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

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6.132<br />

waste treatment facility would require a 2400 ha (6000-acre) restricted area while the fuel<br />

fabrication plant would require a 4000-ha (10,000-acre) restricted area. These figures are<br />

based on estimates for the reprocessing and fuel fabrication plants without waste treatment<br />

facilities (DOE 1979c).<br />

International and Domestic Legal and Institutional Considerations<br />

The primary institutional concern associated with implementation <strong>of</strong> a transmutation proc-<br />

ess would be the compatibility between such a system and existing power reactors. Specific-<br />

ally, the use <strong>of</strong> commercial power reactors as transmutation devices might result in signifi-<br />

cant fissile penalties, reactor peaking problems, reduced reactor availability, shielding<br />

requirements for fresh fuel, increased operating costs, and the need for significantly more<br />

enriched 2 3 5 U as a driver fuel. Consequently, technological improvements in transmutation<br />

processes or an evaluation <strong>of</strong> the institutional framework surrounding establishment <strong>of</strong> new<br />

nuclear plant operating standards is needed before the transmutation alternative can be<br />

implemented.<br />

Finally, it must be recognized that the partitioning and transmutation processes include<br />

intensive reprocessing <strong>of</strong> nuclear waste material and plutonium recycle. Adoption <strong>of</strong> the<br />

transmutation alternative therefore, would be inconsistent with this nation's current policy<br />

regarding reprocessing.<br />

6.1.7.5 Potential Impacts Over the Long Term (Postemplacement)<br />

Successful implementation <strong>of</strong> the transmutation process would reduce the long-term hazards<br />

associated with waste material. In fact, effective transmutation would virtually eliminate<br />

concerns with actinides and their daughters. Although the potential long-term benefits would<br />

be significant, there are long-term uncertainties and problems that must be weighed against<br />

them.<br />

Potential Events<br />

For this option, TRU-depleted wastes are assumed to be sent to a mined geologic reposi-<br />

tory. Therefore, events leading to potential problems over the long term for this option<br />

would be the same as those associated with the mined geologic repository (see Section 5.6).<br />

A major difference exists in impacts, however, because transmutation wastes would not be as<br />

toxic in the long term (beyond 1,000 years).<br />

Potential Impacts<br />

Impacts over the long term would be expected to be less severe than those anticipated<br />

with reprocessing only, since the waste placed in the repository would be partitioned and<br />

transmuted to reduce its toxicity. An important exception to this would occur following ear-<br />

ly termination <strong>of</strong> the transmutation cycle. Such termination can actually increase the<br />

radiotoxicity <strong>of</strong> the wastes, as mentioned earlier (Cr<strong>of</strong>f et al. 1977).

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