Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 11, June 10, 2024
Section RH 14.2 - Definitions

As used in this part, the following definitions apply:

"Active maintenance" means any significant activity needed during the period of institutional control to maintain a reasonable assurance that the performance objectives in RH 14.18 and 14.19 are met. Such active maintenance includes ongoing activities such as the pumping and treatment of water from a disposal unit or one-time measures such as replacement of a disposal unit cover. Active maintenance does not include custodial activities such as repair of fencing, repair or replacement of monitoring equipment, revegetation, minor additions to soil cover, minor repair of disposal unit covers, and general disposal site upkeep such as mowing grass.

"Buffer zone" means a portion of the disposal site that is controlled by the licensee and that lies under the disposal units and between the disposal units and the boundary of the site.

"Chelating agent" means amine polycarboxylic acids, hydroxy-carboxylic acids, gluconic acid and polycarboxylic acids.

"Commencement of construction" means any clearing of land, excavation, or other substantial action that would adversely affect the environment of a disposal facility. The term does not mean disposal site exploration, necessary roads for disposal site exploration, borings to determine foundation conditions, or other preconstruction monitoring or testing to establish background information related to the suitability of the disposal site or the protection of environmental values.

"Custodial Agency" means an agency of the government designated to act on behalf of the federal or state government owner of the disposal site.

"Disposal" means the isolation of radioactive wastes from the biosphere inhabited by man and his food chains by emplacement in a land disposal facility with no intention of retrieval.

"Disposal site" means that portion of a land disposal facility which is used for disposal of waste. It consists of disposal units and a buffer zone.

"Disposal unit" means a discrete portion of the disposal site into which waste is placed for disposal. For near-surface disposal the unit is usually a trench.

"Engineered barrier" means a man-made structure or device that is intended to improve the land disposal facility's ability to meet the performance objectives in this part.

"Explosive material" means any chemical compound, mixture, or device which produces a substantial instantaneous release of gas and heat spontaneously or by contact with sparks or flame.

"Hazardous waste" means those wastes designated as hazardous by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulations in 40 CFR Part 261.

"Hydrogeologic unit" means any soil or rock unit or zone which by virtue of its porosity or permeability, or lack thereof, has a distinct influence on the storage or movement of groundwater.

"Inadvertent intruder" means a person who might occupy the disposal site after closure and engage in normal activities, such as agriculture, dwelling construction, or other pursuits in which an individual might be unknowingly exposed to radiation from the waste.

"Intruder barrier" means a sufficient depth of cover over the waste that inhibits contact with waste and helps to ensure that radiation exposures to an inadvertent intruder will meet the performance objectives set forth in this part, or engineered structures that provide equivalent protection to the inadvertent intruder.

"Land disposal facility" means the land, buildings and structures, and equipment which are intended to be used for the disposal of low-level radioactive wastes.

"Monitoring" means observing and making measurements to provide data to evaluate the performance and characteristics of the disposal site.

"Near-surface disposal facility" means a land disposal facility in which low-level radioactive waste is disposed of within approximately the upper 30 meters of the earth's surface.

"Pyrophoric liquid" means any liquid that ignites spontaneously in dry or moist air at or below 130 F (54.4 C).

"Pyrophoric solid" means any solid material, other than one classed as an explosive, which under normal conditions is liable to cause fires through friction, retained heat from manufacturing or processing, or which can be ignited readily and when ignited burns so vigorously and persistently as to create a serious transportation, handling, or disposal hazard. Included are spontaneously combustible and water-reactive materials.

"Site closure and stabilization" means those actions that are taken upon completion of operations that prepare the disposal site for custodial care and that assure that the disposal site will remain stable and will not need ongoing active maintenance.

"Stability" means structural stability.

"Surveillance" means monitoring and observation of the disposal site for purposes of visual detection of need for maintenance, custodial care, evidence of intrusion, and compliance with other license and regulatory requirements.

"Waste" means radioactive waste other than:

1. Waste generated as a result of the defense activities of the federal government or federal research and development activities;
2. High-level waste such as irradiated reactor fuel, liquid waste from reprocessing irradiated reactor fuel, or solids into which any such liquid waste has been converted;
3. Waste material containing transuranic elements with contamination levels greater than one hundred nanocuries (3700 Bq) per gram of material;
4. Byproduct material as defined in Section 11.e.(2) of the "Atomic Energy Act of 1954", as amended on November 8, 1978;* or

* The disposal of these materials are licensed under Part III of the regulations.

5. Waste from mining, milling, smelting, or similar processing of ores and mineral-bearing material primarily for minerals other than radium;*

* The disposal of these materials are licensed under Part III of the regulations.

RH 14.2

Colorado Register, Vol 37, No. 14. July 25, 2014, effective 8/14/2014
38 CR 02, January 25, 2015, effective 2/14/2015
38 CR 05, March 10, 2015, effective 3/30/2015
38 CR 12, June 25, 2015, effective 7/15/2015
38 CR 14, July 25, 2015, effective 8/14/2015
39 CR 02, January 25, 2016, effective 2/14/2016
39 CR 16, August 25, 2016, effective 9/14/2016
39 CR 22, November 25, 2016, effective 12/15/2016
40 CR 11, June 10, 2017, effective 6/30/2017
40 CR 20, October 25, 2017, effective 11/14/2017
42 CR 24, December 25, 2019, effective 1/14/2020
43 CR 14, July 25, 2020, effective 8/14/2020
43 CR 18, September 25, 2020, effective 10/15/2020
44 CR 11, June 10, 2021, effective 7/15/2021
44 CR 14, July 25, 2021, effective 8/14/2021
45 CR 22, November 25, 2022, effective 12/15/2022