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Nuclear Waste: Is There a Need for Federal Interm Storage?

The Monitored Retrievable Storage Review Commission herewith submits its<br/>final report as required by the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987,<br/>Public Law 100-203, as amended by Public Law 100-507.<br/>The Congress created the Commission to provide a report on the need for a<br/>Federal monitored retrievable storage facility (MRS) as part of the Nation&#39;s<br/>nuclear waste management system. In essence, Congress asked the Commission to<br/>review the U.S.

The DOE Position on the MRS Facility

The position of the Department of Energy (DOE) on the facility for monitored retrievable storage (MRS) can be summarized as follows: · ·<br/>• The DOE supports: the development of an MRS facility as an integral part of the waste-management system because an MRS facility would allow the DOE to better meet its strategic objectives of timely disposal, timely and adequate waste acceptance, schedule confidence, and system flexibility.

THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY'S ATTEMPT TO SITE THE MONITORED RETRIEVABLE STORAGE FACILITY (MRS) IN TENNESSEE, 1985-1987

This report is concerned with how America&#39;s public sector is handling the challenge of implementing a technical, environmental policy, that of managing the nation&#39;s high-level nuclear waste, as reflected in the attempt of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to site a Monitored Retrievable Storage Facility (MRS) for high-level radioactive waste in Tennessee.

Department of Energy Plans for Developing a Monitored Retrievable Storage Facility

The U.S. Congress authorized the development of a monitored retrievable storage facility (MRS) as part of the high-level radioactive waste management system. The MRS will be used to receive, store, and stage shipments of intact spent fuel to the permanent repository. Early development of the MRS is crucial to honoring the long-standing Federal commitment to timely and adequate waste acceptance. The Department of Energy&#39;s (DO E) objective is initial waste acceptance at the MRS beginning in 1998.

Recommendations on the Proposed Monitored Retrievable Storage Facility

The Clinch River MRS Task Force was appointed in July 1985 by the Roane County Executive and the Oak Ridge City Council to evaluate the Monitored Retrievable Storage (MRS) facility proposed by the Department of Energy to be constructed in the Roane County portion of Oak Ridge. After several months of study, numerous public meetings, site visits to relevant facilities, and careful evaluation of the integrated MRS concept, it is the considered opinion of the Task Force that the facility could be safely build and operated in Roane County/Oak Ridge.

Screening and Identification of Sites for a Proposed Monitored Retreivable Storage Facilty

The Director, Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM), Department of Energy (DOE), has identified the Clinch River Breeder Reactor site, the DOE Oak Ridge Reservation and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Hartsville Nuclear Plant site as preferred and alternative sites, respectively, for development of site-specific designs as part of the proposal for construction of an integrated Monitored Retrievable Storage (MRS) Facility. The proposal, developed pursuant to Section 141(b) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, will be submitted to Congress in January 1986.

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