What are unique waste streams?
Depleted uranium is unique because the relatively high concentration and large quantity generated by uranium enrichment facilities were not considered by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in the Final Environmental Impact Statement (NUREG-0945) supporting regulations in 10 CFR Part 61, “Licensing Requirements for Land Disposal of Radioactive Waste.” The NRC recognizes that the analysis supporting the criteria did not address the disposal of significant quantities of depleted uranium, and that there may be a need to place additional restrictions at a specific site or deny such disposal based on unique site characteristics. Therefore, the NRC will update the regulations in 10 CFR Part 61 to specify a requirement for a site-specific analysis that demonstrates unique waste streams, including significant quantities of depleted uranium, can be disposed of safely. As currently envisioned, unique waste streams could include those that emerge in the future from new facilities that ge
