Related Transportation Information

If the U.S. Department of Energy receives a license from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to build and operate a repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, it will begin shipping nuclear waste from commercial and government-owned sites to the repository sometime after 2017. This opening date of 2017 is a "best-achievable schedule" and is predicated upon enactment of new legislation.

The department must ship the waste according to strict federal regulations. The waste will be transported in heavily shielded casks certified by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission along approved transportation routes.

Additionally, the department will provide technical assistance and funding to states and Native American tribes for training emergency response personnel.

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Record of Decision and Floodplain Statement of Findings – Nevada Rail Alignment for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada.

• Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada
• Final Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada (HTML)
• Final Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada (PDF)
• Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada – Nevada Rail Transportation Corridor and Final Environmental Impact Statement for a Rail Alignment for the Construction and Operation of a Railroad in Nevada to a Geologic Repository at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada
• Final Environmental Impact Statement Management of Commercially Generated Radioactive Waste Volume 1 (DOE/EIS-0046F) (PDF)

 

The Department of Energy has released the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for a Geologic Repository for the Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada – Nevada Rail Transportation Corridor and Final Environmental Impact Statement for a Rail Alignment for the Construction and Operation of a Railroad in Nevada to a Geologic Repository at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada (DOE/EIS-0250F-S2 and DOE/EIS-0369) (Final Nevada Rail Corridor SEIS and Final Rail Alignment EIS).

EIS Information

Documents Summary [ 10 mb, pdf] Volume I [ 40 mb, pdf] Volume II part 1 [46 mb, pdf] Volume II part 2 [ 48 mb, pdf] Volume II part 3 [39 mb, pdf] Volume III [31 mb, pdf] Volume IV [9 mb, pdf] Volume V part 1 [36 mb, pdf] Volume V part 2 [47 mb, pdf] Volume V part 3 [11 mb, pdf] Volume VI [10 mb, pdf]

Additional information on the Supplemental Rail Corridor and Rail Alignment  EIS or transportation planning in general, may be found on this Web site or  directed  in writing to:

Dr. Jane Summerson, EIS Document Manager Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management U.S. Department of Energy 1551 Hillshire Drive, M/S 523 Las Vegas, NV 89134 Telephone 1-800-967-3477

Fallon Impact Report - Transportation of Spent Nuclear Fuel by Highway to Yucca Mountain—Update 2007 If a high-level waste repository opens at Yucca Mountain, south of Fallon on US 95, a large number of truck shipments of nuclear waste are expected on US 95.  Truck shipments of nuclear waste through Fallon would lead to a radiation dose to the public even if the transport is incident-free, because no shielding material can reduce direct gamma radiation by 100 %.  As a result, residents, drivers, pedestrians and workers will get a radiation dose, which depends on the recipient’s exposure proximity and duration.  Depending on the population estimate, the population dose due to incident-free transportation of the entire waste that is planned to pass Fallon is as high as 9.45 person-rem.  Even though this dose and the resulting population risk are relatively small, it nevertheless increases the risk to develop cancer.

The Churchill County 1990 Master Plan discusses the transportation of hazardous materials, and recognizes that I-80, Hwy 50 and Hwy 95 as major highway routes used for the transportation of hazardous materials through Fallon and Churchill County. The more dangerous of these routes to the residents of Churchill County are Hwy 50 and Hwy 95 as they pass through Fallon. Local authorities can take steps to develop ordinances restricting the transportation of hazardous materials through their jurisdictions. In addition to transportation of hazardous materials by road, there must also be a concern for transportation by rail. Regional Inter-Modal Bypass Route Study

Currently, spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste are stored in temporary facilities at some 129 sites in 39 states. These storage sites are located in a mixture of cities, suburbs, and rural areas. Most are located near large bodies of water. In the United States today, more than 161 million people reside within 75 miles of temporarily stored nuclear waste.

Map of Nevada showing potential rail routes.