NRC NEWS

 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 

 Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200

 Washington, DC 20555-0001 E-mail: opa@nrc.gov 

 Web Site: www.nrc.gov

No. 03-027 March 10, 2003

 

NRC SEEKS PUBLIC COMMENT ON POTENTIAL REGULATION ON CONTROL OF

SOLID MATERIALS CONTAINING NO OR VERY SMALL AMOUNTS OF RADIOACTIVITY

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is seeking additional public comment on alternatives for

controlling the disposition of solid materials that originate in certain areas of NRC-licensed facilities

and that may contain no or very small amounts of radioactivity resulting from licensed operations.

NRC staff will hold a public workshop on May 21-22 at its headquarters building in Rockville,

MD, to discuss alternative approaches addressed in earlier public sessions, with a focus on the

feasibility of two alternatives that would limit where solid material can go. To further assist

stakeholders, the staff has placed on its website an Information Packet that discusses the various

alternatives under consideration and how interested persons can provide comments to the NRC. This

website is located at http://www.nrc.gov/materials.html ; click under Key Topics on “Controlling the

Disposition of Solid Materials.” 

The solid materials under consideration include items such as furniture and ventilation ducts in

buildings; metal equipment and pipes; wood, paper and glass; laboratory materials (gloves, beakers,

etc.); routine trash; site fences; concrete; soil; or other similar materials. Much of this solid material has

either no, or very small amounts of, radioactivity resulting from facility operations either because the

material was exposed to radioactivity to only a limited extent or because it has been cleaned. Under

existing NRC regulations, materials that contain more appreciable levels of radioactivity are separated

from these other materials and are required to be disposed of in licensed low-level waste (LLW)

disposal sites. 

Current regulations in 10 CFR Part 20 allow solid materials to be released for unrestricted use if

they are free of radioactivity or any detectable radioactivity is below a level considered to be protective

of public health and safety and the environment. However, current regulations do not specify the

precise level below which the material can be released. The NRC’s current approach uses guidelines

based primarily on the ability of survey meters to measure the radioactivity level on, or in, the solid

material.
Last fall the Commission directed the staff to proceed with a rulemaking that considers a range

of alternatives. Five alternatives have been identified, as outlined in a notice published February 28 in

the Federal Register. They are: 

1. Continue NRC’s current case-by-case approach of allowing release of solid materials for

unrestricted use based on existing guidance on survey capabilities.

2. Amend NRC’s regulations to include a dose-based criterion for release for unrestricted use.

3. Allow release for “conditional use,” restricted to certain authorized uses with limited public

exposures, such as metals in bridges, sewer lines, or industrial components in a factory, or

concrete in road fill.

4. Require disposal in an EPA-regulated landfill.

5. Require disposal in a licensed LLW disposal site.

Earlier requests for information on this issue generated substantial information on alternatives 1,

2 and 5; however, additional information is needed on the feasibility of alternatives 3 and 4, the

conditional use and landfill disposal options. The Commission is building on this existing information

by soliciting new input on the alternatives, with a focus on the feasibility of alternatives 3 and 4.

The public workshop will be held May 21-22 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., in the NRC

Auditorium, 11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland.

The NRC is also inviting written or electronic comments by June 30. Comments should be sent

to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555. Attention: Rulemaking

and Adjudications Staff. Comments may also be delivered to 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville,

Maryland, between 7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. on Federal workdays. Comments may also be submitted

electronically via the NRC’s web page, using the Information Packet noted earlier or via the agency’s

rulemaking website at http://ruleforum.llnl.gov (then select “Information/Comment Requests” from the

left-hand column). For information about the interactive rulemaking web page, contact Ms. Carol

Gallagher, 301-415-5905 (cag@nrc.gov) .

For further information, contact Frank Cardile, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and

Safeguards, at 301-415-6185 (fpc@nrc.gov) . Specific comments on the public workshop should be

directed to Chip Cameron, at 301-415-1642 (fxc@nrc.gov) .

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