Toward a risk assessment of the spent fuel and high-level nuclear waste disposal system. Risk assessment requirements, literature review, methods evaluation: an interim report

Abstract

This report provides material which supports the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management's efforts to prepare environmental-impact information required for developing a system for permanent disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level wastes. AnEnvironmental Impact Statement should treat likely health and safety, environmental, economic, and social impacts, any of which may be either positive or negative for the community concerned. The negative impacts may be due to accidents, or natural phenomena such as tornadoes and earthquakes, orsabotage. This study focuses on the literature of a subset of the total requirements -health and economic risks of accidents -for the waste disposal system from pickup of spent fuel at a nuclear reactor or of solidified high-level-defense wastes at a reprocessing plant until closure of the repository.The study outlines statutory regulations and requirements of risk assessment, requirements for licensing information, and state of knowledge of accident consequence analysis and risk-assessment methods. We hope that this review describes current capabilities -their strengths and weaknesses -and evaluates the suitability of available methods for waste-disposal systems.2-1 * Points near origin (zero) excluded. Source: Reference 11.