New York Codes, Rules and Regulations › Title 6 - DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION › Chapter IV - QUALITY SERVICES › Subchapter C - RADIATION › Part 383 - Regulations For Low-level Radioactive Waste Disposal Facilities Financial Assurance Requirements › Subpart 383-8 - Requirements for Operation of Land Disposal Facilities › Section 383-8.6 - Disposal activities

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 28, July 10, 2024
(a)
					 General disposal requirements.
(1) Unless
					 otherwise authorized by the department, Class B and Class C waste must be
					 disposed of in separate disposal units from those containing Class A waste. The
					 department may authorize the disposal of Class A waste with Class B and C waste
					 if the Class A meets the stability requirements of section
					 382.81(b) 
					 of this Title.
(2) The permittee must
					 maintain a computer-based tracking system for the waste packages at the land
					 disposal facility. The tracking system must be indexed on the unique
					 identification number assigned to the waste package as required by section
					 383-8.4(c)(6) 
					 of this Subpart and must record the movement and location of each waste package
					 from the time it is accepted for disposal through its final placement in the
					 disposal unit. The tracking system must record the position of each waste package
					 within the disposal unit.
(3) Waste
					 must be protected from the elements, including wind, rain, snow, ice, and
					 flooding during disposal operations.
(4) The permittee must operate the land
					 disposal facility in a manner that will minimize the amount of time that elapses
					 between the receipt and disposal of waste. Unless otherwise authorized by the
					 department, waste that is accepted for disposal must be emplaced in disposal
					 units no later than 90 days after it was received at the land disposal
					 facility.
(5) The total quantity of
					 special nuclear material present on the disposal site outside of the disposal
					 units must not, at any time, be sufficient to form a critical mass. Special
					 nuclear material in quantities not sufficient to form a critical mass means:
(i) uranium enriched in the isotope uranium-235
					 in quantities not exceeding 350 grams of contained uranium-235;
(ii) uranium-233 in quantities not exceeding
					 200 grams;
(iii) plutonium in
					 quantities not exceeding 200 grams; or
(iv) any combination of uranium-233, plutonium,
					 or uranium enriched in uranium-235 that meets this criterion: For each type of
					 special nuclear material present, the ratio between the amount of that special
					 nuclear material present and the limit for that special nuclear material set in
					 subparagraphs (i) through (iii) of this paragraph must be calculated. The sum of
					 those ratios must not exceed one.
(6) Disposal units that have been filled to
					 their design capacity must be closed as required by section
					 383-9.3 
					 of this Part. Unless otherwise approved by the department, all disposal unit
					 closure measures must be completed no later than one year after the disposal unit
					 is filled.
(7) Ongoing disposal
					 operations must not have an adverse impact on closed disposal units.
(8) Waste generated from on-site activities
					 must be disposed of in accordance with the requirements of this Part.
(9) Waste must not be placed in disposal units
					 unless it meets the requirements of section
					 383-8.4(c)(1)
					 and (2)  of this Subpart.
(10) No waste may be placed in a new disposal
					 unit until:
(i) the department receives from the
					 permittee the construction certification report for the new disposal unit as
					 required by section
					 383-7.2(f) 
					 of this Part; and
(ii) the department
					 inspects the new disposal unit, finds it to be in conformance with the permit,
					 and so notifies the permittee in writing.
(11) Waste must be placed in the disposal unit
					 in a manner that maintains the waste package integrity during emplacement,
					 minimizes the void spaces between packages, permits the void spaces to be filled,
					 and is consistent with the facility's design goals for recovery or retrieval of
					 waste, if applicable.
(12) Void
					 spaces between waste packages must be filled with free-draining material to
					 reduce subsidence of the disposal unit after disposal unit closure.