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The Beatty low-level radioactive
waste (LLW) disposal facility was the first commercially
operated radioactive waste disposal facility to be
licensed by the US Atomic Energy Commission (US Nuclear
Regulatory Commission). The authority for regulation of
this site was transferred to the state of Nevada shortly
after Nevada became an "Agreement State" in 1972.
The facility is located in Nye
County in the Amargosa Desert approximately 105 miles
northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada. The site opened in
September 1962 and received radioactive waste for burial
until December 31, 1992. Since closure of the site, the
Rocky Mountain Low Level Waste Compact has entered into
an agreement with the Northwest Compact that allows
low-level waste generators in the
Rocky Mountain Compact
(Colorado, Nevada, and New Mexico) to dispose of their
waste at the Richland, Washington LLW facility.
The licensee, US Ecology, has
completed the state-approved closure plan to stabilize
the site and establish proper security measures. The
plan was intended to ensure that the LLW disposed during
the operational phase of the facility continued to
remain in a suitable, stable, and safe condition after
site closure. The Nevada State Health Division continues
to monitor for radioactivity in groundwater, air, soil,
and vegetation.
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Nuclear Regulatory Commission |
