NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
Support for this study was provided by the U.S. Department of Energy, under Grant No. DE-FC01-94EW54069. All opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Energy.
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Copyright 1999 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Cover photo: Micrograph of a polymer encapsulated waste.
Photo courtesy of the Department of Energy's Mixed Waste Focus Area.
Printed in the United States of America.
COMMITTEE ON MIXED WASTES
PAUL A. DEJONGHE, Chair,
Study Centre for Nuclear Research (retired), Mol, Belgium
ANN N. CLARKE,
ANC Associates, Inc., Brentwood, Tennessee
JURGEN H. EXNER,
JHE Technology Systems, Inc., Alamo, California
KENT F. HANSEN,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
JOANN S. LIGHTY,
University of Utah, Salt Lake City
RICHARD J. SAMELSON, Consultant,
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
MARTIN J. STEINDLER,
Argonne National Laboratory (retired), Argonne, Illinois
BRUCE M. THOMSON,
University of New Mexico, Albuquerque
Staff
JOHN R. WILEY, Senior Staff Officer (January 1998 to present)
KARYANIL THOMAS, Senior Staff Officer (through December 1997)
ANGELA R. TAYLOR, Senior Project Assistant
LAURA D. LLANOS, Project Assistant
BOARD ON RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT
MICHAEL C. KAVANAUGH, Chair,
Malcolm Pirnie, Inc., Oakland, California
JOHN F. AHEARNE, Vice-Chair,
Sigma Xi and Duke University, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina
ROBERT J. BUDNITZ,
Future Resources Associates, Inc., Berkeley, California
MARY R. ENGLISH,
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
DARLEANE C. HOFFMAN,
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Oakland, California
JAMES H. JOHNSON, JR.,
Howard University, Washington, D.C.
ROGER E. KASPERSON,
Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts
JAMES O. LECKIE,
Stanford University, Stanford, California
JANE C. S. LONG,
Mackay School of Mines, University of Nevada, Reno
CHARLES MCCOMBIE, Consultant,
Gipf-Oberfrick, Switzerland
WILLIAM A. MILLS,
Oak Ridge Associated Universities (retired), Olney, Maryland
D. WARNER NORTH,
NorthWorks, Inc., Mountain View, California
MARTIN J. STEINDLER,
Argonne National Laboratories (retired), Argonne, Illinois
JOHN J. TAYLOR,
Electric Power Research Institute (retired), Palo Alto, California
MARY LOU ZOBACK,
U.S. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, California
Staff
KEVIN D. CROWLEY, Director
ROBERT S. ANDREWS, Senior Staff Officer
THOMAS KIESS, Senior Staff Officer
JOHN R. WILEY, Senior Staff Officer
SUSAN B. MOCKLER, Research Associate
TONI GREENLEAF, Administrative Assistant
PATRICIA A. JONES, Senior Project Assistant
ANGELA R. TAYLOR, Senior Project Assistant
LATRICIA C. BAILEY, Project Assistant
MATTHEW BAXTER-PARROTT, Project Assistant
LAURA D. LLANOS, Project Assistant
COMMISSION ON GEOSCIENCES, ENVIRONMENT, AND RESOURCES
GEORGE M. HORNBERGER (Chair),
University of Virginia, Charlottesville
RICHARD A. CONWAY,
Union Carbide Corporation (Retired), S. Charleston, West Virginia
THOMAS E. GRAEDEL,
Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
THOMAS J. GRAFF,
Environmental Defense Fund, Oakland, California
EUGENIA KALNAY,
University of Oklahoma, Norman
DEBRA KNOPMAN,
Progressive Policy Institute, Washington, DC
KAI N. LEE,
Williams College, Williamstown, Massachusetts
RICHARD A. MESERVE,
Covington & Burling, Washington, DC
JOHN B. MOONEY, JR.,
J. Brad Mooney Associates, Ltd., Arlington, Virginia
HUGH C. MORRIS,
El Dorado Gold Corporation, Vancouver, British Columbia
H. RONALD PULLIAM,
University of Georgia, Athens
MILTON RUSSELL,
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
THOMAS C. SCHELLING,
University of Maryland, College Park
ANDREW R. SOLOW,
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts
VICTORIA J. TSCHINKEL,
Landers and Persons, Tallahassee, Florida
E-AN ZEN,
University of Maryland, College Park
MARY LOU ZOBACK,
U.S. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, California
Staff
ROBERT M. HAMILTON, Executive Director
GREGORY H. SYMMES, Associate Executive Director
CRAIG SCHIFFRIES, Associate Executive Director for Special Projects
JEANETTE SPOON, Administrative and Financial Officer
SANDI FITZPATRICK, Administrative Associate
MARQUITA SMITH, Administrative Assistant/Technology Analyst
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Acknowledgement of Reviewers
This report has been reviewed by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council (NRC) Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the NRC in making the published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The content of the review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals, who are neither officials nor employees of the NRC, for their participation in the review of this report:
Bill Batchelor, Texas A&M University
Robert M. Bernero, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (retired)
Elizabeth M. Drake, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Rodney C. Ewing, University of Michigan
Michael C. Kavanaugh, Malcolm Pirnie, Inc.
William A. Mills, Oak Ridge Associated Universities (retired)
Chris W. Rhyne, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Roger R. Seitz, International Atomic Energy Agency
E-an Zen, University of Maryland
While the individuals listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, it must be emphasized that responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the NRC.
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