Skip to main content

Uranium Enrichment: Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund Is Insufficient to Cover Cleanup Costs

GAO-04-692 Published: Jul 02, 2004. Publicly Released: Jul 02, 2004.
Jump To:
Skip to Highlights

Highlights

Decontaminating and decommissioning the nation's uranium enrichment plants, which are contaminated with hazardous materials, will cost billions of dollars and could span decades. In 1992, the Energy Policy Act created the Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund (Fund) to pay for the plants' cleanup and to reimburse licensees of active uranium and thorium processing sites for part of their cleanup costs. This report discusses (1) what DOE has done to reduce the cleanup costs authorized by the Fund, and (2) the extent to which the Fund is sufficient to cover authorized activities.

Recommendations

Matter for Congressional Consideration

Matter Status Comments
In order to better ensure that the Fund will be sufficient to cover the projected costs for authorized activities, Congress may wish to consider reauthorizing the Fund for an additional three years to 2010.
Closed – Not Implemented
Although hearings were held in November 2007 to consider draft legislation that would reauthorize the fund until 2015, as of July 2008, this draft legislation has not yet moved out of Committee.
In order to better ensure that the Fund will be sufficient to cover the projected costs for authorized activities, Congress may wish to consider requiring DOE to reassess the sufficiency of the Fund before the expiration date to determine if extensions beyond 2010 will be necessary.
Closed – Not Implemented
Although hearings were held in November 2007 to discuss draft legislation to reauthorize the Fund and require DOE to continue to assess the Fund's sufficiency, as of July 2008, this legislation has yet to move out of Committee.

Recommendations for Executive Action

Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Energy To help reduce uncertainty regarding the sufficiency of the Fund, the Secretary of Energy should develop a decontamination and decommissioning plan for the Paducah plant that would identify the most probable time frames and costs for completing final decontamination and decommissioning (D&D).
Closed – Implemented
In its fifth triennial report to Congress, DOE included an updated estimate of the future costs for the decontamination and decommissioning of the Paducah plant that was based on a recently completed revision to the cost estimates for the cleanup of the plants. The updated cost estimates included a cleanup plan, cost, and schedule, as well as uncertainties that could impact the costs and time frames for completion.
Department of Energy To help reduce uncertainty regarding the sufficiency of the Fund, the Secretary of Energy should develop a decontamination and decommissioning plan for the Portsmouth plant that would identify the most probable time frames and costs for completing final D&D.
Closed – Implemented
In its fifth triennial report to Congress, DOE included an updated estimate of the future costs for the decontamination and decommissioning of the Portsmouth plant that was based on a recently completed revision to the cost estimates for the cleanup of the plants. The updated cost estimates included a cleanup plan, cost, and schedule, as well as uncertainties that could impact the costs and time frames for completion.

Full Report

Office of Public Affairs

Topics

Cost controlFederal fundsFinancial analysisFunds managementFuture budget projectionsPowerplantsSpecial fund accountsStrategic planningUraniumContaminationDecontaminationCost estimates