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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's public sector is handling the challenge of implementing a technical, environmental policy, that of managing the nation'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.

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.