Opposed by SF Bay PSR: Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) Proposed Interpretative Rule on Transfer of Very Low-Level Waste to Exempt Persons for Disposal

This very dangerous and under-the-radar move by the NRC would allow massive volumes of radioactive waste to be discarded in regular landfills. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the Committee to Bridge the Gap (CBG), Physicians for Social Responsibility-Los Angeles (PSR-LA), and San Francisco Bay Physicians for Social Responsibility (SF Bay PSR) wrote collectively to respond that NRC should withdraw this proposed rule and instead work on improving the existing standards for land disposal of low-level radioactive waste. What the NRC has proposed is not an interpretive rule, but a substantive rulemaking that alters substantial rights and duties. It is a backhanded way to avoid NRC’s land disposal requirements for a sizable portion of the nation’s radioactive waste that is likely to emerge from the coming decommissioning of dozens of commercial nuclear power reactors. This rule would undercut existing standards meant to protect the public, workers, and the environment. 85 Fed. Reg. 13076-13079: Docket ID: NRC-2020-0065
Read comments here, July 20, 2020