Tuesday in Arlington, Va., the U.S. Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board (NWTRB) heard from various nations developing repository sites for spent nuclear fuel.
During its spring board meeting, the NWTRB listened to presentations featuring technical lessons gleaned from the siting and development of geologic repositories in other countries. This includes speakers from countries such as Germany, which are in the site selection process, and those such as Finland that have already reached the site development stage.
“We are here to learn from you.” NWTRB Chair Peter Swift said to a number of the international speakers.
In 1987, Congress set up the U.S. Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board as part of the 1987 amendments to the Nuclear Waste Policy Act, according to an introductory presentation by Swift.
The NWTRB is designed as a panel of experts to review the “technical and scientific validity” of the U.S. Department of Energy’s work related to implementing the Nuclear Waste Policy Act. Last year the board recommended the United States get going on finding a replacement repository for the now-cancelled Yucca Mountain Project in Nevada.
A link to the presentations for Tuesday’s meeting can be found here. Tuesday’s meeting is a day-long affair that started at 8 a.m.
The NWTRB members are nominated by the National Academy of Sciences and appointed by President Donald Trump. Early in his second term, Trump terminated most of the NWTRB members appointed during President Joe Biden’s administration.