High-level waste issues and resolutions document

Abstract

The High-Level Waste (HLW) Issues and Resolutions Document recognizes US Department of Energy (DOE) complex-wide HLW issues and offers potential corrective actions for resolving these issues. Westinghouse Management and Operations (M&O) Contractors are effectively managing HLW for the Department of Energy at four sites: Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL), Savannah River Site (SRS), West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP), and Hanford Reservation. Each site is at varying stages of processing HLW into a more manageable form. This HLW Issues and Resolutions Document identifies five primary issues that must be resolved in order to reach the long-term objective of HLW repository disposal. As the current M&O contractor at DOE`s most difficult waste problem sites, Westinghouse recognizes that they have the responsibility to help solve some of the complexes` HLW problems in a cost effective manner by encouraging the M&Os to work together by sharing expertise, eliminating duplicate efforts, and sharing best practices. Pending an action plan, Westinghouse M&Os will take the initiative on those corrective actions identified as the responsibility of an M&O. This document captures issues important to the management of HLW. The proposed resolutions contained within this document set the framework for the M&Os and DOE work cooperatively to develop an action plan to solve some of the major complex-wide problems. Dialogue will continue between the M&Os, DOE, and other regulatory agencies to work jointly toward the goal of storing, treating, and immobilizing HLW for disposal in an environmentally sound, safe, and cost effective manner.