AN ACT Relating to low-level radioactive waste disposal; adding a new chapter to Title 70 RCW; creating a new section; and declaring an emergency.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature finds that:

(a) The state of Washington, in response to Public Law 96-573, enacted the Northwest interstate compact on low-level radioactive waste management, chapter 43.145 RCW, in 1981;

(b) As of January 1985, only the Northwest compact and the Southeast compact have been submitted to Congress for ratification, and Congress has not given its consent to either of the two compacts;

(c) The state of Washington is now receiving a majority of the low-level radioactive waste being generated in the United States and the volume of that waste is increasing rapidly;

(d) The governor of South Carolina, which is the host state for the Southeast compact, has announced that state's intention to reduce sharply the amount of waste it will accept or to close its site if Congress fails to ratify the Southeast compact by January 1, 1986, in which case the state of Washington would become the only major disposal site for low-level radioactive waste in the country;

(e) The inaction by other states to form regional compacts and the delay by Congress in ratifying the compacts that have been submitted may result in the state of Washington becoming the principal repository for low-level radioactive waste in the United States;

(f) The state of Washington recognizes the need for safe and economical management of such waste and for cooperation between the states in the handling, transportation, and disposal of low-level radioactive waste.

(2) To protect the health and safety of the citizens of the state of Washington, to serve notice on nonparty, noncompact states, and to encourage other states to address regional solutions to the disposal of low-level radioactive waste problems, the state of Washington, in enacting this legislation, shall provide for a reduction in the total volume of low-level radioactive waste being disposed in the state of Washington and for the verification of the stability and protective nature of waste forms or containers permitted to be disposed of at the state of Washington's disposal site.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the following definitions shall apply throughout this chapter.

(1) "LLRW" means low-level radioactive waste, as defined in applicable federal regulations.

(2) "Applicable federal regulations" means federal regulations contained in 10 C.F.R. 61 that were in effect on February 1, 1983.

(3) Low-level radioactive waste shall be classified as "A," "B," or "C" as defined in 10 C.F.R. 61.55. A general description of those waste classifications are as follows:

(a) "Class A waste" is the minimum classification of LLRW, and applies to waste that does not contain sufficient amounts of radionuclides to be of great concern in terms of LLRW disposal safety objectives: Protection of the general population from releases of radioactivity, protection of individuals from inadvertent intrusion, and protection of individuals during operations;

(b) "Class B waste" is LLRW that will decay to levels of radioactivity that present an acceptable hazard to an intruder within one hundred years;

(c) "Class C waste" is LLRW that will not decay to levels of radioactivity and that present an acceptable hazard to an intruder within one hundred years. The effective protection period applied to class C waste shall be three hundred years.

(5) "Demonstrated waste package" means any waste form or container, used principally for the purpose of disposing of class B or class C waste, that has been demonstrated, by a combination of test results and analysis on file with the state of Washington, to comply with the requirements set forth in federal nuclear regulatory commission regulations found in 10 C.F.R. 61 that were in effect on February 1, 1983, and wherein the materials and technology to be used in the design of the waste form have been the subject of a safety evaluation analysis and report by the federal nuclear regulatory commission subsequent to February 1, 1983.

(6) "Verified waste package" means any waste form or container that was legally used for the disposal of class B nuclear waste during 1984 at the Hanford site, but that is not a "demonstrated waste package," and for which the class B nature of the proposed burial contents has been verified by a third-party inspection at the time of filling and lid closure.

(7) "Broker" means any person who acts as an agent or intermediary for a generator or packager or another person, but does not include a carrier whose sole function is to transport low-level waste, a generator or packager of low-level waste, or a low-level-radioactive waste disposal site operator.

(8) "Generator" means any person, partnership, association, corporation, or any other entity whatsoever that, as a part of its activities, produces low-level radioactive waste for disposal at the Hanford site.

(9) "Hanford site" means the site on the Hanford reservation leased by the state from the federal government part of which is designated for the disposal of LLRW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. Beginning with the effective date of this act, the following volume limitations for nondemonstrated and nonverified waste packages shall apply to LLRW burial volume thereafter stored at the Hanford site:

(1) During 1985, ninety percent of the total volume stored at the Hanford site during the calendar year 1984;

(2) During 1986, eighty percent of the total volume stored at the Hanford site during the calendar year 1984;

(3) During 1987, sixty-five percent of the total volume stored at the Hanford site during the calendar year 1984;

(4) During 1988, and thereafter, fifty percent of the total volume stored at the Hanford site during the calendar year 1984.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. Any class B waste disposed of at the Hanford site shall be disposed of in either a demonstrated waste package or a verified waste package.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. Any class C waste disposed of at the Hanford site shall be disposed of in a demonstrated waste package.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. The state radiation control agency shall require a third-party inspection of class B waste shipped in verified waste packages to Hanford by generators, packagers, and brokers. The inspection shall be performed at the site of the generator, packager, or broker, before shipment to the Hanford site. The determination of who will perform the inspection shall be made by the state radiation control agency on a bid basis. This third-party inspection is in addition to any other inspections otherwise required by law. The costs of the third-party inspection shall be borne by the generator, packager, or broker being inspected. The designated state authority shall adopt rules to administer and enforce this section.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. If the United States Congress consents to the Northwest interstate compact on low-level radioactive waste management, section 3 of this act shall become invalid.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. Sections 2 through 7 of this act shall constitute a new chapter in Title 70 RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety, the support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and shall take effect immediately.