[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 141 (Tuesday, July 27, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Page 40219]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-15887]


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NUCLEAR WASTE TECHNICAL REVIEW BOARD


Board Meeting

    The U.S. Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board will hold a virtual 
public meeting on August 24, 2021.
    Board meeting: August 24, 2021--The U.S. Nuclear Waste Technical 
Review Board will hold an online virtual public meeting to review 
information on the Department of Energy's (DOE) technology development 
activities related to packaging, drying, and dry storage of DOE 
aluminum-clad spent nuclear fuel (SNF).
    Pursuant to its authority under section 5051 of Public Law 100-203, 
Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act (NWPAA) of 1987, the U.S. Nuclear 
Waste Technical Review Board will hold an online virtual public meeting 
on Tuesday, August 24, 2021, to review information on the U.S. 
Department of Energy's (DOE) technology development activities related 
to packaging, drying, and dry storage of DOE aluminum-clad spent 
nuclear fuel (SNF).
    The meeting will begin at 11:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) 
and is scheduled to adjourn at 5:10 p.m. EDT. Speakers representing the 
DOE Office of Environmental Management and the national laboratories 
conducting the work for DOE will report on DOE's technology development 
program on aluminum-clad SNF packaging, drying, and dry storage. 
Speakers will describe DOE's program, including plans and goals, scope, 
and technical approach to better understand the characteristics and 
performance of aluminum-clad SNF that will be packaged and sealed into 
canisters designed for storage, transportation and disposal. Speakers 
will address the primary challenge to extended dry storage of aluminum-
clad SNF, which is centered on the behavior of hydrated oxides and 
radiolytic breakdown of associated adsorbed and chemically-bound water. 
Laboratory speakers will address drying of aluminum-clad SNF 
surrogates, and radiolytic gas generation during storage in unsealed 
canisters and during extended dry storage (>50 years) in sealed 
canisters. The final speaker will describe efforts to develop remote 
sensors for measuring pressure, temperature, humidity, and hydrogen gas 
concentration inside a dry storage canister containing aluminum-clad 
SNF. A detailed meeting agenda will be available on the Board's website 
at www.nwtrb.gov approximately one week before the meeting.
    The meeting will be open to the public, and opportunities for 
public comment will be provided. Details on how to submit public 
comments during the meeting will be provided on the Board's website 
along with the details for viewing the meeting. A limit may be set on 
the time allowed for the presentation of individual remarks. However, 
written comments of any length may be submitted to the Board staff by 
mail or electronic mail. All comments received in writing will be 
included in the meeting record, which will be posted on the Board's 
website after the meeting. An archived recording of the meeting will be 
available on the Board's website following the meeting. The transcript 
of the meeting will be available on the Board's website by October 24, 
2021.
    The Board was established in the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments 
Act of 1987 as an independent federal agency in the Executive Branch to 
evaluate the technical and scientific validity of DOE activities 
related to the management and disposal of SNF and high-level 
radioactive waste, and to provide objective expert advice to Congress 
and the Secretary of Energy on these issues. Board members are experts 
in their fields and are appointed to the Board by the President from a 
list of candidates submitted by the National Academy of Sciences. The 
Board reports its findings, conclusions, and recommendations to 
Congress and the Secretary of Energy. All Board reports, 
correspondence, congressional testimony, and meeting transcripts and 
related materials are posted on the Board's website.
    For information on the meeting agenda, contact Bret Leslie: 
[email protected] or Dan Ogg: [email protected]. For information on 
logistics, or to request copies of the meeting agenda or transcript, 
contact Davonya Barnes: [email protected]. All three may be reached by 
mail at 2300 Clarendon Boulevard, Suite 1300, Arlington, VA 22201-3367; 
by telephone at 703-235-4473; or by fax at 703-235-4495.

    Dated: July 21, 2021.
Nigel Mote,
Executive Director, U.S. Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board.
[FR Doc. 2021-15887 Filed 7-26-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6820-AM-P