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Title 42, The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-102

§2021h Alternative Disposal Methods

Title 42 › CHAPTER 23 — DEVELOPMENT AND CONTROL OF ATOMIC ENERGY › SUBCHAPTER I — GENERAL PROVISIONS › § 2021h

Last updated Aug 21, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission must, within 12 months after January 15, 1986, work with the states and other interested people to find ways to dispose of low-level radioactive waste besides shallow land burial and to publish technical advice for licensing facilities that use those methods. Within 24 months after January 15, 1986, the Commission must publish all technical information a state or compact must give the Commission to pursue those methods and the technical requirements facilities must meet — for example, site suitability, design, operation, closure, and environmental monitoring — in whatever form the Commission decides.

Full Legal Text

Title 42, §2021h

The Public Health and Welfare, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Not later than 12 months after January 15, 1986, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission shall, in consultation with the States and other interested persons, identify methods for the disposal of low-level radioactive waste other than shallow land burial, and establish and publish technical guidance regarding licensing of facilities that use such methods.
(b)Not later than 24 months after January 15, 1986, the Commission shall, in consultation with the States and other interested persons, identify and publish all relevant technical information regarding the methods identified pursuant to subsection (a) that a State or compact must provide to the Commission in order to pursue such methods, together with the technical requirements that such facilities must meet, in the judgment of the Commission, if pursued as an alternative to shallow land burial. Such technical information and requirements shall include, but need not be limited to, site suitability, site design, facility operation, disposal site closure, and environmental monitoring, as necessary to meet the performance objectives established by the Commission for a licensed low-level radioactive waste disposal facility. The Commission shall specify and publish such requirements in a manner and form deemed appropriate by the Commission.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Section was enacted as part of the Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Act, and not as part of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 which comprises this chapter.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

42 U.S.C. § 2021h

Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare

Last Updated

Aug 21, 2026

Release point: 119-102