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Management of Commercially Generated Radioactive Waste - U.S. ...

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Draft p. 3.1.4<br />

Issue<br />

218<br />

GEOLOGIC CONSIDERATIONS<br />

"An optimum repository will be located in a relatively stable tectonic region." One<br />

commenter requested a rationale be provided for the above quotation in the final Statement.<br />

This commenter also asked, "What is relatively stable? How is the site region defined?"<br />

(154)<br />

Response<br />

These points are addressed on draft pp. 3.1.20, 3.1.21, 3.1.22 for Tectonics, Seismic<br />

Considerations and Magmatism, and draft pp. 3.1.17 to 3.1.20, for The Site Selection<br />

Process.<br />

Draft p. 3.1.5<br />

Issue<br />

One commenter questioned the concept <strong>of</strong> "geologic stability" in the context <strong>of</strong> a nuc-<br />

lear waste repository which will be required to function for an extended period <strong>of</strong> time.<br />

(141)<br />

Other commenters felt that it is not necessarily true that future tectonism may not be<br />

reflected in past tectonic history. This factor will probably have to be a probability-<br />

based estimate. (213, 218-D01)<br />

Response<br />

Complete and utter stability is probably not found anywhere in terms <strong>of</strong> surface ero-<br />

sion, deposition, and areal subsidence or uplift, particularly over hundreds <strong>of</strong> thousands<br />

<strong>of</strong> years. However, these normal dynamic processes are unlikely to affect a deep repository.<br />

The site-selection process will reject areas known to be tectonically active in favor <strong>of</strong><br />

areas that can be shown to have been stable with regard to major tectonic activity for mil-<br />

lions to hundreds <strong>of</strong>.million years. While there is no guarantee that tectonic activity<br />

will not occur in the distant future, it can be said, based on past geologic history, that<br />

this is good evidence for continued stability.<br />

Draft p. 3.1.5<br />

Issue<br />

One commenter felt that faulting can do more than alter the hydrologic regime. There<br />

is no section describing disruption by faulting. (154)

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