The US Department of Energy is looking for a temporary home for two thirds of a shipment of low level nuclear waste that was headed to Utah. Waste containing depleted uranium from the Savannah River site in South Carolina has had its storage here delayed after the Department of Energy and Governor Gary Herbert agreed more information was needed to ensure the safety of nearby residents. The highly populated Salt Lake Valley is just 75 miles east of Energy Solution's Clive Storage Facility in the Tooele Valley.
Depleted uranium is low level radioactive waste at this time. The problem is, as it breaks down, its radiation levels increase, with radon emissions peaking after one million years. Energy Solutions is currently working on a report confirming the Clive site can successfully store large quantities of depleted uranium, but it is not expected to be complete before the end of the year. The state will have an independent engineering company assess the report to determine if the facility can dispose of the waste. It is estimated state regulators will take another year to review the findings of the report.
The first of three shipments is already in Utah, but the 5,400 drums have not been buried at the Clive facility. They are currently being held in an Energy Solutions disposal cell, and will not be buried without state approval. The other approximately 10,000 drums need to find a home until some kind of solution can be agreed upon.
The Department of Energy is looking for temporary storage for at least five years, with two possible one year extensions. The only site licensed for interim storage is in west Texas. Energy Solutions is licensed for only one year of temporary storage.
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Source: Salt Lake Tribune
Comments
Looks like about 7000 tonnes stuff in the drums. Phosphate rock is ~100 ppm uranium. World phosphate rock production needs to be ~200 Mt/y. Uranium in the phosphate is ~20,000 tonnes/y. When phosphate rock is converted to phosphoric acid, 0-52-0 fertilizer, the uranium follows the acid while most of the existing uranium decay daughters follow the byprduct calcium-sulfate. So 20,000 tonnes uranium per year is going into the ground all over the planet. When the uranium price was higher, uranium was extracted from the phosphoric acid. Right now we are eating it. The stufff in the dums represents what we eat in 1/3 of a year.
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