Status of Efforts To Clean Up the Shut-Down Western New York Nuclear Service Center

The Nuclear Fuel Services, Inc. (NFS) plant at West Valley, New York is the only commercial nuclear fuel reprocessing facility to have operated in the United States. The plant, which closed in 1972, reprocessed about 640 metric tons of spent nuclear fuel and generated about 600,000 gallons of high-level liquid nuclear waste during its 6-year operating period. In 1976, NFS decided not to reopen the plant because of cost-prohibitive safety measures imposed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The liquid nuclear waste, spent fuel, solid nuclear wastes, and equipment and structures contaminated during reprocessing are being safely stored and maintained at the site. Costs for a permanent solution for the entire site were estimated by the Department of Energy (DOE) to be between $41.6 million and $1.1 billion. NFS wishes to leave the site by December 31, 1980, when its contract with the State of New York expires. However, under the complex contractual arrangements, no Federal, State, or private entity has accepted responsibility for dealing with the issues involved in decommissioning the plant. GAO was requested to report on the progress Government agencies have made in addressing these problems.