Overview and current status of the US radioactive-waste management program

The Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management was reorganized along functional lines, a request was issued for proposals for a management and operating contractor, a strategy and plan was developed for implementing the new statutory requirements, systems for schedule and cost control were refined, and all activities in information-resource management were consolidated. A significant effort was directed at reinforcing the managing-for-quality concept throughout the program. A monumental effort has been required to develop the consultation draft of the site-characterization plan (SCP) for Yucca Mountain, engage in intensive interactions with the NRC on this plan, revise the plan, and work on the associated study plans. The most important achievement has probably been a thorough revamping of our program for quality assurance. Joint projects with other countries are being conducted on the validation of performance-assessment codes and the evaluation of experimental methods. US DOE is cooperating with other nations by providing technical assistance in the field of spent-fuel storage and disposal. The purpose of all this activity is to develop the authorized waste-management system in a technically sound manner, as cost-effectively as possible, and at the earliest possible time. This system consists of three elements: the MRS facility, the repository, and the transportation system. The focus of the program remains permanent disposal in a geologic repository, and the functions of the other components of the waste-management system will be integrated to support the repository