Uncertainty underground : Yucca Mountain and the nation's high-level nuclear waste / edited by Allison M. Macfarlane and Rodney C. Ewing.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Macfarlane, Allison.

Ewing, Rodney C.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Radioactive waste disposal in the ground--Nevada--Yucca Mountain.

Radioactive waste disposal in the ground.

Radioactive waste sites--Nevada--Yucca Mountain--Evaluation.

Radioactive waste sites.

Geology--Nevada--Yucca Mountain Region.

Geology.

Radioactive waste disposal--Government policy--United States.

Radioactive waste disposal.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (457 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. : MIT Press, c2006.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Despite approval by Congress and the Bush administration and over seven billion dollars already spent, the Yucca Mountain, Nevada, site for disposal of highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel is not yet in operation. The reasons for the delay lie not only in citizen and activist opposition to the project but also in the numerous scientific and technical issues that remain unresolved. Although many scientists favor geologic disposal of high-level nuclear waste, there are substantial unknowns in projecting the performance of a site over the tens to hundreds of thousands of years that may be required by Environmental Protection Agency standards. Uncertainty Underground is the first effort to review the uncertainties in the analysis of the long-term performance of the proposed repository at Yucca Mountain. The book does not pass judgment on the suitability of the site but provides reliable science-based information to support open debate and inquiry into its safety. Experts from the geosciences, industry, and government review different aspects of the repository system, focusing on the uncertainties inherent in each. After an overview of the historical and regulatory context, the contributors investigate external factors (including climate change and volcanic activity) that could affect repository performance and then turn to topics concerning the repository itself. These include hydrologic issues, the geological conditions with which the nuclear waste in the repository would interact, and the predicted behavior of the different kinds of waste and waste package materials. Uncertainty Underground succeeds in making these important technical issues understandable to a wide audience, including policymakers and the general public.

Contents:

Nuclear waste story : setting the stage / Thomas A. Cotton

Regulating the geologic disposal of high-level nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain / William M. Murphy

Performance assessment : what is it and why is it done? / Chris Whipple

Performance assessments : are they necessary or sufficient? / Rodney C. Ewing

Technical policy decision making in siting a high-level nuclear waste repository / Allison M. Macfarlane

The mountain matters / David Applegate

Volcanism : the continuing saga / Bruce M. Crowe ... [et al.]

Climate change at Yucca Mountain : lessons from earth history / MaryLynn Musgrove and Daniel P. Schrag

Hot upwelling water : did it really invade Yucca Mountain? / Nicholas S.F. Wilson and Jean S. Cline

Water and radionuclide transport in the unsaturated zone / June Fabryka-Martin ... [et al.]

Colloidal transport of radionuclides / Annie B. Kersting

Contaminant transport in the saturated zone at Yucca Mountain / Lynn W. Belhar

Thermohydrologic effects and interactions / G.S. Bodvarsson

The near field at Yucca Mountain : effects of coupled processes on nuclear water isolation / William M. Murphy

Waste package corrosion / David W. Shoesmith

Drip shield and backfill / David Stahl

Zircaloy cladding / Eric R. Siegmann

Spent fuel / Jordi Bruno and Esther Cera

Glass / Werner Lutze

Storing waste in ceramic / WiIliam L. Bourcier and Kurt Sickafus

The path to Yucca Mountain and beyond / Luther J. Carter

Uncertainty, models, and the way forward in nuclear waste disposal / Allison M. Macfarlane.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

OCLC-licensed vendor bibliographic record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0-262-30992-0

0-262-27878-2

1-282-09705-9

9786612097058

1-4237-7449-3

OCLC:

69649665