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

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Resource Consumption<br />

6.23<br />

The consumption <strong>of</strong> major resources for each case has been estimated from available<br />

literature.<br />

Energy. The estimates <strong>of</strong> energy consumption in the forms <strong>of</strong> propane, diesel fuel, gaso-<br />

line, and electricity are presented in Table 6.1.5 for both the spent fuel waste form and HLW<br />

(Bechtel 1979a).<br />

Critical Material Other Than Fuel. The estimated consumption <strong>of</strong> critical resources is<br />

presented in Table 6.1.6 (Bechtel 1979a).<br />

Land. The estimated total land that would be required for a 5,000 MTHM/yr waste disposal<br />

system is 14,000 ha (35,000 acres)for the spent fuel waste form and 8,000 ha (20,000 acres)<br />

for the HLW form. In both cases, the estimated impact would be moderate.<br />

International and Domestic Legal and Institutional Considerations<br />

The international/domestic legal and institutional considerations associated with a VDH<br />

repository are expected to be <strong>of</strong> the same nature as those addressed for a mined geologic re-<br />

pository. (See section 3.3.2 and section 3.5.2)<br />

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

The potential for impacts over the long term would relate both to human activities and to<br />

natural phenomena. In turn, human activities could be related to the failure <strong>of</strong> engineered<br />

features or human encroachment. Natural phenomena, such as earthquakes and volcanoes, could<br />

also degrade the integrity <strong>of</strong> the waste repository. The heating, rock alteration, or thermo-<br />

mechanical pulsing that could be caused by wastes reaching critical mass are issues common to<br />

other geologic disposal alternatives. These aspects would be dependent on the specific rock<br />

and site characteristics, waste form, quantity, and spacing and could be evaluated only when<br />

these parameters have been defined.<br />

Table 6.1.5. Estimated Energy Consumption<br />

Fuel Type Spent Fuel HLW<br />

Propane, m 3 2.3 x 104 1.0 x 107<br />

Diesel, m 3 1.6 x 107 3.4 x 106<br />

Gasoline, m 3 1.6 x 105 1.2 x 105<br />

Electricity, kWh 2.0 x 1010 5.6 x 1010

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