Key Issues

Modern society uses ionizing radiation, a form of energy abundant in nature, to provide hundreds of beneficial uses, ranging from smoke detectors and industrial gauges to nuclear medicine technologies and electricity generation. Many beneficial uses of radioactive materials result in the production of commercial low-level radioactive waste (LLW).

Low-level radioactive waste is a byproduct of the beneficial uses of radioactive materials, including electricity generation, medical diagnosis and treatment, biomedical and pharmaceutical research, and manufacturing. The radioactive material in low-level waste emits the same radiation that everyone receives from nature.

LLW is solid material that can be safely transported under strict regulations established by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). It usually consists of items such as gloves and other protective clothing, glass and plastic laboratory supplies, machine parts and tools, and disposable medical items that have come in contact with radioactive materials.

The LLW produced at nuclear power plants consists of water purification filters and resins, tools, protective clothing and plant hardware, such as steam generators. It does not include used nuclear fuel from nuclear power plants or any waste from U.S. defense programs.

Many government agencies are responsible for ensuring that the public and the environment are carefully protected from the radioactivity in LLW. The NRC licenses and regulates all U.S. nuclear plants, including how they handle low-level waste, and some other facilities that dispose of LLW. The four existing and planned LLW disposal facilities are licensed and regulated by one of the 36 “agreement states” that have entered into agreements with the NRC to regulate “byproducts, sources and small quantities of special nuclear material within that state.”

The NRC places low-level waste in one of three categories based on the concentration, half-life and types of radionuclides it contains, and has set requirements for packing and disposal of each class of waste. Class A accounts for 95 percent of all low-level waste and represents the lowest hazard, with its radioactivity fading to background levels within 100 years. Classes B and C represent greater potential hazards, with its radionuclides fading to background levels in less than 500 years. The NRC and the states govern the siting, operation and closure of all LLW disposal facilities.   

For more information, see NEI’s fact sheet, “Disposal of Commercial Low-Level Radioactive Waste” or the NRC’s Web page on low-level waste.