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The US Effort to Dispose of High-Level Radioactive Waste

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  • Gordon R. Thompson

    (George Perkins Marsh Institute Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA)

Abstract

This paper reviews the history of the US effort to dispose of high-level radioactive waste created by operating nuclear fission reactors for military and commercial purposes. The history is considered here in three parts: the period beginning in 1957 and ending with passage of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act in 1982; implementation of that Act over the period 1982 to 2005; and recent plans to promote a nuclear power “renaissance†, including the initiation of the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership in 2006. To date, disposal has not been accomplished, and many observers doubt that disposal will occur during the next several decades. The history of the disposal effort features a series of decision-action cycles in which objectives were formulated, decisions were taken, actions were implemented, and outcomes occurred. The decision-action process is examined here with attention to the roles and objectives of major stakeholders, the relation of those objectives to governmental decisions, and the extent to which the actual outcomes have corresponded with the objectives.

Suggested Citation

  • Gordon R. Thompson, 2008. "The US Effort to Dispose of High-Level Radioactive Waste," Energy & Environment, , vol. 19(3-4), pages 391-412, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:engenv:v:19:y:2008:i:3-4:p:391-412
    DOI: 10.1260/095830508784641372
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