PROCESSING AND TREATMENT OF HIGH-LEVEL NUCLEAR WASTE AND SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL RODS.

SEC. 3142. PROCESSING AND TREATMENT OF HIGH-LEVEL NUCLEAR WASTE AND SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL RODS. (a) In General.— (1) In order to provide for an effective response to requirements for managing the spent nuclear fuel described in paragraph (2), there shall be available to the Secretary of Energy, from amounts authorized to be appropriated pursuant to section 3102(c), the following amounts for the purposes stated: (A) Not more than $43,000,000 for the development and implementation of a program to accelerate the receipt, processing (including the H-canyon restart operations), reprocessing, separation, reduction, deactivation, stabilization, isolation, and interim storage of high-level nuclear waste associated with 110 STAT. 2835Department of Energy aluminum clad spent fuel rods, foreign spent fuel rods, and other nuclear materials. (B) Not more than $15,000,000 for the development and implementation of a program for the receipt, treatment, preparation, conditioning, interim storage, and final disposition of high-level nuclear waste and spent nuclear fuel (including naval spent nuclear fuel), non-aluminum clad fuel rods, and foreign fuel rods. (2) The spent nuclear fuel referred to in paragraph (1) is the following: (A) Spent nuclear fuel that is sent to Department of Energy consolidation sites pursuant to the Department of Energy Programmatic Spent Nuclear Fuel Management and Idaho National Engineering Laboratory Environmental Restoration and Waste Management Programs Final Environmental Impact Statement, dated April 1995. (B) Spent nuclear fuel described in the Interim Management of Nuclear Materials Environmental Impact Statement, dated October 1995. (C) Other spent nuclear fuel located at the Savannah River Site as of the date of the enactment of this Act. (3) The amounts made available under paragraph (1) are in addition to other amounts authorized to be appropriated by section 3102(c) for the purposes stated in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of that paragraph. (b) Use of Funds for Settlement Agreement.— Funds made available pursuant to subsection (a)(1)(B) for the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory shall be considered to be funds made available in partial fulfillment of the terms and obligations set forth in the settlement agreement entered into by the United States with the State of Idaho in the actions captioned Public Service Co. of Colorado v. Batt, Civil No. 91–0035–SEJL, and United States v. Batt, Civil No. 91–0054–SEJL, in the United States District Court for the District of Idaho and the consent order of the United States District Court for the District of Idaho, dated October 17, 1995, that effectuates the settlement agreement. (c) Amendments to Implementation Plan for Managing Spent Nuclear Fuel at Certain Sites.— Section 3142(b) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1996 (Public Law 104–106; 110 Stat. 622) is amended— (1) by striking out “April 30, 1996” and inserting in lieu thereof “September 30, 1996”; (2) by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (3); (3) by striking out the period at the end of paragraph (4) and inserting in lieu thereof “; and”; and (4) by adding at the end the following new paragraph: “(5) an assessment of the progress made in implementing the programs.”. (d) Near-Term Plan for Processing Spent Fuel Rods at Savannah River Site.— (1) Not later than March 15, 1997, the Secretary of Energy shall submit to Congress a plan for a near-term program to process, treat, package, and dispose of spent nuclear fuel rods described in paragraph (2) at the Savannah River Site. The plan shall include cost projections and resource requirements for the program and identify program milestones for the program. 110 STAT. 2836 (2) The spent nuclear fuel rods to be included in the program referred to in paragraph (1) are the following: (A) Spent nuclear fuel rods produced at the Savannah River Site. (B) Spent nuclear fuel rods being sent to the site from other Department of Energy facilities for processing, interim storage, and other treatment. (C) Foreign spent nuclear fuel rods being sent to the site for processing, interim storage, and other treatment. (e) Multi-Year Plan for Clean-Up at Savannah River Site.— The Secretary shall develop and implement a multi-year plan for the clean-up of nuclear waste at the Savannah River Site that results, or has resulted, from the following: (1) Nuclear weapons activities carried out at the site. (2) The processing, treating, packaging, and disposal of Department of Energy domestic and foreign spent nuclear fuel rods at the site. (f) Requirement for Continuing Operations at Savannah River Site.— The Secretary shall continue operations and maintain a high state of readiness at the H-canyon facility and the F-canyon facility at the Savannah River Site, and shall provide technical staff necessary to operate and so maintain such facilities, pending the development and implementation of the plan referred to in subsection (e).