Department of Energy ocean-disposal programs: complements to land-based disposal

The geological formations beneath the oceans are in many ways different from those found on the continents. The characteristics of these formations, in some cases coupled with the ocean waters themselves, may provide environmentally suitable methods for disposal of certain types of radioactive wastes. This document outlines the most promising ocean disposal options. Any of these options may be chosen, for environmental, logistic, or economic reasons, to complement the US land-based disposal programs. Although much of the research is common to the determination of feasibility of all of these concepts, this document is divided for convenience into the categories of disposal within the oceanic geologic formations, disposal on the ocean floor, and disposal into the water column