Hanford Site National Evnironmental Policy Act (NEPA) characterization

This fourth revision of the Hanford Site National Environmental Policy (NEPA) Characterization presents current environmental data regarding the Hanford Site and its immediate environs. This information is intended for use in preparing Site-related NEPA documentation. In Chapter 4.0 are presented summations of up-to-date information about climate and meteorology, geology and hydrology, ecology, history and archaeology, socioeconomics, land use, and noise levels. Chapter 5.0 describes models, including their principal assumptions, that are to be used in simulating realized or potential impacts from nuclear materials at the Hanford Site. Included are models of radionuclides transport in groundwater and atmospheric pathways, and of radiation dose to populations via all known pathways from known initial conditions. Chapter 6.0 provides the preparer with the federal and state regulations, DOE orders and permits, and environmental standards directly applicable for environmental impact statements for the Hanford Site, following the structure Chapter 4.0. NO conclusions or recommendations are given in this report

Hanford Site National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) characterization

This document describes the Hanford Site environment (Chapter 4) and contains data in Chapter 5 and 6 which will guide users in the preparation of National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)-related documents. Many NEPA compliance documents have been prepared and are being prepared by site contractors for the US Department of Energy, and examination of these documents reveals inconsistencies in the amount of detail presented and the method of presentation. Thus, it seemed necessary to prepare a consistent description of the Hanford environment to be used in preparing Chapter 4 of environmental impact statements and other site-related NEPA documentation. The material in Chapter 5 is a guide to the models used, including critical assumptions incorporated in these models, in previous Hanford NEPA documents. The users will have to select those models appropriate for the proposed action. Chapter 6 is essentially a definitive NEPA Chapter 6, which describes the applicable laws, regulations, and DOE and state orders. In this document, a complete description of the environment is presented in Chapter 4 without excessive tabular data. For these data, sources are provided. Most subjects are divided into a general description of the characteristics of the Hanford Site, followed by site-specific information where it is available on the 100, 200, 300, and other Areas. This division will allow a person requiring information to go immediately to those sections of particular interest. However, site-specific information on each of these separate areas is not always complete or available. In this case, the general Hanford Site description should be used. 131 refs., 19 figs., 32 tabs

Hanford Site National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Characterization

This fifth revision of the Hanford Site National Environmental Policy (NEPA) Characterization presents current environmental data regarding the Hanford Site and its immediate environs. This information is intended for use in preparing Site-related NEPA documentation. Information is presented on climate and meteorology, geology and hydrology, ecology, history and archaeology, socioeconomics, land use, and noise levels, prepared by Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) staff. Models are described that are to be used in simulating realized or potential impacts from nuclear materials at the Hanford Site. Included are models of radionuclide transport in groundwater and atmospheric pathways, and of radiation dose to populations via all known pathways from known initial conditions. Federal and state regulations, DOE orders and permits, and environmental standards directly applicable for the NEPA documents at the Hanford Site, are provided

Characterization of the Hanford Site and environs

The US Department of Energy (DOE) proposes to site, construct, and operate a new production reactor (NPR) intended to produce materials for the US nuclear weapons program. The DOE has determined that this proposed action constitutes an action that may significantly affect the quality of the human environment; therefore, the DOE is preparing an environmental impact statement (EIS) to assess the potential impacts of the proposed action and reasonable alternatives on the human and natural environment. The NPR-EIS is being prepared in accordance with Section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as implemented in regulations (40 CFR 1500--1508) promulgated by the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). Information on the potentially affected environment at the Hanford Site and its environs was provided to ANL by PNL in various submissions during CY-1989, and some of that information was consolidated into this report, which is considered to be supporting documentation for the NPR-EIS. 93 refs., 35 figs., 46 tabs

Hanford Site National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) characterization. Revision 7

This seventh revision of the Hanford Site National Environmental Policy (NEPA) Characterization presents current environmental data regarding the Hanford Site and its immediate environs. This information is intended for use in preparing Site-related NEPA documentation. Chapter 4.0 summarizes up-to-date information on climate and meteorology, geology, hydrology, environmental monitoring, ecology, history and archaeology, socioeconomics, land use, and noise levels prepared by Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) staff. More detailed data are available from reference sources cited or from the authors. Chapter 5.0 was not updated from the sixth revision (1994). It describes models, including their principal underlying assumptions, that are to be used in simulating realized or potential impacts from nuclear materials at the Hanford Site. Included are models of radionuclide transport in groundwater and atmospheric pathways, and of radiation dose to populations via all known pathways from known initial conditions. The updated Chapter 6.0 provides the preparer with the federal and state regulations, DOE Orders and permits, and environmental standards directly applicable to the NEPA documents on the Hanford Site, following the structure of Chapter 4.0. No conclusions or recommendations are given in this report. Rather, it is a compilation of information on the Hanford Site environment that can be used directly by Site contractors. This information can also be used by any interested individual seeking baseline data on the Hanford Site and its past activities by which to evaluate projected activities and their impacts

Decline of radionuclides in Columbia River biota

In January 1971, the last of nine plutonium production reactors using direct discharge of once-through cooling waters into the Columbia River was closed. Sampling was initiated at three stations on the Columbia River to document the decline of the radionuclide body burdens in the biota of the Columbia River ecosystem. The data show that in a river-reservoir complex, the measurable body burden of fission-produced radionuclides decreased to essentially undetectable levels within 18 to 24 mo after cessation of discharge of once-through cooling water into the river. On the basis of data from the free-flowing station, we believe that this decrease would be even more rapid in an unimpounded river

Referenced-site environmental document for a Monitored Retrievable Storage facility: backup waste management option for handling 1800 MTU per year

This environmental document includes a discussion of the purpose of a monitored retrievable storage facility, a description of two facility design concepts (sealed storage cask and field drywell), a description of three reference sites (arid, warm-wet, and cold-wet), and a discussion and comparison of the impacts associated with each of the six site/concept combinations. This analysis is based on a 15,000-MTU storage capacity and a throughput rate of up to 1800 MTU per year

Relevance of biotic pathways to the long-term regulation of nuclear waste disposal. A report on Tasks 1 and 2 of Phase I. [Shallow land burial]

The purpose of the work reported here was to evaluate the relevance of biotic transport to the assessment of impacts and licensing of low-level waste disposal sites. Available computer models and their recent applications at low-level waste disposal sites are considered. Biotic transport mechanisms and processes for both terrestrial and aquatic systems are presented with examples from existing waste disposal sites. Following a proposed system for ranking radionuclides by their potential for biotic transport, recommendations for completing Phase I research are presented. To evaluate the long-term importance of biotic transport at low-level waste sites, scenarios for biotic pathways and mechanisms need to be developed. Scenarios should begin with a description of the waste form and should include a description of biotic processes and mechanisms, approximations of the magnitude of materials transported, and a linkage to processes or mechanisms in existing models. Once these scenarios are in place, existing models could be used to evaluate impacts resulting from biotic transport and to assess the relevance to site selection and licensing of low-level waste disposal sites