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Planners are designing
monuments that will warn future
generations that the repository
is buried below.
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Federal regulations
require the Department of Energy to
monitor the repository after closure.
Post-closure activities would include
controlling the land and its boundaries,
monitoring and testing the surrounding
environment, and implementing safeguard
and security measures for future
generations.
In addition, DOE would restore the environment at the site to as close to its original state as possible, including:
- Removing all materials and equipment that are not part of the permanent repository
- Sealing all openings to the underground facilities
- Removing all surface facilities
A monitoring program would focus on providing increased understanding of the processes, such as seepage and corrosion, which are most important to repository safety. These monitoring activities would include –
- Sampling the surrounding environment
- Testing the repository environment (rock properties, chemistry, etc.)
- Verifying the data to the results predicted by the computer models
Before applying to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a license to close the repository, we must show agreement between our computer model predictions and our test results.
Due to the inherent curiosity of humans, and the long-lived radionuclides in the repository, DOE will use different measures to discourage humans from trying to access the repository, and to prevent water from entering through such openings.
A network of permanent monuments and markers will be erected around the site to warn future generations of the presence and nature of the buried waste. Detailed public records will identify the location and layout of the repository and information about the waste it contains.
See: Monuments and markers - “The monumental task of warning future generations”
Last reviewed: 04/08
Repository Engineering and Design Overview:
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