[en] Disposal of Department of Energy (DOE) radioactive waste into repositories such as the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) and the Nevada Test Site (NTS) requires characterization to ensure regulatory and transportation requirements are met. Characterization is also used to collect information regarding chemistry of the waste for processing concerns. The range of characterization typically includes radio nuclide activity, RCRA metals and organic compounds, process metals, and risk assessment. Recent addition of an inductively coupled plasma quadrupole mass spectrometer in a radioactive contaminated laboratory at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has provided cost savings, time savings, reduced personnel exposure to radiation, and in some cases, improved accuracy over the traditional techniques for radionuclides, risk assessment and metals analysis. Application of ICP-MS to ORNL waste tank characterization has also provided the opportunity to estimate never-before-measured radionuclides and metals without increased cost. Data from analyses of ORNL waste tank sludges and supernates indicate the benefit of using this technique over counting techniques and Thermal Ionization Mass Spectrometry (TIMS) for analysis of fission products and U isotopics as well as the ability to estimate certain radionuclides and metals for the first time in these tanks