We considered carefully the language
and reasoning of the Court’s decision in
revising our 2001 standards. As
originally promulgated in 2001, 40 CFR
part 197 contained four sets of standards
against which compliance would be
assessed. The storage standard applies
to exposures of the general public
during the operational period, when
waste is received at the Yucca Mountain
site, handled in preparation for
emplacement in the repository,
emplaced in the repository, and stored
in the repository until final closure. The
three disposal standards apply to
releases of radionuclides from the
disposal system after final closure, and
include an individual-protection
standard, a human-intrusion standard,
and a set of ground-water protection
standards.