New York Laws
Title 3 - Commission for Siting Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Facilities
29-0303 - Duties of the Commission.

(i) accidents during transportation of low-level radioactive waste to
such facilities;
(ii) contamination of ground or surface water by leaching and runoff
from such facilities; and
(iii) fires or explosions from improper storage or disposal of
volatile, combustible, or potentially explosive materials, if any, which
may compose a portion of the low-level radioactive waste to be delivered
to such facilities;
b. the nature of the probable environmental impacts, including the
predictable adverse effects on the natural environment and ecology,
scenic, historic, agricultural, cultural, and recreational values, water
and air quality, and wildlife;
c. the potential for avoidance or mitigation of harm from the
unanticipated release of low-level radioactive waste or contaminated
materials;
d. the ability for retrieval or recovery of such waste;
e. differences in the density of population in the vicinity of the
potential sites;
f. the adequacy of routes and means for transportation of low-level
radioactive waste to such facilities;
g. the nature of the probable impact of such facilities on local
governmental units within which such facilities would be located; and
h. the comparative economic implications, including those resulting
from engineering considerations, of the potential site or sites and
disposal methods for such facilities.
8. The commission shall select one site for a permanent disposal
facility after consideration of all relevant public health and safety,
environmental and economic factors, provided, however, that an
additional site may be selected if the commission finds that the use of
an additional site presents specific advantages with respect to such
factors. To the extent the commission determines that different disposal
methods are appropriate for different categories of low-level
radioactive waste with differing physical or chemical characteristics,
the commission may select more than one disposal method to be utilized
at each particular site, specifying the particular disposal methods to
be utilized at such site for particular categories of such waste;
provided that utilization of the disposal methods selected at the site
selected shall be capable of meeting or exceeding applicable

requirements of state and federal regulations. The site or sites
selected shall be of sufficient capacity to provide for disposal, using
the selected disposal methods, of all low-level radioactive waste
estimated by the commission to be generated in New York and to require
disposal at low-level radioactive waste management facilities for a
period of at least thirty years.
9. In performing its duties, the commission shall hold periodic
meetings which shall be publicly noticed pursuant to article seven of
the public officers law.
10. Whenever the commission makes a decision to:
(i) select, or narrow the range of alternatives it is considering for,
disposal methods or sites for permanent disposal facilities,
(ii) establish the plans for pre-characterizing or characterizing, or
otherwise gathering site-specific data for, candidate sites for
permanent disposal facilities, or
(iii) project the types, quantities, or activity levels of low-level
radioactive wastes which might be disposed of at permanent disposal
facilities,
it shall promptly issue a report or other document which serves as the
basis for or otherwise provides its detailed explanation or
justification for that decision. Such report or other document shall
include information sufficient to permit full independent review and
evaluation by the department, the citizen advisory committee and by an
independent technical and scientific evaluation panel, established
pursuant to subdivision eleven of this section, of the nature, sources,
and quality of any specific data relied upon, the nature of assumptions
made, and the specific analytical methods, procedures, or techniques
employed, including modelling and calculations performed, and any other
information and analyses upon which the commission would intend to rely
in justifying its decisions to any reviewing body. The report shall be
made available to the public upon request. The commission shall
simultaneously have published in the state register, and send to any
person who has requested to be placed on the commission's mailing list,
notice of availability of that report or other document and provide a
copy of the report or other document to the governor, the speaker of the
assembly, the majority leader of the senate, the minority leader of the
assembly, the minority leader of the senate, the citizen advisory
committee, and any independent technical and scientific evaluation panel
established pursuant to subdivision eleven of this section.
11. Pursuant to contract, the department of health shall arrange to
have one or more independent panels of technical and scientific experts
review and evaluate the commission's decision and report on its
selection of a tentative preferred disposal method and decisions and
report on lands excluded from consideration for siting permanent
disposal facilities, issued in accordance with subdivisions two and
three of this section, and each other decision made and related report
issued by the commission pursuant to subdivision four or ten of this
section. For each such commission decision and report, the independent
technical and scientific evaluation panel or panels shall assess the
nature, sources and quality of any specific data the commission relied
upon, the nature of assumptions made, and the specific analytical
methods, procedures or techniques employed, including modelling and
calculations performed, and any other information and analyses relied
upon for the commission's decision. The department of health may engage
more than one panel to assess a commission decision and report, in order
to provide for complete coverage of those matters in the review and
evaluation of that decision and report. Upon completion of each such
review and evaluation, any independent technical and scientific

evaluation panel shall provide a written report containing its findings,
conclusions and recommendations to the commission, the citizen advisory
committee, the department of health and the department of environmental
conservation.
12. Whenever the commission receives written comments or a report from
the citizen advisory committee or any independent technical and
scientific evaluation panel established pursuant to subdivision eleven
of this section, it shall provide a detailed written response, within a
reasonable time, addressing the points made in the comments or report.
Upon receipt of any such report the commission shall cause it to be made
available to the public upon request and submitted to the governor, the
majority leader of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the minority
leader of the senate and the minority leader of the assembly. Notice of
such report shall be published by the commission in the state register
and sent to any person who has requested to be placed on the
commission's mailing list.
* NB Commission existence pursuant to § 29-0309

Structure New York Laws