[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 71 (Tuesday, May 13, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6081-S6082]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. AKAKA (for himself and Mr. Bingaman):
  S. 1045. A bill to strengthen United States capabilities to safely 
and securely dispose of all greater-than-Class C low-level radioactive 
waste; to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the Low-Level 
Radioactive Waste Act of 2003. I am pleased that the Ranking Member of 
the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Senator Bingaman, is a 
cosponsor of this important legislation. Our bill will address the 
efforts made by the Department of Energy, DOE, to recover and dispose 
of thousands of domestic Greater-than-Class-C, GTCC, radiological 
sources. These have the highest radiation levels and, in general, pose 
the greatest concern in terms of being used in a so-called ``dirty 
bomb.''
  Since September 11, we have faced the possibility that a terrorist 
could use a dirty bomb in an attack in the United States. A dirty bomb 
combines conventional explosives with highly radioactive materials. 
When exploded, it would disperse the radioactive materials, reducing 
the impact from radiation. But, if set off in the downtown of a major 
city, it could still contaminate a wide area with radiation, cause 
death and destruction due to the explosion, and panic and substantial 
economic damage could result. It is not surprising that the Department 
of Homeland Security has chosen as one of its training scenarios a 
simulated ``dirty bomb'' attack on an American city.
  Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham told an International Atomic 
Energy Agency conference in March, ``Radioactive sources can be found 
all over the world, and terrorist are seeking to acquire them.'' CIA 
Director George Tenet told Congress in February that he was concerned 
about Al Qaeda's attempts to build a dirty bomb. He said, 
``construction of such a device is well within Al Qaeda capabilities--
if it can obtain the radiological material.''
  Radiological sources are used widely in industry, agriculture, 
medicine, and research. Appropriately, Secretary Abraham has made it 
priority for the Department of Energy to help other countries secure 
their radiological sources. But as the United States works 
internationally to secure dangerous radiological sources, we also must 
be sure our own house is in order.
  As chairman of the International Security Subcommittee of the Senate 
Government Affairs Committee, I held hearings in the fall of 2001 that 
covered the threat posed by dirty bombs. I also requested that GAO 
examine U.S. efforts to secure radioactive sources within the United 
States.
  GAO recently finished their inquiry, and I am sorry to report that 
GAO found our house is not in order. Many of you may have seen the 
report on NBC Nightly News last night that featured GAO's 
investigation.
  GAO's report shows that not only the former Soviet Union, but also 
the United States does not keep track of or account for its radioactive 
sources in a reliable manner. There is not a precise count of GTCC 
sources in the United States. Some quarter to half a million are 
estimated to exist. Some 24,000 new GTCC sources are being produced 
each year.
  A central issue is what is being done with unwanted radioactive 
devices. We don't have an accurate account of unwanted devices in this 
country, and the program for recovering and securing them is proceeding 
too slowly.
  In 1985, Congress authorized DOE to provide a facility for disposing 
of GTCC waste, including GTCC sealed radiological sources that were no 
longer wanted by their owners. GAO found that after 18 years, DOE still 
has not developed a facility for storing GTCC wastes.
  DOE assumes a facility for receiving GTCC sealed sources will be 
available by FY 2007. But DOE has not taken serious steps to insure 
this facility will be built.
  Instead, DOES has an interim program for collecting and holding 
unwanted radiological sources. In 1999, DOE created an Off-site Source 
Recovery Project, or OSR, in the Office of Environmental Management for 
these purposes.
  The OSR Project has recovered about 5,3000 sealed sources. Another 
4,400 sources, held by 328 different owners across the United States, 
are known to be in need of recovery. DOE estimates a further 4,600 
sources will need to be recovered by 2010, when the OSR Project is 
scheduled to end because the permanent storage facility should be 
operating.
  Thousands more sources, however, will need to be recovered outside 
the OSR project once a depository opens.
  Every State in the Union has radioactive sources that need to be 
recovered, according to the GAO report. States with more than a 100 
sources to be recovered include Arizona, California, Illinois, 
Maryland, New York, and Texas. Another 25 States have between 10 and 
100 sources to be recovered.
  The GAO report notes that many of these are small sources with small 
amounts of radiation but hundreds are larger sources with large amounts 
of radioactivity.
  Alarmingly, the question of dirty bombs aside, there are almost two 
nuclear bombs worth of unwanted plutonium-239 sources that DOE cannot 
recover because they lack storage space. GAO reports that universities 
that have this material want to give it up, but cannot, because the DOE 
does not have the space to store them.
  We are concerned that the program to recover, secure, and store GTCC 
radiological sources is not receiving the

[[Page S6082]]

priority it deserves. The disposal of thousands of radiological sources 
must be addressed. But DOE will not be prepared to dispose of these 
sources permanently in the next seven years because DOE has not 
identified the type of facility or provided a cost estimate and time-
line for its construction.
  This bill will address these concerns. To insure the permanent 
disposal program gets the attention it needs within DOE, our 
legislation requires DOE to designate a responsibility entity within 
DOE to develop a facility for disposal of GTCC wastes.
  It also requires the DOE to report to Congress on the current 
situation and future plans for the disposal of GTCC radioactive waste. 
After the completion of this report, the DOE must submit to Congress a 
report on the cost and schedule to complete an environment impact 
statement and record of decision on a permanent disposal facility for 
GTCC radioactive wastes. Finally, before the year is out, DOE must 
deliver to Congress a plan to provide for the short-term recovery of 
the GTCC radioactive waste until a permanent facility is available.
  I am also concerned that the short-term Offsite Source Recovery 
Project may lack the funding required to ensure that all designated 
radiological sources are safety and securely recovered in a timely 
manner. The program apparently will be funded adequately through the 
end of FY04. The FY02 emergency supplemental budget provided ten 
millions dollars, and the President requested about two millions 
dollars in his FY04 budget proposal. But I caution Congress to keep an 
eye on this program to guarantee sufficient funds are requested in the 
FY05 budget when it is submitted to Congress next year.
  Thousands of sealed sources await disposal, some requiring security 
measures greater than those in place at current storage sites. The 
problem posed by these sources will not go away by itself. Universities 
and industry do not have the means or facilities to secure these 
materials and are asking the federal government for help.
  When the United States began non-proliferation efforts in the former 
Soviet Union, one of the first jobs was to begin consolidating nuclear 
weapons and fissile materials in secure facilities to await disposal or 
destruction. As Secretary Abraham has said, due to worries about 
terrorists acquiring dirty bombs, the DOE now is working to secure 
radiological sources overseas.
  I support these efforts. The bill Senator Bingaman and I have 
introduced will give radiological sources and waste on American soil 
the same consideration. Collecting and securing these sources was once 
a matter of public safety. It is now a national security concern that 
deserves the attention of Congress.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1045

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Low-Level Radioactive Waste 
     Act of 2003''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds that--
       (1) section 3(b)(1)(D) of the Low-Level Radioactive Waste 
     Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 2021c(b)(1)(D)) requires the Secretary 
     of Energy to safely dispose of all greater-than-Class C low-
     level radioactive waste (as defined in section 61.55 of title 
     10, Code of Federal Regulations);
       (2) the Offsite Source Recovery Program, established by the 
     Department of Energy to recover and store sources of such 
     waste, is scheduled to cease operation by September 30, 2010;
       (3) the Department of Energy estimates that about 14,000 
     sealed sources of such waste will become unwanted and will 
     have to be disposed of through the Offsite Source Recovery 
     Program by that date;
       (4)(A) in February 1987 the Secretary of Energy submitted 
     to Congress a comprehensive report making recommendations for 
     ensuring the safe disposal of all greater-than-Class C low-
     level radioactive waste; and
       (B) 16 years later, it is likely that the information 
     contained in the report is no longer current and does not 
     reflect the new security threat environment;
       (5) the Department of Energy--
       (A) does not have the resources or storage facility to 
     recover and store all unwanted sources of greater-than-Class 
     C low-level radioactive waste; and
       (B) has not identified a permanent disposal facility;
       (6) it is unlikely that a permanent disposal facility will 
     be operational by the time that the Offsite Source Recovery 
     Program ceases operation;
       (7) the initial steps in developing a disposal facility 
     (including preparation of an environmental impact statement 
     and issuance of a record of decision) could take several 
     years and will require dedicated funding to complete; and
       (8) before a final decision on the disposal alternative to 
     be implemented is made, Congress must have an opportunity to 
     review the alternatives under consideration and provide 
     input.

     SEC. 3. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY RESPONSIBILITIES

       (a) Designation of Responsibility.--The Secretary of Energy 
     shall designate an entity within the Department of Energy to 
     have the responsibility of completing activities needed to 
     develop a facility for safely disposing of all greater-than-
     Class C low-level radioactive waste.
       (b) Consultation With Congress.--In developing a plan for a 
     permanent disposal facility for greater-than-Class C low-
     level radioactive waste (including preparation of an 
     environmental impact statement and issuance of a record of 
     decision), the Secretary of Energy shall consult with 
     Congress.

     SEC. 4. REPORTS.

       (a) Update of 1987 Report.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Energy shall submit 
     to Congress an update of the report referred to in section 
     2(4).
       (2) Contents.--The update shall contain--
       (A) an identification of the radioactive waste that is to 
     be disposed of (including the source of the waste and the 
     volume, concentration, and other relevant characteristics of 
     the waste);
       (B) an identification of the Federal and non-Federal 
     options for disposal of the waste;
       (C) a description of the actions proposed to ensure the 
     safe disposal of the waste;
       (D) an estimate of the costs of the proposed actions;
       (E) an identification of the options for ensuring that the 
     beneficiaries of the activities resulting in the generation 
     of the radioactive waste bear all reasonable costs of 
     disposing of the waste;
       (F) an identification of any statutory authority required 
     for disposal of the waste; and
       (G) in coordination with the Environmental Protection 
     Agency and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, an 
     identification of any regulatory guidance needed for the 
     disposal of the waste.
       (b) Report on Permanent Disposal Facility.--
       (1) Report on cost and schedule for completion of eis and 
     rod.--Not later than 180 days after the date of submission of 
     the update under subsection (a), the Secretary of Energy 
     shall submit to Congress a report containing an estimate of 
     the cost and schedule to complete an environmental impact 
     statement and record of decision for a permanent disposal 
     facility for greater-than-Class C radioactive waste.
       (2) Report on alternatives.--Before the Secretary of Energy 
     makes a final decision on the disposal alternative to be 
     implemented, the Secretary of Energy shall--
       (A) submit to Congress a report that describes all 
     alternatives under consideration; and
       (B) await action by Congress.
       (c) Report on Short-Term Plan.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than December 31, 2003, the 
     Secretary of Energy shall submit to Congress a plan to ensure 
     the continued recovery and storage of greater-than-Class C 
     low-level radioactive waste until a permanent disposal 
     facility is available.
       (2) Contents.--The plan shall contain estimated cost, 
     resource, and facility needs.
                                 ______