ML20127J337
| ML20127J337 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Maine Yankee |
| Issue date: | 06/12/1985 |
| From: | Whittier G Maine Yankee |
| To: | Dircks W NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO) |
| References | |
| 5902L-GDW, GDW-85-175, NUDOCS 8506260561 | |
| Download: ML20127J337 (3) | |
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[9 June 12, 1985 GDW-85-175 Mr. William J. Dirks Executive Director of Operations United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, D. C.
20555
Dear Mr. Dirks:
Senator William Cohen, recently wrote to you regarding a letter he had received from Ms. Rae Bachelder on the subject of Maine Yankee's Low Level Waste Storage Facility. A copy of a recent letter that we wrote to Ms.
Bachelder on this subject is attached for your information.
Please feel free to contact us if you should have any questions on this matter.
Very truly yours, MAINE YANKEE ATOMIC POWER COWANY kbW G. D. Whittier, Manager Nuclear Engineering & Licensing GDW/bjp
Attachment:
cc: Senator William S. Cohen
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_ m _-W O May 6, 1985 Ms. Rae J. Bachelde:
Old Fort Road North Edgecomb, ME 04556
Dear Ms. Bachelder:
l Representative Muriel Holloway asked us to respond to your letter of April 8,1985 regarding low-level radioactivo waste at Maine Yankee.
In your letter, you expressed particular concern regarding the proper licensing of low-level waste storage at Maine Yankee to ensure the appropriate safeguards for workers and the general public.
Maine Yankee produces approximately 12,000 cubic feet of l
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low-level waste per year.
The waste produced includes protective clothing, paper products, contaminated tools, filter resins, etc.
Each month Maine Yankee ships its low-level waste to licensed disposal facilities in South Carolina, Nevada, or i
Federal legislation passed in 1980, however, is i
expected to foreclose this out-of-state disposal option for i
Maine Yankee after January 1, 1986.
The Maine Low-1cyc1 Waste Siting Commission, which is investigating disposal options for 1
Maine, has recommended that each generator of waste in the state store its own vaste on site until a permanent state
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solution can be reached.
Maine Yankee, therefore, along with other low-level waste producers such as Maine Medical Center, Jackson Laboratories and Dowdoin College, must prepare to safely store its low-level waste on site for an interim period.
Current Nuclear Regulatory Commission policy allows on-site
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storage of low-1cvel waste for up to 5 years at a licensed f
nuclear power plant.
Currently, the storage, handling, l
transporting and disposal of low-1cvel waste produced at Maine s
Yankee is strictly regulated by the NRC, Department of Transportation and Environmental Protection Agency.
I am afraid the Boothbay Register article may have left the mistaken impression that Maine Yankee's current storage efforts and its
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planned expansion are not subject to strict regulatory i
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c Ms. Rae J. Bachelder Page 2
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May 6, 1985
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l-t oversight.
I can assure you that existing law provides i
stringent and comprehensive regulations to deal with all aspects of handling low-level waste from the point of their p
generation through to their safe disposal.
The temporary low-level waste storage building at Maine Yankee will be built and will operate in accordance with those extensive
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regulations.
L I hope this information responds to your concerns regarding
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safe storage of low-level waste at Maine Yankee.
We continue
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to work with the State of Maine to finalize a permanent state y
solution to the low-level waste storage and disposal problem in
[.
We do not believe that long-term storage is the best alternative and hope that the state could negotiate a regional compact with one or more other Northeastern states to provide
.i for a regional disposal facility where the region's low-level il waste could be disposed of safely and economically.
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I Sincerely, j
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i ohn H. Arnold L
Public Affairs Director JIIA/kss i
I Enclosure cc:
Rep. Muriel llolloway
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Sen. William S.
Cohen Sen. George J. Mitchell-c/o Sue Longley f
Rep. John R. McKernan, Jr.
Rep. Olympia J. Snowe i
bec:
D.T. Flanagan I
C.E. Monty J.B.
Randazca j
D.ll. Marden i
Cohen / Herman I
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