The Role of State Governments in the Transportation of Radioactive Waste

States and Tribes play an important role in planning, emergency preparedness, and emergency response related to shipments of radioactive waste through their states or tribal lands. This paper will focus on the role of state governments in these efforts, as experienced during different types of radioactive shipments. States in all regions have experience with shipments of Foreign Research Reactor Spent Nuclear Fuel received from other countries by the Department of Energy (DOE). States also have experience with highway route controlled quantity shipments, domestic spent nuclear fuel shipments such as University shipments, transuranic, and low-level radioactive waste shipments. Each type of shipment has different levels of notification, security and planning requirements. States may be asked by the DOE for input on transportation plans for a specific shipment or a campaign of shipments. Such plans may cover notification timeframes, security escort requirements, and information related to emergency response during an incident. While DOE has emergency response personnel, local emergency responders will likely be first on the scene of any incident, and automatically contact their state level counterparts. The issue of escorts is important to states that often staff their escorts with state highway patrol officers. Federal regulations require armed escorts for spent fuel shipments, requiring coordination between state agencies, federal agencies and any company responsible for transport of the radioactive waste. Low-level radioactive waste shipments may require submission of a form and payment of a fee to states traveled through during shipment. Planning for WIPP originated in the western states. Collaboration on the details of transuranic radioactive waste transportation is handled through the Western Governors' Association’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Transportation Technical Advisory Group (TAG). For over twenty years, the TAG and the DOE, through negotiation & cooperation, have developed, refined, and maintained transportation safety protocols and procedures that are detailed in the WIPP Transportation Safety Program Implementation Guide. Through the coordinated efforts of states working through their regional organizations, individual states gain the knowledge and confidence they need to protect their states’ rights prior to and during the transportation of radioactive waste. States also make sure they’ve performed their due diligence in protecting their constituents during transport of radioactive waste.