Virginia Administrative Code › Title 12 - HEALTH › Agency 5 - DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH › Chapter 481 - VIRGINIA RADIATION PROTECTION REGULATIONS › Part XI - Licensing Requirements for Land Disposal of Radioactive Waste › Article 4 - Technical Requirements for Land Disposal Facilities › Section 12VAC5-481-2530 - Disposal site suitability requirements for land disposal

Current through Register Vol. 40, No. 24, July 15, 2024
Disposal site suitability for near-surface disposal. The
						primary emphasis in disposal site suitability is given to isolation of wastes
						and to disposal site features that ensure that the long-term performance
						objectives are met.
1. The disposal
					 site shall be capable of being characterized, modeled, analyzed and
					 monitored.
2. Within the region
					 where the facility is to be located, a disposal site should be selected so that
					 projected population growth and future developments are not likely to affect
					 the ability of the disposal facility to meet the performance objectives of this
					 part.
3. Areas shall be avoided
					 having known natural resources which, if exploited, would result in failure to
					 meet the performance objectives of this part.
4. The disposal site shall be generally well
					 drained and free of areas of flooding or frequent ponding. Waste disposal shall
					 not take place in a 100-year flood plain, coastal high-hazard area or wetland,
					 as defined in federal Executive Order 11988, "Floodplain Management
					 Guidelines."
5. Upstream drainage
					 areas shall be minimized to decrease the amount of runoff which could erode or
					 inundate waste disposal units.
6.
					 The disposal site shall provide sufficient depth to the water table that ground
					 water intrusion, perennial or otherwise, into the waste will not occur. The
					 agency will consider an exception to this requirement to allow disposal below
					 the water table if it can be conclusively shown that disposal site
					 characteristics will result in molecular diffusion being the predominant means
					 of radionuclide movement and the rate of movement will result in the
					 performance objectives being met. In no case will waste disposal be permitted
					 in the zone of fluctuation of the water table.
7. The hydrogeologic unit used for disposal
					 shall not discharge ground water to the surface within the disposal
					 site.
8. Areas shall be avoided
					 where tectonic processes such as faulting, folding, seismic activity, or
					 vulcanism may occur with such frequency and extent to significantly affect the
					 ability of the disposal site to meet the performance objectives of this part or
					 may preclude defensible modeling and prediction of long-term impacts.
9. Areas shall be avoided where surface
					 geologic processes such as mass wasting, erosion, slumping, landsliding, or
					 weathering occur with such frequency and extent to significantly affect the
					 ability of the disposal site to meet the performance objectives of this part,
					 or may preclude defensible modeling and prediction of long-term
					 impacts.
10. The disposal site must
					 not be located where nearby facilities or activities could adversely impact the
					 ability of the site to meet the performance objectives of this part or
					 significantly mask the environmental monitoring program.
Statutory Authority
§ 32.1-229 of the Code of Virginia.