1). In 1992, the Congress passed the Energy Policy Act, which established the  Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund (Fund)  to pay for the costs of decontaminating and decommissioning the nation’s  three uranium enrichment plants. DOE Has Taken Several Actions to Reduce Cleanup Costs

DOE has taken several steps to reduce cleanup costs by taking actions  consistent with the National Academy of Sciences’ (Academy) cost  reduction recommendations and by pursuing an accelerated, risk-based  cleanup strategy at the uranium enrichment plants. For example, the Academy recommended that  DOE develop three plans—namely, headquarters level, plant-complex level,  and site level—that address and integrate the D&D of the facilities,  environmental remediation activities, and the management of depleted  uranium hexafluoride. DOE Is Pursuing an Accelerated, Risk-Based Cleanup Strategy at the Plants to Reduce Costs

DOE is pursuing an accelerated cleanup strategy at the Oak Ridge and  Paducah plants. Based on Current Projected Costs and Revenues, the Fund Will Not Be Sufficient to Complete Cleanup at the Three Plants

Despite DOE efforts to reduce costs, we found that based on current  projected costs and revenues, the Fund will be insufficient to cover  authorized activities. However,  our Baseline model demonstrated that by 2044, the most likely time frame  for completion of cleanup at the three plants, cleanup costs will have  exceeded revenues by $3.5 billion to $5.7 billion (in 2004 dollars). Importantly, we found that the Fund would be insufficient irrespective of  which estimates we used, including models that estimated the final cleanup  work at the plants under (1) accelerated time frames, (2) deferred time  frames, or (3) baseline time frames, and with additional contributions to  the Fund equaling the difference between the amounts that have been  appropriated to date and the total amount authorized under the Energy  Policy Act. Because the Paducah and Portsmouth  plants are now estimated to cease operations by 2010 and 2006,  respectively, DOE should be able to develop plans, including more precise  cost estimates, for D&D of these plants. Extending the Fund by an  additional 3 years would give DOE an opportunity to develop these plans  and a better estimate of the costs to clean up the plants. With this  information, DOE could better determine if further extensions to the Fund  will be necessary. Reimbursements to uranium and thorium licensees. 2. Opportunities for Cost  Reduction in the Decontamination and Decommissioning of the Nation’s  Uranium Enrichment Facilities.
Why GAO Did This Study

Decontaminating and decommissioning the nation's uranium enrichment plants, which are contaminated with hazardous materials, will cost billions of dollars and could span decades. In 1992, the Energy Policy Act created the Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund (Fund) to pay for the plants' cleanup and to reimburse licensees of active uranium and thorium processing sites for part of their cleanup costs. This report discusses (1) what DOE has done to reduce the cleanup costs authorized by the Fund, and (2) the extent to which the Fund is sufficient to cover authorized activities.

What GAO Found

The Department of Energy (DOE) has taken steps to reduce cleanup costs by taking actions that address recommendations made by the National Academy of Sciences and by pursuing an accelerated, risk-based cleanup strategy at the plants. In some cases, however, DOE has only partially addressed the Academy's recommendations. For example, one recommendation suggested that DOE develop three plans--namely, headquarters level, plant-complex level, and site level--that address and integrate the decontamination and decommissioning of the facilities. Only one plant has developed a plan, however. Additionally, DOE is pursuing an accelerated, risk-based cleanup strategy at the plants that it believes will reduce cleanup costs. According to DOE officials, an accelerated, risk-based strategy will accelerate time frames for cleanup, and establish "realistic cleanup criteria" in DOE's regulatory cleanup agreements. Despite DOE efforts to reduce costs, we found that based on current projected costs and revenues, the Fund will be insufficient to cover the cleanup activities at the three plants. Specifically, our Baseline model demonstrated that by 2044, the most likely time frame for completing cleanup of the plants, costs will have exceeded revenues by $3.5 billion to $5.7 billion (in 2004 dollars). Importantly, we also found that the Fund would be insufficient irrespective of which model we used, including models that estimated the final decommissioning at the plants under (1) accelerated time frames, (2) deferred time frames, or (3) baseline time frames, and with additional revenues from federal government contributions as authorized under current law. Because the Paducah and Portsmouth plants are now estimated to cease operations by 2010 and 2006, respectively, extending the Fund by an additional 3 years would give DOE an opportunity to develop plans, including more precise cost estimates, for the cleanup of these plants and to better determine if further Fund extensions will be necessary.