[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 88 (Monday, May 7, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23013-23016]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-11383]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY


Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management; Yucca Mountain 
Science and Engineering Report; Site Recommendation Consideration and 
Request for Comment

AGENCY: Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, Department of 
Energy.

ACTION: Notice of availability of report and initiation of public 
comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Energy (the Department or DOE) announces the 
initiation of a public comment period on the possible recommendation of 
the Yucca Mountain Site in Nevada by the Secretary of Energy to the 
President for development as a spent nuclear fuel and high-level 
nuclear waste geologic repository. To facilitate the public review and 
comment process, the Department announces today the availability of the 
Yucca Mountain Science and Engineering Report (YMS&ER). This report 
provides the public with a summary of the information and data 
collected to date by the Department in its multi-year study and 
characterization of the Yucca Mountain site as a potential spent 
nuclear fuel and high-level waste repository. A decision to recommend 
the site has not been made; the YMS&ER is being issued to describe the 
results of site characterization studies completed to date, the waste 
forms to be disposed, a repository and waste package design, and 
updated assessments of the long term performance of the potential 
repository. The Department intends for the YMS&ER, and its supporting 
documents, to be used by the public as an aid in providing comments on 
the technical information and data underlying the Department's 
consideration of a possible recommendation of the site. This summer, 
after the release of additional information, DOE will announce the 
dates, locations and times for public hearings on the possible 
recommendation and the date for the end of the public comment period. 
In addition, in recognition of the fact that technical and scientific 
analyses are continuing, and that the pertinent regulatory framework is 
not currently in final form, the issuance of additional information, 
beyond that anticipated for release this summer, may be warranted. By 
making the large amount of information developed by the Department on 
the Yucca Mountain site available in stages, the Department intends to 
provide the public and interested parties with ample time to review all 
the available materials and formulate their comments regarding a 
possible site recommendation by the Secretary.

DATES: The public may submit written comments at this time. DOE will 
issue additional information this summer and will at that point 
announce the dates, locations and times of public hearings

[[Page 23014]]

on the Secretary's consideration of a potential site recommendation.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be addressed to Carol Hanlon, U.S. 
Department of Energy, Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Office, (M/S 
#025), P.O. Box 30307, North Las Vegas, Nevada 89036-0307, or provided 
by electronic mail to [email protected]. Written comments should be 
identified on the outside of the envelope, and on the comments 
themselves, with the designation: ``Possible Site Recommendation for 
Yucca Mountain.'' Comments can also be submitted by facsimile to 1-800-
967-0739. Copies of any written comments, and documents referenced in 
this notice may be inspected and photocopied in the DOE Freedom of 
Information Act Reading Room located at the Yucca Mountain Science 
Center, 4101B Meadows Lane, Las Vegas, Nevada, (702) 295-1312, between 
the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except for 
Federal holidays. Documents referenced in this notice may also be found 
on the Internet at http://www.ymp.gov and at http://www.rw.doe.gov 
(YMS&ER only). For more information concerning public participation, 
please refer to the Opportunity for Public Comment section of this 
notice.
    Copies of the YMS&ER may be requested by telephone (1-800-967-3477) 
or over the Internet via the Yucca Mountain Project website using the 
document ordering form at http://www.ymp.gov under the listing ``Yucca 
Mountain Science and Engineering Report.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: U.S. Department of Energy, Office of 
Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, Yucca Mountain Site 
Characterization Office, (M/S #025), P.O. Box 30307, North Las Vegas, 
Nevada 89036-0307, 1-800-967-3477.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction

A. Yucca Mountain Site Characterization

    In 1982, Congress passed the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) 
(Public Law 97-425), designating the federal government as the 
responsible entity for the safe and permanent disposal of spent nuclear 
fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Also in the NWPA, Congress 
established a comprehensive framework for the siting, construction and 
operation of a geologic repository as the primary mechanism by which 
the federal government would ensure the safe and permanent disposal of 
such radioactive material. In 1987, Congress amended the NWPA. In the 
Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987 (Public Law No. 100-203), 
Congress directed the Department to characterize only the Yucca 
Mountain, Nevada site for a possible geologic repository.
    The Department has studied Yucca Mountain for over 20 years. Over 
the course of those years, the Department has performed detailed 
scientific investigations of the geology, hydrology, geochemistry, and 
other characteristics of the site to determine whether it is a suitable 
place to build a geologic repository. The DOE has also developed a 
preliminary design for a potential repository and for the waste 
packages in which spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste 
might be stored. The results of these scientific investigations and the 
preliminary design efforts have been analyzed to assess the possible 
future performance of the potential repository in the geologic setting 
of the site. The YMS&ER provides a summary of these studies and design 
efforts to date.

B. Site Recommendation Process

    Under Section 114 (a)(1) of the NWPA, as amended, the Secretary's 
decision whether to recommend the site will be made following the 
completion of public hearings and completion of site characterization 
activities under section 113 of the NWPA, as amended.
    The following steps describe the process for the Secretary's 
determination whether to recommend the site to the President; for the 
President's decision whether to approve the site; and for the role of 
the state of Nevada and Congress in the approval or denial of any 
recommendation by the President. Also summarized are the steps 
necessary for the DOE to prepare a license application to the Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission (NRC) and for the NRC to grant an authorization 
to begin construction, if the site is approved.
    Step 1. The NWPA, as amended, requires the Secretary to hold public 
hearings in the vicinity of the Yucca Mountain site. The hearings will 
provide the DOE with an opportunity to inform residents of the area 
that the site is being considered for possible recommendation for 
development of a repository and receive their comments. The YMS&ER, 
issued this date, provides a summary of scientific and technical 
information relevant to the site recommendation process. This summer, 
DOE will be issuing additional information that the Secretary will use 
in his consideration of a possible recommendation for the Yucca 
Mountain site. This information will include the results of ongoing 
sensitivity studies and uncertainty study analyses (Supplemental 
Science and Performance Analyses), as well as the results of a 
preliminary evaluation of the Yucca Mountain site's preclosure and 
postclosure performance against the Department's proposed site 
suitability guidelines (Preliminary Site Suitability Evaluation). That 
preliminary evaluation will consider any newly available information in 
addition to the information provided in the YMS&ER. Although there is 
no statutory requirement for development or issuance of these 
documents, the DOE is providing the documents to facilitate public 
comments before and during the public hearings.
    Step 2. Comments received during the public comment period will be 
considered by the Secretary before a decision is made whether to 
recommend the site to the President. After considering the comments 
received, if the Secretary decides to recommend the site, the NWPA 
requires the Secretary to notify the governor and legislature of the 
state of Nevada and wait at least 30 days before submitting the 
recommendation to the President. If the Secretary decides not to 
recommend the site, appropriate notification will be made to the 
Congress and the State of Nevada.
    Step 3. If the Secretary decides to recommend approval of the site 
and 30 days has elapsed since notification of the State of Nevada, the 
Secretary would then provide the recommendation to the President along 
with the basis for the recommendation, as required under section 
114(a)(1) of the NWPA. That basis for recommendation would include, 
among other items, comments received on the YMS&ER and subsequent 
documents; the views and comments submitted by the governor and 
legislature of any state, along with the Secretary's response to such 
views; the preliminary comments of the NRC concerning the extent to 
which the at-depth site characterization analysis and the waste form 
proposal seem to be sufficient for inclusion in any subsequent license 
application; and a final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the 
Yucca Mountain site. (The Department is in the process of preparing 
this EIS. For more information on the status of that process see a 
separate Federal Register Notice of May 4, 2001.) Upon submission to 
the President, the Secretary's recommendation and basis for the 
recommendation would be available to the public.
    Step 4. If, after receiving a recommendation by the Secretary and

[[Page 23015]]

the basis for the recommendation, the President considers the Yucca 
Mountain site qualified for application for a construction 
authorization for a repository, the President may approve the site for 
the development of a repository and recommend the site to Congress. The 
President's recommendation to Congress would be accompanied by the 
Secretary's recommendation, and the basis for the recommendation.
    Step 5. If the President submits a recommendation of the site to 
Congress, the state of Nevada will have 60 days to submit a notice of 
disapproval to Congress. If Nevada does not submit a notice, the Yucca 
Mountain site designation will become effective, 60 days after the 
President's recommendation is submitted to Congress. If the state of 
Nevada does submit a notice, the Yucca Mountain site designation would 
be disapproved unless, during the first 90 days of continuous session 
after the notice of disapproval is submitted, Congress passes a joint 
resolution of repository siting approval and the President signs it 
into law.
    Step 6. If the site designation becomes effective, the Secretary 
will subsequently submit a license application to the NRC for 
authorization to construct a repository and provide a copy to the 
governor and legislature of Nevada. The NWPA requires the NRC to issue 
a final decision approving or disapproving the construction 
authorization within three years after receiving the application. 
However, the law provides that the NRC can extend the deadline by up to 
one year if it submits to the Secretary of Energy and Congress a 
written report explaining the reason for the NRC's failure to meet the 
three-year deadline.

C. Information for the Public Comment Process

    As explained above, the Department is making available the YMS&ER 
in conjunction with the initiation of the site recommendation process. 
The report describes the results of site characterization, the waste 
forms to be disposed of, the preliminary design of the repository and 
the waste packages, and the results of assessments of potential 
repository performance. The information presented provides the 
Department's existing technical basis for public and stakeholder 
comments on the possible recommendation. The Department will continue 
to collect and refine its analysis and information base, in response to 
public comments and as part of its ongoing characterization activities, 
before reaching any decision on a possible site recommendation.
    The information and analyses in the YMS&ER are also based on the 
status of regulations, as presently proposed, that would govern the 
public health and safety standard for a spent nuclear fuel and high-
level waste repository at Yucca Mountain (EPA standards proposed for 
codification at 40 CFR part 197), the licensing requirements for such a 
repository (NRC requirements proposed for codification at 10 CFR part 
63), and the suitability of the Yucca Mountain site for a repository 
(DOE guidelines proposed for codification at 10 CFR part 963). The 
Department expects that the subject regulations will be finalized in 
the near future. The currently proposed regulations provide a 
reasonable basis for the consideration of a possible site 
recommendation. In recognition of the fact that technical and 
scientific analyses are continuing, and that the pertinent regulatory 
framework is not currently in final form, the issuance of additional 
information or analyses, beyond that anticipated for release this 
summer, may be warranted.
    The YMS&ER is available on the Internet, on compact disc, and in 
print.
    The document contains information that would be included in the 
basis for any site recommendation from the Secretary to the President, 
as specified by Section 114(a)(1)(A), (B), and (C) of the NWPA. The 
organization of the YMS&ER is consistent with the order of information 
identified in Section 114 of the NWPA. Section 1 introduces the report 
and provides background information on the site recommendation approval 
process and a summary of the information in the succeeding sections of 
the report. Section 2 describes the design of the potential repository 
at Yucca Mountain, including preliminary engineering specifications for 
the facility. Section 3 describes the waste forms to be disposed and 
proposed waste package designs. Section 4 discusses the data related to 
the safety of the Yucca Mountain site, including a description of how 
the natural and engineered repository systems would work together to 
protect public health and limit the release of radionuclides to the 
environment. It explains the relationship between the waste form, the 
waste package, and the geologic medium at Yucca Mountain. It also 
describes analyses of the future long-term performance of a Yucca 
Mountain repository. Section 5 describes the analyses performed to 
evaluate the safety of the potential repository during operation and 
before final closure.
    The YMS&ER references numerous supporting documents, which are 
available on the Internet (http://www.ymp.gov) or in print. The public 
is encouraged to review these documents, in addition to the YMS&ER, in 
developing comments on the possible site recommendation. The supporting 
documents incorporate an extensive foundation of scientific, 
engineering, and programmatic research that analyzed the Yucca Mountain 
site, the proposed repository and waste package designs, and other 
information. The supporting documents are hierarchically organized: at 
the top are comprehensive integrating documents that support this 
report directly, and an extensive set of technical reports that explain 
in more detail the basis for the analyses presented. Some of the major 
integrating documents are:

    The Total System Performance Assessment--Site Recommendation.
    The Preliminary Preclosure Safety Assessment for a Monitored 
Geologic
    Repository.
    The Draft Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic 
Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level 
Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada.
    The Yucca Mountain Site Description.
    The Monitored Geologic Repository Project Description Document.
    Key technical references include nine process model reports that 
describe how the natural and engineered systems at a potential 
repository are expected to behave. For example, these reports 
describe how water would move from the surface to the repository and 
how the waste package would perform over time. Reports summarizing 
hundreds of scientific and engineering studies on a wide variety of 
topics support the YMS&ER in more detail, including:
    Analysis model reports describing the detailed scientific models 
of how the potential repository might behave in the future;
    Scientific reports of the results of site characterization 
investigations, regional studies, and studies of natural analogues 
to a potential repository;
    Descriptions of design requirements, design analyses, and design 
alternative studies for the repository surface and subsurface 
facilities, engineered barrier systems, and waste packages.

    Concurrent with the release of the YMS&ER, DOE will also be issuing 
a Supplement to the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic 
Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level 
Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada. The 
availability of that document was announced in a separate Federal 
Register Notice, dated May 4, 2001, together with information on the 
opportunities for public comment on the document and public hearings to 
be held.

[[Page 23016]]

II. Opportunity for Public Comment

A. Participation in Comment Process

    Interested persons are invited to participate in the comment 
process by submitting written data, views, or comments with respect to 
the subject set forth in this notice. The Department encourages the 
maximum level of public participation possible in this process. 
Individuals, coalitions, states or other government entities, and 
others are urged to submit written comments on the possible 
recommendation of the Yucca Mountain site.

B. Written Comment Procedures

    The DOE invites the public to comment on a possible site 
recommendation for the Yucca Mountain site. Written comments should be 
identified on the outside of the envelope, and on the comments 
themselves, with the designation: ``Possible Site Recommendation for 
Yucca Mountain.'' In the event any person wishing to submit written 
comments cannot provide them directly, alternative arrangements can be 
made by calling [(800) 967-3477]. All comments received and other 
relevant information will be considered by the DOE before a decision is 
made on the potential site recommendation. All comments submitted will 
be available for examination at the Yucca Mountain Science Center in 
Las Vegas, Nevada. Pursuant to the provisions of 10 CFR 1004.11, any 
person submitting information or data that is believed to be 
confidential, and which may be exempt by law from public disclosure, 
should submit one complete copy, as well as two copies from which the 
information considered confidential has been deleted. The Department of 
Energy will make its own determination of any such claim and treat it 
accordingly.

    Issued in Washington, DC on April 27, 2001.
Lake Barrett,
Acting Director, Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management.
[FR Doc. 01-11383 Filed 5-4-01; 8:45 am]
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