Survey of naturally occurring hazardous materials in deep geologic formations: a perspective on the relative hazard of deep burial of nuclear wastes
- 14 January 1977
- report
- Published by Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI)
Abstract
Hazards associated with deep burial of solidified nuclear waste are considered with reference to toxic elements in naturally occurring ore deposits. This problem is put into perspective by relating the hazard of a radioactive waste repository to that of naturally occurring geologic formations. The basis for comparison derives from a consideration of safe drinking water levels. Calculations for relative toxicity of FBR waste and light water reactor (LWR) waste in an underground repository are compared with the relative toxicity indices obtained for average concentration ore deposits. Results indicate that, over time, nuclear waste toxicity decreases to levels below those of naturally occurring hazardous materials.Keywords
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