Salt Disposal of Heat-Generating Nuclear Waste

In the FEPs numbering scheme for WIPP, as shown in the following table, FEPs are categorized
as “Natural FEPs,” “Waste- and Repository-Induced FEPs,” and “Human-Induced Events and
Processes.” ID numbers of Natural FEPs begin with N (e.g., N1, N2, etc.); IDs of Waste- and
Repository-Induced FEPs begin with W (e.g., W1, W2, etc.); IDs of Human-Induced Events and
Processes begin with H (e.g., H1, H2, etc.). The FEPs are also considered within time frames
during which they may occur. Because of the regulatory requirements concerning human
activities, two time periods were used when evaluating Human-Induced EPs. These time frames
were defined as (1) Historical, Current, and Near-Future Human Activities and (2) Future
Human Activities. In the table, they are annotated as “HCN” and “Future,” respectively.
One of the first activities to be undertaken if a salt repository option were to be investigated as a
disposal option for UNF and HLW would be consideration of the FEPs screening table given
below. Introduction of new waste forms with attendant heat and radioactivity will likely, as
suggested in this report, add some key FEPs to the performance assessment analyses.
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