What are the Siting Criteria for a Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Facility in Ohio?

RER-34

Audeen W. Fentiman
Pamela K. Longmire
Ronald B. Meyers.

The first step in finding a site for a low-level radioactive waste disposal facility is to list the criteria the site must meet. Siting requirements have been established by the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission and can be found in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 61 (10CFR61). A state must include all of the Federal siting criteria in its list and may add criteria of its own. Legislation passed by the Ohio General Assembly in 1995 contains the criteria for siting a low-level waste disposal facility in Ohio. This fact sheet outlines the siting criteria in that legislation, Substitute Senate Bill 19.

Federal Siting Criteria

Substitute Senate Bill 19 says that "The disposal site shall comply with all criteria established in 10 C.F.R. Part 61." These criteria are intended to ensure that the facility will meet the following performance objectives: (1) protect the general population from releases of radioactive material, (2) protect individuals during operations, (3) ensure stability of the disposal site after it is closed, and (4) protect individuals who inadvertently intrude.* The federal criteria are listed in fact sheet RER-64, "Selecting a Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Site." Some of those criteria are briefly summarized below:

• The disposal site shall be capable of being characterized, modeled, analyzed, and monitored.
• The disposal site should be selected so that projected population growth will not affect the disposal facility's ability to meet the performance objectives.
• Areas having known natural resources should be avoided.
• The disposal site must be well drained.
• Areas having earthquakes or volcanic activity that might affect the performance of the disposal facility must be avoided.
• The disposal site must provide sufficient depth to the water table.
• The disposal site must not be located where nearby facilities or activities could adversely impact the site's ability to meet the performance objectives or the ability to be monitored.

Ohio Siting Criteria

Ohio has adopted siting criteria in addition to those specified in 10CFR61. These additional criteria, found in Ohio Statute, are divided into two groups. One group is exclusionary criteria. These are criteria that the site must meet. If the site fails to meet any one criterion in this group, it is not acceptable. The second group is preference criteria. Preference criteria will be used to differentiate among the acceptable sites. Exclusionary criteria and preference criteria are listed in separate sections of this fact sheet.

The Board of Directors of Ohio's Low-Level Radioactive Waste Facility Development Authority may add preference siting criteria to the list in Substitute Senate Bill 19. When doing so, the Board must consider recommendations contained in the Blue Ribbon Commission's report entitled "Recommendations on Siting Criteria and Development Requirements for a Regional Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Facility in Ohio", completed in September 1993.

Exclusionary Criteria

1. The disposal site shall be capable of being characterized, modeled, analyzed, and monitored.
2. The disposal units (the structures in which the low-level waste is placed for disposal) shall not be located within one kilometer (0.61 mile) of:
   • A national park, national recreation area, or national monument
   • A national wildlife refuge or a national wild and scenic river
   • A special interest area or research natural area in the Wayne National Forest
   • A state park or area that will be purchased for a state park
   • The Shawnee Wilderness Area, a state nature preserve, a state wildlife area, or a wild, scenic or recreational river
   • An archeological or historic site in the National Register of Historic Places
3. The disposal site shall not be located within the Lake Erie Coastal Area.
4. The disposal site shall not be located where activities at the site would cause the elimination of endangered or threatened plants or animals.
5. The disposal site shall not be located where nearby facilities or activities would have an adverse impact on the ability of the disposal site to meet the four performance objectives in 10CFR61 (listed earlier in this fact sheet).
6. The disposal site shall be well drained and free of frequent flooding or ponding.
7. The disposal site shall not be within a 100-year floodplain, and the disposal units shall not be in the 500-year floodplain.
8. The disposal site shall not contain any wetlands or lakes.
9. The disposal site shall not be located where earthquakes are frequent or faults are significant.
10. The disposal site shall not be located in areas where the ground is likely to sink due to operating or abandoned underground mines.
11. The disposal site shall not be located on a steep slope.
12. The disposal site shall not be located in areas of known or probable karst features (caves or sinkholes formed when underground rock dissolves).
13. The disposal site shall not be located over a sole source aquifer or within a wellhead protection area.
14. The disposal site shall not be located above a large aquifer that supplies drinking water.
15. The disposal site shall provide sufficient distance between the base of the disposal unit and the water table.
16. Groundwater under the site shall not discharge (come to the surface) on the site.
17. The Ecological Monitoring Zone shall be set up to include the discharge area of the shallowest groundwater.
18. Soil conditions at the site shall be suitable for construction of an above-ground facility.
19. The site shall not be located where nearby facilities or activities could interfere with environmental monitoring on or around the site.

Preference Criteria

Five preference criteria are listed in Substitute Senate Bill 19. This section summarizes those criteria. Other criteria may be added by the Board of Directors of the Ohio Low-Level Radioactive Waste Facility Development Authority. The preference criteria in Substitute Senate Bill 19 are:

1. The site should minimize risks associated with transportation of waste to be disposed of at the facility.
2. The site should not be in an area with known, economically significant natural resources that, if exploited, would result in the failure of the site to meet performance objectives.
3. The site should be located so that as little water as possible drains onto the site from higher ground.
4. Visibility from a scenic highway should be minimized.
5. The site should not be located in a drained wetland where the site would revert to a wetland if the artificial drainage were discontinued.

For More Information

If you want to read more about siting criteria for Ohio's low-level radioactive waste disposal facility, these documents may be helpful.

Ohio Blue Ribbon Commission, "Recommendations on Siting Criteria and Development Requirements for a Regional Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Facility in Ohio," September 1993.

Ohio Revised Code, Section 3747.12

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Code of Federal Regulations, Title 10, Part 61.50, "Disposal Site Suitability Requirements for Land Disposal."

Other fact sheets in this series:

RER-32, "How Does Geology Affect the Disposal of Low-Level Radioactive Waste?"

RER-33, "How Does Hydrogeology Affect the Disposal of Low-Level Radioactive Waste?"

RER-64, "Selecting a Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Site."

* An inadvertent intruder is defined as a person who occupies the disposal site after it has been closed and, while engaged in normal activities such as agriculture or building construction, is unknowingly exposed to radiation from the waste.

Author Notes:

Dr. Audeen W. Fentiman is an Associate Professor in Nuclear Engineering at The Ohio State University. Pamela K. Longmire is a Graduate Research Associate in Nuclear Engineering, and Ronald B. Meyers is a Graduate Research Associate, Ohio State University Extension.