United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office Resources, Community, and Economic Development Division author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 1994-12-27 monographic deposited born digital 46 p. GA 1.13:RCED-95-44 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-44 P0b002ee18037c7dc f:rc95044 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-28 GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-44 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-44 RCED-95-44 Nuclear waste management Nuclear waste disposal Radioactive wastes Nuclear facilities Test facilities Future budget projections Cost effectiveness analysis Atomic energy defense activities Environmental monitoring Letter Report RCED After pursuing for a decade a strategy for underground tests with nuclear wastes in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant--a proposed repository for the disposal of transuranic wastes located near Carlsbad, New Mexico--the Energy Department (DOE) announced in October 1993 that it was abandoning these tests in favor of laboratory-based tests. DOE claimed that this change would save about $139 million by January 2000 and would allow DOE to begin disposing of waste by 1998. The general consensus among scientists, experts, and regulators is that DOE's decision to discontinue its planned underground tests with transuranic wastes is sound. However, GAO questions DOE's projected cost savings. For instance, DOE lacks documentation for many elements of the estimated cost savings. GAO also concludes that DOE will not be able to open the plant by 1998 instead of 2000. Numerous unresolved issues could affect when DOE can eventually begin disposing of wastes in the facility. For example it is unclear whether DOE's schedule gives the Environmental Protection Agency enough time to review DOE's procedures and decide if DOE has complied with EPA's regulatory requirements for disposing of transuranic wastes in a repository. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-44/html/GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-44.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-44/pdf/GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-44.pdf GAO/RCED-95-44 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-44 Letter Report GAO/RCED-95-44; Nuclear Waste: Change in Test Strategy Sound, but DOE Overstated Savings; Nuclear waste management Nuclear waste disposal Radioactive wastes Nuclear facilities Test facilities Future budget projections Cost effectiveness analysis Atomic energy defense activities Environmental monitoring Public Law 96-164 Public Law 102-579 Title 40 Part 191 40 CFR Part 191