Seabed High Level Waste Assessment Program. Statement Before the House of Representatives Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, Subcommittee on Oceanography, May 16, 1978

摘要

Sandia Laboratories were charged with the tasks of assessing the environmental and technical feasibility of isolating high-level waste beneath the deep ocean floor in geologically stable and biologically inactive regions, and of developing a capability to assess other ocean disposal programs. This presentation summarizes the progress and task status of the Seabed Program. Objectives and milestones of the program are outlined. Areas which might be suitable for use as disposal sites were identified. The disposal question is being treated as a multiple barrier assessment problem. The normal slow diffusion of waste elements through the deep-sea clay is reduced more than a thousandfold by its sorptive properties. Emplacement concepts being considered are the penetrometer, weighted probe, trencher, and drilled holes. Advantages and disadvantages of the seabed option are listed. The international programs underway on this disposal option are mentioned. (ERA citation 03:042374)