Summary

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided its quarterly status report on the Department of Energy's (DOE) implementation of its nuclear waste management program for the quarter ended December 31, 1986.

GAO found that: (1) the DOE Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, which is primarily responsible for DOE nuclear waste activities, focused its efforts on preparing site characterization plans for the three sites deemed acceptable for a first waste repository; (2) DOE established a separate division to manage issues related to repository technology and the transportation of high-level radioactive waste; (3) a federal circuit court overturned a district court decision that DOE failed to properly consult with Tennessee before submitting a monitored retrievable storage proposal, but Tennessee received a stay to allow it time for further appeals; (4) DOE released a draft amendment to its Mission Plan that would extend for 5 years its target date for initiating repository operations; (5) 8 new program-related legal actions were filed in federal courts during the quarter, bringing the total number of pending lawsuits to 43; and (6) the Nuclear Waste Fund collected over $175.2 million in fees and investment income, obligated about $171 million for program activities, and had a balance of about $1.5 billion at the end of the quarter.