Summary of the technical position paper on facility design and operation

The NRC Technical Position Paper on Facility Design and Operations is to serve as an interpretation and expansion of the technical requirements in 10 CFR Part 61 for disposal site design and facility operation. These technical requirements are limited to near-surface disposal. The paper covers suggested practices for general site design, disposal unit design, surface water management, water management, waste handling and emplacement, and disposal unit closure. A general goal dealt with in the paper is that of utilizing design methods of operation that avoid the need for continuing active maintenance. The paper also stresses that closure and stabilization are ongoing activities during site operation and not activities added at the end of operation