Figure 1. Regional Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compacts (and Unaffiliated States)
Audeen W. Fentiman
Tamara L. Leyerle
Ronald J. Veley
Congress passed the Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Act in 1980 (amended in 1985) to promote regional low-level radioactive waste disposal facilities. States may join together to build regional facilities by forming organizations called compacts. Currently there are nine compacts and several unaffiliated states (see Figure 1). This fact sheet discusses the rights and responsibilities of a compact and gives the current status of the various compacts, including the Midwest Compact of which Ohio is a member.
Figure 1. Regional Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compacts (and Unaffiliated States)
The Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Act defines a compact as a legal agreement between two or more states to share in the disposal of low-level radioactive waste. For a state to become a member of a compact, its state legislature must enact the compact agreement as a statute. After the legislatures of all states in a compact enact the agreement, Congress must also consent to it. Each compact is responsible for the development of disposal capacity for commercial low-level radioactive waste generated within the compact.
Because the U.S. Constitution provides Congress the authority to regulate interstate commerce, only Congress can restrict such commerce. When Congress enacted the Low-level Radioactive Waste Policy Act, it gave compacts the authority to exclude waste from a compact's disposal facility if the waste was generated outside of the compact's borders. This authority was provided to encourage the formation of compacts. The Act does not give unaffiliated states the right to exclude waste generated outside the state's borders. This exclusionary authority is currently being exercised in the Northwest Compact where the Richland disposal facility only accepts waste from the member states of the Northwest and Rocky Mountain Compacts.
Compacts are managed by commissions with members appointed by the governors of the states within the compact. The commissions are the administrative bodies responsible for the implementation of the compact.
Generally, one state in each compact is chosen to host the low-level radioactive waste disposal facility. A state may volunteer to host the disposal facility, or the compact commission may select a host state. The disposal facility will accept low-level radioactive waste for some period specified in the compact agreement (typically 20 years). In most compacts the disposal responsibility will rotate among the member states. Compacts must work during the 20-year period to develop their next low-level waste disposal facility.
As of 1993, 42 states belong to nine compacts approved by Congress. Texas, Vermont, and Maine are attempting to establish a compact. Massachusetts and New York are planning their own low-level radioactive waste disposal facilities. New Hampshire, Rhode Island, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico are not planning disposal sites. They are working to secure access to another state's or compact's low-level waste disposal facility. Michigan's membership in the Midwest Compact was revoked in July, 1991, and the state has not announced plans for disposing of its low-level radioactive waste.
On January 1, 1993, compacts and unaffiliated states became responsible for disposal of all low-level radioactive waste generated within their borders. The three operating sites (in Beatty, Nevada, Richland, Washington, and Barnwell, South Carolina) were no longer required to accept low-level waste for disposal from other compacts or unaffiliated states. However, the South Carolina legislature has decided to allow the Barnwell site to accept waste from outside the Southeast Compact until June 30, 1994. It will accept low-level waste from states (including Ohio) and compacts that have signed agreements with the Southeast Compact and that continue to make progress toward the timely development of a disposal facility.
A compact must complete several intermediate tasks before it can begin to operate a new low-level radioactive waste disposal facility. First, the compact must choose a host state. The host state must then establish a siting program and choose proposed sites for the disposal facility. After the sites have been carefully studied, the host state can apply for a license to operate a disposal facility on a selected site. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission reviews the application and, if the application is acceptable, issues the license. The nine approved compacts, their host states, and status of site selection in that state are listed in Table 1.
| Table 1. Status of Compacts: Host State and Site Selection | ||
|---|---|---|
| Compact | Host State | Sit Selected |
| Appalachian | Pennsylvania | No |
| Central | Nebraska | Yes (a) |
| Central Midwest | Illinois | No |
| Midwest | Ohio | No |
| Northeast | Connecticut and New Jersey | No |
| Northwest | Washington | Yes (b) |
| Rocky Mountain | None | None (c) |
| Southeast | North Carolina | No |
| Southwest | California | Yes (a) |
Ohio is a member of the Midwest Compact along with Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, and Wisconsin. Originally, Michigan was a member of the Midwest Compact and its host state. However, when Michigan failed to proceed in good faith to develop a disposal facility, its compact membership was revoked by the Midwest Compact Commission. Ohio, which had been the first alternate host state, based on volume of low-level radioactive waste generated, became the host state for the compact's first disposal facility.
Ohio's governor appointed a Blue Ribbon Commission to advise the state on criteria for siting a low-level radioactive waste disposal facility. In addition, an Advisory Committee has been established to study disposal technology, siting requirements, and facility designs, as well as the selection process for a contractor to construct and operate the disposal facility.
If you would like to read more about compacts, some of the references listed below may be helpful.
Edward L. Gershey, et. al., Low-Level Radioactive Waste From Cradle to Grave, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 1990.
Public Law 99-240, "Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Amendments Act", 1985.
U.S. General Accounting Office, "Nuclear Waste: Slow Progress Developing Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Facilities" (GAO/RCED-92-61), 1992.
"Midwest Interstate Low-Level Radioactive Waste Commission--Update", available from:
Midwest CompactDr. Audeen W. Fentiman is an Assistant Professor in Nuclear Engineering at The Ohio State University. Tamara L. Leyerle is a Graduate Research Associate, Ohio State University College of Law. Ronald J. Veley is a Graduate Research Associate, Ohio State University Extension.
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Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Keith L. Smith, Director, Ohio State University Extension.
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