What is the basis of EPAs standards?
The Energy Policy Act requires EPA to set the standards based on, and consistent with, the findings and recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences’ Technical Bases for Yucca Mountain Standards (http://books.nap.edu). EPA not only considered the report but also public comments received on the report from public hearings as well as additional written comments. EPA also considered previous applicable regulations such as the generic standards at 40 CFR Part 191 Environmental Radiation Protection Standards for the Management and Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel, High-Level and Transuranic Radioactive Wastes for this type of waste. These standards were used to assess the safety of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant C a deep geologic repository for disposal of transuranic waste located in southeastern New Mexico near Carlsbad.
