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

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DOE/ET-0028, p. 7.2.2<br />

Issue<br />

259<br />

GEOLOGIC CONSIDERATIONS<br />

The statement that: "The repository should not be sited in or near an area in which<br />

igneous or volcanic acctivity has occured during the post Pleistocene" should be assessed<br />

and actively discussed by DOE. An assessment should be made <strong>of</strong> the potential for volcanic<br />

activiey and its impact on repository performance. The assessment should estimate the<br />

actual effects, detrimental or beneficial, or repository performance by different types <strong>of</strong><br />

erruptions. (208-NRC)<br />

Response<br />

Acres <strong>of</strong> volcanic activity are highly unsuitable and our current abilities to predict<br />

the effects <strong>of</strong> such events are poor. Although distant volcanic activity and related seismic<br />

events are not expected to directly disturb a repository, these processes may significantly<br />

effect the regional hydrology which could provide a transport mechanism and pathway for<br />

rationuclide migration to the biosphere. Preliminary assessments evaluating the effects <strong>of</strong><br />

volcanic activity on a repository have been performed. Although the results show beneficial<br />

effects in some cases, other cases show negative effects as mentioned above.<br />

DOE/ET-0028, p. 7.2.3<br />

Issue<br />

The credibility <strong>of</strong> Section 7.2 is weakened by either a lack <strong>of</strong> documentation for the<br />

Statements (e.g., see p. 7.2.6 Southwest Florida) or the use <strong>of</strong> very old references (e.g.,<br />

see p. 7.2.6 paragraph 3 on the Supai Formation <strong>of</strong> the Holbrook basin <strong>of</strong> Arizona) when more<br />

recent material should be available. (208-NRC)<br />

Response<br />

The section in question utilizes as one <strong>of</strong> its references a USGS open file report that<br />

the commenter previously had requested to be cited because <strong>of</strong> it being an original<br />

reference.<br />

DOE/ET-0028, p. 7.2.3<br />

Issue<br />

The geologic term "formation" is misused throughout the GEIS. Although this appears<br />

to be a minor editorial comment, it may have legal ramifications. The term is defined in<br />

The American Code <strong>of</strong> Stratigraphic Nomenclature which is to be found in the Bulletin <strong>of</strong> the<br />

American Association <strong>of</strong> Petroleam Geoloists (1961, pp. 645-660). Basically, a formation is<br />

a specific rock unit which has a distinctive lithologic characteristic which allows it to

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