Most of these countries also have established orphan source recovery  programs to collect sealed radiological sources that have been abandoned  or lost. About Half the Countries Make Disposal Options Available for Most Lower- Activity LLRW

About half of the countries in our survey indicated that they currently have  a disposal option for lower-activity LLRW, but few have a disposal option  for higher-activity LLRW. Some countries in our survey indicated that they have alternative disposal  options for very low-level radioactive waste. Eight countries indicated that they have disposal  options for very low-level radioactive waste. Financial Assurance Requirements and Other Approaches Are Used by Most Countries to Reduce Government LLRW Recovery Costs

Nine of the 18 countries we surveyed indicated that their nuclear  regulatory authorities require all non-utility LLRW generators to have  sufficient financial assurances to cover the removal of radioactive waste  from their sites. Domestic Experts Support Need to Evaluate the U.S. LLRW Management System

There was general agreement among the representatives from the LLRW  stakeholder groups that the management of LLRW in the United States  needs improvement. Comments from representatives of U.S. LLRW stakeholders groups as well  as statements and recommendations in recent reports related to LLRW  management indicate that the application of approaches similar to those  used in other countries may improve the management of U.S. radioactive  waste. Comprehensiveness and usefulness of national radioactive waste  inventory all types of radioactive waste by volume, location and  generator type;  inventory the possession and status of use of sealed radiological  sources in more than category 1 and 2;    designate a national authority to manage the radioactive waste  take steps to verify the completeness and accuracy of these  databases;  require waste generators to submit waste inventory information to  the national authority at least once a year; and    use the radioactive waste inventory databases to forecast future  waste volumes, and to inform the public on volumes of waste at  central storage and disposal facilities. Prompt removal of higher-activity LLRW, primarily disused sealed  radiological sources from waste generator sites    establish on-site storage time limits for non-utility waste generators,  at least when disposal options are available; and  implement other methods to facilitate the removal disused sealed  radiological sources, such as requiring time limits on the use of  sources, return of disused sources to a supplier, and users to notify  the nuclear regulatory authority when the source becomes disused. The response of the United States  to the GAO survey indicated that NRC does not require a disposal fee at  the time of purchase or require that source users and suppliers contribute  to a recovery fund. Appendix II: Scope and Methodology

In our review, we examined the extent to which foreign countries have   (1) comprehensive national LLRW inventory databases, (2) timely removal  of higher-activity LLRW in storage at waste generator sites, (3) disposition  options for all LLRW, and (4) requirements to assure that LLRW  generators have adequate financial reserves to cover all waste disposition  costs. Nevertheless, in the course  of conducting our study, we found that most countries in our survey  use national radioactive waste management plans to guide the  management of these wastes. Our report identified approaches used in some  other countries to reduce the government cost to recover and  disposition these disused sources.
Why GAO Did This Study

GAO has reported on limitations in the management of U.S. low-level radioactive waste (LLRW). LLRW ranges from very low-activity to higher-activity waste. To identify potential approaches to overcome these limitations, GAO was asked to examine the extent to which other countries have (1) LLRW inventory databases, (2) timely removal of higher-activity LLRW from waste generator sites, (3) disposition options for all LLRW, and (4) requirements that LLRW generators have financial reserves to cover waste disposition costs, as well as any other approaches that might improve U.S. LLRW management. GAO primarily relied on a survey of 18 countries representing leading LLRW generators to identify their management approaches and to compare them with U.S. survey results and with approaches suggested by LLRW generators, disposal operators, and regulators in the United States.

What GAO Found

Academic, industrial, medical, utility, and government entities in the United States, particularly the Department of Energy (DOE), disposed of at least 15 million cubic feet of LLRW in 2005. This waste includes debris, rubble, soils, paper, liquid, metals, and clothing that have been exposed to radioactivity or contaminated with radioactive material, and sealed radiological sources that are no longer useful for industrial or other applications (disused). Other countries that have nuclear reactor units and use radioactive materials in other ways manage the residual LLRW in some ways that are different than in the United States. Of the countries surveyed, GAO found that most countries indicated they have national radioactive waste inventory databases that include information on all waste generators, waste types, storage locations, and disused sealed radiological sources, and that they use them to forecast future disposal capacity needs. Most countries indicated they facilitate the timely removal of higher-activity LLRW, essentially disused sealed radiological sources, from generator sites to enhance safety and security, including requiring the return of a disused source to a source supplier. Most countries indicated they have disposal options for lower-activity LLRW, central storage options for higher-activity LLRW, and alternative disposal options for very low-level radioactive waste that in most cases does not require an exemption review by a nuclear regulatory authority. Half the countries indicated they impose financial assurance requirements on all waste generators to cover disposition costs, and most of these countries also use other approaches to reduce government costs to recover higher-activity LLRW, such as requiring a disposal fee at the time that a sealed radiological source is purchased. GAO also found that most countries surveyed use national radioactive waste plans to guide the management of their radioactive wastes. Many representatives from LLRW generators, disposal operators, regulators, and others told GAO that the application of similar approaches to those used by other countries might improve the management of U.S. radioactive waste.