LEGAL, POLITICAL AND OPERATIONAL ELEMENTS INVOLVED IN THE TRANSPORT OF BROOKHAVEN SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL IN THE USA

In the United States of America, as in many other countries, the shipping of radioactive materials is a difficult task. One of the m~or problems is the issue of perception versus reality, with significant emotional and political overtones attached to it. Such was the case with a United States Department of Energy (DOE) fuel movement project for which nine years were needed in order to resolve complex legal issues. This included State, local and Federal regulatory issues, problems with package certification, risk assessments and a host of political and administrative issues. Although the DOE had been moving fuel from Brookhaven National Laboratory since 1962, the City of New York was successful in stopping these shipments from 1976 to 1985. Resolution of the problem included lawsuits, rulemalcing by the Department of Transportation (DOT) and, fmally, a final review by the Supreme Court of the United States of America.