Volume 147, No. 115 covering the 1st Session of the 107th Congress (2001 - 2002) was published by the Congressional Record.
The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“DISPOSAL OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE” mentioning the Environmental Protection Agency was published in the Senate section on pages S9188-S9189 on Sept. 6, 2001.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
DISPOSAL OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE
Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise to share some news with my Senate colleagues. And even though my subject involves radioactive waste, I'm most pleased to report that this is all good news.
As a Nation, we haven't made great progress on disposal of radioactive wastes, Yucca Mountain was supposed to open in 1998--now it might open in 2010 if it progresses at the most optimistic rate.
But in New Mexico, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in the city of Carlsbad opened for disposal operations in March of 1999. WIPP is the nation's first repository for the permanent disposal of defense-
generated radioactive waste left from the research and production of nuclear weapons.
WIPP represents the single most dramatic advance this Nation has made in disposal of radioactive waste. In fact, WIPP is a showcase facility for the entire world for demonstrating that mankind can safely remove complex wastes from any impact on our environment.
WIPP accepts a particular kind of waste, transuranic or TRU waste, that is contaminated with certain elements, especially plutonium. This type of waste must be handled with great care to ensure safety of the public and workers. WIPP represents a cornerstone of DOE's national cleanup effort dealing with the nation's nuclear weapons complex. Today, I want to announce that WIPP has filled their first underground room to full capacity.
This is no small achievement. That room now holds over 10,000 drums of TRU waste. The waste arrived in 352 shipments from five DOE sites--
Los Alamos, Rocky Flats, Idaho, Hanford, and Savannah River. That required lots of transportation, in fact about one-third of a million miles. And even with so many miles, equivalent to 13 trips around the earth, there were no accidents or even serious incidents. For those who doubt that radioactive cargoes can be shipped safely, WIPP is proof that a well-engineered transportation system can be operated to the highest standards.
The team at WIPP isn't stopping to celebrate this milestone. As I speak, they're busily accepting more waste. Earlierr this week, the shipment number was up to 373 and more then 11,000 drums had moved into the facility.
In closing, I personally commend the Department of Energy, especially the Carlsbad Field Office, for their careful attention to safe operations. The community of Carlsbad deserves tremendous praise for their consistent support of WIPP and its critical national mission. And both the Environmental Protection Agency and the New Mexico Environment Department deserve compliments for their roles in oversight of this facility.
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