Maine Yankee Decommissioning - Maine Regulatory Process

INTRODUCTION | PROCESS OVERVIEW | DRY CASK STORAGE | DISMANTLING & DISPOSAL | REUSE OF THE SITE

Introduction
photo of a capital dome

The Maine Yankee Atomic Power Plant in Wiscasset completed the very complex process of decommissioning in 2005. To oversee that process, there were regulatory processes at three levels---local, federal and state.

The local process involved issuing any necessary permits the Town of Wiscasset requires under town planning ordinances. The federal process included approvals from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for the design of the dry casks that now hold high level fuel on site, transportation of high level material off site, and the official closing of the plant through a License Termination Plan (LTP) which was finalized in October 2005.

The state process primarily involved review by the Departments of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Health and Human Services, and is described in more detail below. This "roadmap" focused on the state regulatory requirements that Maine Yankee was required to meet, and provided contact people for more information. As such, it is not intended to describe with detail all of the activities that occurred on site.

Overview of the state process

DEP issued permits for aspects of the decommissioning when necessary. DEP is charged with evaluating all of the environmental impacts, from asbestos, hazardous and solid wastes and oversight of a cumulative risk assessment. While DEP has expertise on traditional environmental issues, input from sister agencies with specialized knowledge was critical.

For example, the experts for radiological issues are the Office of Nuclear Safety in the Radiation Control Program of the Maine Bureau of Health and the Governor's Technical Advisory Panel on Radiation. Transportation issues were dealt with through the Maine Department of Transportation and the Department of Public Safety. DEP also received assistance from our federal counterpart, the Environmental Protection Agency. These agencies, and more, worked together to ensure that all aspects of the Maine Yankee decommissioning were carefully examined.

Elements of the state process

The easiest way to think about this very complex project is to examine the decommissioning in three distinct parts----the construction of an Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI or "dry cask" storage area); the dismantling and disposal of the buildings and other structures; and future reuse of the site.

Dry cask storage. Maine Yankee has chosen to construct a specialized storage facility on site to store high level radioactive material until the federal government is prepared to remove it for ultimate off-site disposal. The radioactive material consists primarily of fuel rods from the reactor that would be stored for 20 years or more in 64 specially designed steel and concrete casks.

The DEP reviewed construction of the facility under Maine's Site Location of Development, Stormwater, and Natural Resources Protection laws. The DEP's citizen board, the Board of Environmental Protection, held a hearing on this project in Wiscasset on May 10, 2000, and made a final decision to approve the construction of the dry cask facility on July 6, 2000. This facility was completed in 2004.

Dismantling and disposal. Maine Yankee dismantled all of the existing facility with the exception of the dry cask storage area described above and is being left as open land.

The evaluation and remediation of any hazardous wastes, or material was summarized in the RCRA facility investigation report (RFI) and Corrective Measures Study.
DEP Contact: Harold Nilsson 287-5618 or Heather Jackson, 287-7880.

Reuse of the site. The paramount goal of the decommissioning was to ensure that it is done in a way that protects human health and the environment. Accomplishing that also means that the site is left in a condition that will allow the greatest opportunity for future reuse, whether it be for recreation or redevelopment. Future use of the property after decommissioning will be limited to commercial or industrial use. If other uses are proposed, they will have to be evaluated to see if they need any DEP permits.
DEP Contact: Scott Whittier, 287-7674

Remediation & Waste Management

Maine Yankee Decommissioning - Maine Regulatory Process