High-level radioactive waste

Used nuclear fuel, the by-product of nuclear reactors, is dangerous and of much more concern than low-level radioactive waste. These small, hard pellets exhaust their life and become uneconomical in 18-24 months. Thereafter, the compact, but highly radioactive pellets are no longer useful and need to be stored safely.

The used pellets can be safely stored on site in steel-lined, water filled concrete vaults. These assemblies prevent any harmful radiation from escaping and are sturdy enough to withstand any foreseeable accident. Not surprisingly, these containers are expensive. Seeing that the nation's nuclear plants produce about 2,000 metric tons of used fuel each year, storing the pellets on-site will not be possible forever. The need for a large, secure repository for nuclear waste has long been recognized.

The Nuclear Waste Disposal Act of 1982, amended in 1987, required the US Department of Energy (DOE) to locate, build, and operate a permanent disposal facility for high-level radioactive waste. Political and environmental obstacles delayed the selection of a site. In the meantime, plants needed to store their waste at high costs. Consumers of electricity, in turn, pay millions of dollars every year so that the waste can be stored safely. Finally, though, Yucca Mountain, Nevada has been selected as the permanent site.