[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 154 (Thursday, August 9, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41912-41913]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-19924]


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NUCLEAR WASTE TECHNICAL REVIEW BOARD


Board Meeting

    September 10-12, 2001--Las Vegas, Nevada: The Nuclear Waste 
Technical Review Board will hold a meeting to discuss issues related to 
the characterization of a potential repository site at Yucca Mountain, 
Nevada. A program overview and status reports on site characterization 
and evaluation will be presented by the U.S. Department of Energy. 
Other topics on the agenda include uncertainty analyses, waste package 
materials testing, performance assessment, consequences of igneous 
intrusion, and repository development plans.
    Pursuant to its authority under section 5051 of Public Law 100-203, 
Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987, the Nuclear Waste 
Technical Review Board will meet in Las Vegas, Nevada, from Monday, 
September 10, to Wednesday, September 12, 2001, to discuss the status 
of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) efforts to characterize a site at 
Yucca Mountain, Nevada, as the possible location of a permanent 
repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. At 
the two-and-a-half-day meeting, the DOE and representatives of the 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency, the 
State of Nevada, and Nye County, Nevada, will present updates on 
important issues related to the technical and scientific evaluation of 
the Yucca Mountain site. The meeting is open to the public, and several 
opportunities for public comment will be provided.
    The Board meeting will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 4255 
South Paradise Road, Las Vegas, Nevada 89109. The telephone number is 
(702) 369-4400; the fax number is (702) 369-3770. The meeting sessions 
will start at 8:00 a.m. each day.
    The Monday session will begin with a general overview of the DOE 
program and the Yucca Mountain project, including a DOE perspective on 
a potential site recommendation and a DOE presentation on long-range 
decision processes. Additional topics to be discussed on Monday include 
analyses of uncertainty and activities related to testing waste package 
materials. The DOE also will discuss its comparison of higher- and 
lower-temperature operating modes for a potential Yucca Mountain 
repository. Updates on peer reviews being conducted by the DOE on the 
biosphere and on performance assessment will complete Monday's agenda.
    Tuesday's agenda includes discussions of standards and regulations, 
the DOE's plans for addressing key technical issues, and a summary of 
the DOE's preliminary evaluations of site suitability. The DOE will 
present an update on the science program and a summary of the 
Supplementary Science and Performance Analyses report. Representatives 
of the Nye County drilling program will discuss the status of work 
undertaken by that program. The day will end with a presentation on

[[Page 41913]]

structural controls on flow at the site by a contractor for the State 
of Nevada.
    The half-day session on Wednesday will include discussions of 
repository development plans and of the consequences of igneous 
activity.
    Opportunities for public comment will be provided before 
adjournment on all 3 days. Those wanting to speak during the public 
comment periods are encouraged to sign the ``Public Comment Register'' 
at the check-in table. Additional comment periods will be provided 
before lunch on Monday and Tuesday for anyone unable to remain at the 
meeting until the evening comment periods. A time limit may have to be 
set on individual remarks, but written comments of any length may be 
submitted for the record. Interested parties also will have the 
opportunity to submit questions in writing to the Board. As time 
permits, the questions will be read during the meeting sessions or 
during the public comment periods.
    A detailed agenda will be available the week before the meeting. 
Copies of the agenda can be requested by telephone or obtained from the 
Board's Web site at www.nwtrb.gov. Beginning on October 8, 2001, 
transcripts of the meeting will be available on the Board's Web site, 
via e-mail, on computer disk, and on a library-loan basis in paper 
format from Davonya Barnes of the Board staff.
    A block of rooms has been reserved until August 18 at the Crowne 
Plaza Hotel. When making a reservation, please state that you will be 
attending the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board meeting. For more 
information, contact the NWTRB, Karyn Severson, External Affairs; 2300 
Clarendon Boulevard, Suite 1300; Arlington, VA 22201-3367; (tel) 703-
235-4473; (fax) 703-235-4495; (e-mail) [email protected].
    The Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board was created by Congress in 
the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1987. The Board's purpose is 
to evaluate the technical and scientific validity of activities 
undertaken by the Secretary of Energy related to managing the disposal 
of the nation's spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. In 
the same legislation, Congress directed the DOE to characterize a site 
at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, to determine its suitability as the location 
of a potential repository for the permanent disposal of spent nuclear 
fuel and high-level radioactive waste.

    Dated: August 3, 2001.
William D. Barnard,
Executive Director, Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board.
[FR Doc. 01-19924 Filed 8-08-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6820-AM-M