Key facts about nuclear waste

Key Fact: The wastes DOE plans to put in the proposed Yucca Mountain repository are solid (not liquid).

The nuclear waste destined for disposal at a repository will be in the form of solid metals, ceramics, and glass with small amounts of radioactive gases.

Key Fact: Spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste cannot cause an explosion.

Spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste are not explosive. Even if these materials were involved in an explosion (like a transportation accident involving an oil tanker), they cannot cause a nuclear chain reaction.

Key Fact: Spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste are not flammable.

Since these materials are composed of metals, ceramics, and glass, they cannot fuel a fire.

Fact Sheet: What Are Spent Nuclear Fuel & High-Level Radioactive Waste

Engineered barriersThe primary man-made features of the repository include the emplacement tunnels, waste packages, drip shields, and TAD canisters. (click the image to enlarge).

Nuclear waste explained
How much nuclear waste is in the U.S.?
Current storage methods
Disposal options

FAQS:

Why Yucca Mountain?

Scientists have long considered Yucca Mountain a promising site for a repository due to the area's

Yucca Mountain is located in Nye County, Nevada, about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, on the western edge of the Nevada Test Site. The Nevada Test Site has hosted numerous nuclear-related projects for decades.

Congress amended the Nuclear Waste Policy Act in 1987 and directed the U.S. Department of Energy to study only one site: Yucca Mountain.

Since then, hundreds of scientists have conducted studies there. The mountain is one of the most thoroughly researched sites in the world.

Dry Climate

Yucca Mountain is in the desert southwest. Like any desert, it has a dry climate, receiving less than 7.5 inches of precipitation on average per year. Most of that precipitation runs off the mountain or evaporates. Only about 5% would ever reach repository depth. On average, the water moves only a half an inch per year through the rock.

Yucca Mountain's dry climate is an important feature because water is the primary way by which radioactive material could move from a repository.

Remote Location

Yucca Mountain is located at the edge of the Nevada Test Site where more than 900 nuclear weapons tests have been conducted. With approximately 1,375 square miles, this site is surrounded by thousands of additional acres of land withdrawn from the public domain for use as a protected wildlife range and for a military gunnery range, creating an unpopulated land area comprising some 5,470 square miles.

The U.S. Air Force Nevada Test and Training Range (formerly called the Nellis Air Force Range) — with its restricted airspace and defensive capabilities — surrounds the Yucca Mountain area on three sides.

No one lives at Yucca Mountain. The nearest population lives about 15 miles away in the Amargosa Valley.

Restricted Access

By being in the proximity of the Nevada Test Site and the Air Force range, Yucca Mountain’s air space is restricted and a highly trained security force is already in place.

There are no known natural resources of commercial value at Yucca Mountain (such as precious metals, minerals, oil, etc.).

In addition, the repository itself would safeguard radioactive materials from acts of terrorism or sabotage. It is highly unlikely that any attack at the surface could affect the waste 1,000 feet underground. Source: OCRWM website