Assessment of Disposal Options for DOE-Managed High-Level Radioactive Waste and Spent Nuclear Fuel

This report was prepared for the Secretary of Energy by a team of federal and contractor
personnel led by the Department’s Office of Nuclear Energy. The report assesses the technical
options for the permanent disposal of high-level radioactive waste (HLW) and spent nuclear fuel
(SNF) managed by the Department of Energy. Specifically, it considers whether DOE-managed HLW and
SNF should be disposed of with commercial SNF and HLW in one geologic repository or whether there
are advantages to developing separate geologic disposal pathways for some DOE-managed HLW and SNF.
This assessment draws heavily on a recently completed DOE report that summarizes the inventory of both commercial
and DOE-managed radioactive wastes requiring geologic disposal, organizes that inventory into
broadly defined waste groups with similar disposal characteristics, and qualitatively evaluates
disposal options for each group of waste types.

The analyses of alternatives and options related to the treatment and disposal of HLW and SNF
presented in this report are based on technical and programmatic considerations and do not include
an evaluation of relevant regulatory and legal considerations. This report has been prepared for
informational and comparison purposes only.