Experience Gained From Programs to Manage High-Level Radioactive Waste and Spent Nuclear Fuel in the United States and Other Countries, A Report to Congress and the Secretary of Energy

This report explores how 13 nations are carrying out efforts to find a permanent solution for isolating and containing high-level radioactive waste (HLW) and spent nuclear fuel (SNF) generated within their borders Many forces shape how those efforts are designed and implemented Some of the forces are technical, including choices made about what reactor technology to adopt and about what nuclear fuel cycle to pursue. Others are social and political in nature, including how concerns about intergenerational equity should be addressed and what pace should be followed in implementing a long-term management option Importantly, the interdependencies, both subtle and overt, between the technical, social, and political forces are inescapable Because of those interdependencies, what characterizes the national programs most notably is their variety This report attempts to detail that variety. It builds on the information contained in the U.S. Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board’s (NWTRB) Survey of National Programs for<br/>Managing High-Level Radioactive Waste and Spent Nuclear Fuel (NWTRB 2009). Compared with the earlier document, however, this report is more descriptive and considers the history of national programs.