weapons Station in South Carolina and the Concord Naval Weapons Station in California as ports of entry for this fuel. Approximately 150 to 300 sea shipments from 38 countries will be received at the Charleston port beginning in September The Concord port will receive five sea shipments from seven countries beginning in mid Some of the material, approximately 240 truckloads, will be shipped overland from Canada. No date has been established for the Canadian shipments. Governor David Beasley of South Carolina has announced plans to file suit against DOE to prohibit the receipt of the foreign fuel. Governor Beasley stated that the Clinton Administration is providing South Carolina with no credible long-term management plan for the fuel. Brookhaven Shipments Delayed Originally scheduled for late spring, the shipments of spent fuel from the Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) in New York to the Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina have been postponed until November. The shipments are being delayed because DOE plans to use the same casks for the BNL shipments and the foreign research reactor (FRR) shipments.

4 The FRR shipments are scheduled for September and there is not enough time to complete the BNL shipments and return the casks to SRS. For the BNL shipments, DOE plans to barge the five casks of spent fuel to Hampton Roads, Virginia, and then transport them by truck to SRS. draft transportation plan and the final plan is due for release in late June or early July. DOE and the regional cooperative agreement groups will host conference calls with the affected states to discuss the campaign. Cesium Shipments Planned for August DOE s cesium capsule shipping campaign will begin in August DOE plans to transport 25 cesium capsules by truck from the Applied Radiant Energy Corporation facility in Lynchburg, Virginia, to the Hanford site in Washington. States along the shipping route commented on the Recent Publications Characterization of Radionuclide-Chelating Agent Complexes Found in Low-Level Radioactive Decontamination Waste: Literature Review. Prepared by R.J. Serne, A.R. Felmy, K.J. Cantrell, K.M. Krupka, J.A. Campbell, H. Bolton, Jr., and J.K. Fredrickson of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory for the Division of Regulatory Applications, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC , March (NUREG/CR-6124 PNL-8856) Available from the National Technical Information Service, U.S. Department of Commerce, 5285 Port Royal Road, Springfield, Virginia The purpose of this literature review is to identify and tabulate information on radionuclide-chelating complexes expected to be formed during the decontamination of operating nuclear power stations and disposed in commercial low-level radioactive waste disposal facilities. One chapter summarizes the data on studies that examine the extent of radionuclide-chelating agent complexes impact on the mobility of radionuclides in groundwater systems at low-level waste sites. Another chapter discusses analytical methods that might be useful in directly measuring the radionuclide-chelating agent complexes that may leach from disposed decontamination wastes. The literature review contains a chapter and appendix on thermodynamic data that is available and useful for predicting radionuclide-chelating agent complex formation. A final chapter discusses conceptual models and computer codes that can be used to predict the behavior and transport of radionuclide-chelating agent complexes in groundwater / soil systems. Emphasis is placed on the following chelates (EDTA, DTPA, picolinic acid, oxalic acid, and citric acid). Civilian Radioactive Waste Management Program Plan: Revision 1. (Draft Version) Prepared by the U.S. Department of Energy s Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, May (DOE/RW- 0458, Revision 1) Available from the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, National Information Center, 600 Maryland Avenue, S.W. Suite 695, Washington, D.C or call NWPA (6972). This document is also available from OCRWM Home Page at

5 This document is a modification of OCRWM s previous Program Plan and reflects the new program direction for the Yucca Mountain project. The plan has been prepared to implement the administration s FY 97 budget request and the direction of Congress in the FY 96 Appropriation s legislation. Comments Received on Proposed Rule on Radiological Criteria for Decommissioning and Related Documents. Prepared by G. Page, J. Chaplin, D. Smith, M. Boyd, and C. Wiblin of Advanced Systems Technology, Incorporated, for the Division of Regulatory Applications, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC , March (NUREG/CR- 6353) Available from the National Technical Information Service, U.S. Department of Commerce, 5285 Port Royal Road, Springfield, Virginia The purpose of this report is to summarize the comments received on the proposed rule (59 FR 43200) and on the related documents made available for comment. The summarized information is being considered by the NRC in developing a final rule on radiological criteria for the decommissioning of NRC-licensed facilities. This report covers letters that were received between September 23, 1994 and April 16, Department of the Navy Draft Environmental Impact Statement for a Container System for the Management of Naval Spent Nuclear Fuel. Prepared by the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations (N-00N), Nuclear Propulsion Directorate, Code 08, Naval Sea Systems Command, May Available from Department of the Navy, Code NAVSEA 08U, 2531 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA or Telephone (703) This draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) considers six general alternative systems for the loading, storage, transport, and possibly disposal of naval spent nuclear fuel following examination. DOE Management: DOE Needs to Improve Its Analysis of Carryover Balances. Prepared by the United States General Accounting Office, Resources, Community, and Economic Development Division, P.O. Box 6015, Gaithersburg, MD , April (GAO/RCED-96-57) Available from the United States General Accounting Office, P.O. Box 6015, Gaithersburg, MD or Telephone (202) This report examines the effectiveness of the Department of Energy s approach for identifying the funding balances remaining from prior years budgets that exceed the requirements of the Department s programs and thus may be available to reduce the budget request for the new fiscal year. The report also examines whether the process for analyzing these balances, known as carryover balances, could be improved. Federal Hazardous Materials Transportation Law. Prepared by the United States Department of Transportation, October Available from the United States Department of Transportation, Research and Special Programs Administration, 400 Seventh Street, S.W., Washington, D.C This document contains the provisions and amendments of the Hazardous Materials Transportation Authorization Act of 1994.

6 Field Lysimeter Investigations-Test Results: Low-Level Waste Data Base Development Program: Test Results for Fiscal Years 1990, 1991, 1992, and Prepared by J.W. McConnell, Jr., R.D. Rogers, J.D. Jastrow, D.S. Wickliff Hicks, W.E. Sanford, R.R. Brey, T.M. Sullivan, R.M. Neilson, Jr., L.D. Hilton of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory for the Division of Regulatory Applications, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC , December (NUREG/CR-6256 INEL-95/0073 Volume 2) Available from the National Technical Information Service, U.S. Department of Commerce, 5285 Port Royal Road, Springfield, Virginia This report studies the degradation effects in EPICOR-II organic ion-exchange resins caused by radiation, examines the adequacy of test procedures recommended in the Branch Technical Position on Waste Form to meet the requirements of 10 CFR 61 using solidified EPICOR-II resins, obtains performance information on solidified EPICOR-II ion-exchange resins in a disposal environment, and determines the condition of EPICOR-II liners. Meeting Summary: Joint Meeting of the Southern States Energy Board Advisory Committee on Radioactive Materials Transportation and Transuranic Waste Transportation Working Group. Prepared by Ted Joy and Christopher Wells of the Southern States Energy Board, June Available from the Southern States Energy Board, 3091 Governors Lake Drive, Suite 400, Norcross, Georgia or Telephone (770) This document summarizes the joint meeting of the Southern States Energy Board Advisory Committee on Radioactive Materials Transportation and the Transuranic Waste Transportation Working Group that was held on March 13-14, 1996, at the Union Station Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. Meeting Summary and Minutes: Third Meeting of the Northeast High-Level Radioactive Waste Transportation Task Force. Prepared by Russell Paule-Riggs of the Northeast Office of the Council of State Governments, May Available from the Northeast Office of the Council of State Governments, 5 World Trade Center, Suite 9241, New York, New York or Telephone (212) This summary gives an overview of the proceedings from the Task Force meeting that was held in Atlantic City, New Jersey on April 21-23, Nevada Potential Repository Preliminary Transportation Strategy Study 2: Volumes I and II. Prepared by TRW Environmental Safety Systems Inc., 101 Convention Center Drive, Las Vegas, Nevada for the U.S. Department of Energy, Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project, P.O. Box 98608, Las Vegas, Nevada , February (B REV 01) Available from TRW Environmental Safety Systems Inc., 101 Convention Center Drive, Las Vegas, Nevada This study seeks to identify reasonable and representative transportation alternatives to aid in DOE s Environmental Impact Statement process to determine the environmental impacts of a potential repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, Nevada.

7 Record of Decision on a Nuclear Weapons Nonproliferation Policy Concerning Foreign Research Reactor Spent Nuclear Fuel. Prepared by the Office of Spent Fuel Management (EM-37), Office of Environmental Management, United States Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20585, May Available from the Office of Spent Fuel Management (EM-37), Office of Environmental Management, United States Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC This document outlines the Department of Energy s decision to implement a new foreign research reactor spent fuel acceptance policy as specified in the Preferred Alternative contained in the Final Environmental Impact Statement on a Proposed Nuclear Weapons Nonproliferation Policy Concerning Foreign Research Reactor Spent Nuclear Fuel. Report Briefs: Current Publications of the Energy Division Oak Ridge National Laboratory (October 1995-February 1996). Prepared by the Energy Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, managed by Lockheed Martin Energy Research Corporation for the U.S. Department of Energy under contract DE- AC05-96OR Available from the National Technical Information Service, U.S. Department of Commerce, 5285 Port Royal Road, Springfield, Virginia This document contains several summaries of reports developed by the Energy Division at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Each summary provides the following information: background, objective, approach, results, and conclusions. The categories addressed in the summary are analysis and assessment, electric energy systems, energy efficiency, and transportation. Report on Interim Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel: Supplement. Prepared by Carol Ann Kania of the Midwestern Office of the Council of State Governments, April (DOE/RW/ ) Available from the Midwestern Office of the Council of State Governments, 641 E. Butterfield Road, Suite 401, Lombard, IL or Telephone (708) This supplement discusses recent developments with regard to federal and private efforts to provide interim storage of spent nuclear fuel and on specific activities taken by Midwestern utilities to increase the storage capacity available at commercial nuclear plants. Site Characterization Progress Report: Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Prepared by the United States Department of Energy s Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, April (DOE/RW-0486) Available from the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management National Information Center, 600 Maryland Avenue, S.W., Suite 695, Washington, DC This study examines the site characterization activities at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, from April 1, 1995, through September 30, It is the thirteenth in a series of reports that have been conducted in accordance with the requirements of Section 113 (b) (3) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as amended, and 10 CFR 60.18(g).

8 State of California Radioactive Materials Transportation Routing Study: Designation of Routes for the Through Transportation of Highway Route Controlled Quantity Shipments of Radioactive Materials. Prepared by the Hazardous Materials Section of the California Highway Patrol, January Available from the Department of California Highway Patrol, Hazardous Materials Section, P.O. Box , 444 N. 3rd Street, Suite 310, Sacramento, CA This study contains a discussion of the route risk assessment methodology employed by the California Highway Patrol; a description of the HazTrans routing and risk management software program; a review of the highway route controlled quantity shipments of radioactive materials flow data gathered from the Highway Route Controlled Quantity Shipments of Radioactive Materials Transportation Survey; a discussion of primary and secondary risk assessment factors; and an analysis documentation for each through route identified for the transportation of highway route controlled quantity shipments of radioactive materials. An overview of federal and State regulations and a legislative history of radioactive materials routing in California also are provided. Western Interstate Energy Board: Annual Report Prepared by the Western Interstate Energy Board. Available from the Western Interstate Energy Board, th Street, Suite 1704 South Tower, Denver, Colorado Phone (303) / Fax (303) This is the 18th annual report of the Western Interstate Energy Board, it provides a snapshot of changes which have occurred in the energy market and highlights the important work of the Board during Fiscal Year Video Collection: Recent Additions Transportation Technology Center: Beyond the 20th Century. Video prepared by the Association of American Railroads. Available from the Association of American Railroads, Transportation Technology Center, Research & Test Department, P.O. Box 11130, Pueblo, Colorado 81001, Telephone (719) or Fax (719) This video displays footage of the Transportation Technology Center (TTC) located in Pueblo, Colorado. It outlines the purpose of the facility and exhibits the different types of training that are conducted at the TTC. Used Nuclear Fuel Transportation: Safety Every Step of the Way. Prepared by the Nuclear Energy Institute, Available from the Nuclear Energy Institute, Suite 400, 1776 I Street, NW, Washington, DC or Telephone (202) This video was developed to inform the public about the measures taken to ensure public safety during the transport of spent fuel.