(a) Each licensee authorized to receive, possess, and use licensed material shall submit a plan for completion of decommissioning, if the procedures necessary to carry out decommissioning: - (i) Have not been previously approved by the Department; or
- (ii) Could increase potential health and safety impacts to workers or to the public, such as in any of the following cases:
- (A) Procedures would involve techniques not applied routinely during cleanup or maintenance operations;
- (B) Workers would be entering areas not normally occupied where surface contamination and radiation levels are significantly higher than routinely encountered during operation;
- (C) Procedures could result in significantly greater airborne concentrations of radioactive materials than are present during operation; or
- (D) Procedures could result in significantly greater releases of radioactive material to the environment than those associated with operation.
(b) Procedures with potential health and safety impacts may not be carried out prior to approval of the decommissioning plan.
(c) The proposed decommissioning plan, if required by this Chapter or by license condition must include: - (i) Description of the condition of the site, separate buildings, or outdoor areas sufficient to evaluate the acceptability of the plan;
- (ii) Description of planned decommissioning activities;
- (iii) Description of methods used to assure protection of workers and the environment against radiation hazards during decommissioning;
- (iv) A description of the planned final radiation survey; and
- (v) An updated detailed cost estimate for decommissioning, comparison of that estimate with present funds set aside for decommissioning, and plan for assuring the availability of adequate funds for completion of decommissioning.
- (A) For decommissioning plans calling for completion of decommissioning later than twenty-four (24) months after plan approval, the licensee must provide a justification for any delay based on the criteria in subsection (f) of this Section.
(d) Except as provided in subsection (f) of this Section, the licensee shall complete decommissioning of the site, separate buildings, and outdoor area as soon as practicable but no later than twenty-four (24) months following the initiation of decommissioning.
(e) Except as provided in subsection (f) of this Section, when decommissioning involves the licensed area, the licensee shall request license termination as soon as practicable but no later than twenty-four (24) months following the initiation of decommissioning.
(f) The Department may approve a request for an alternate schedule for completion of decommissioning of the site or separate building or outdoor area(s), and license termination if appropriate and if the Department determines that the alternative schedule is warranted. In doing so, the Department shall consider the following: - (i) Whether it is technically feasible to complete decommissioning within the allotted twenty-four (24) month period;
- (ii) Whether sufficient waste disposal capacity is available to allow completion of decommissioning within the allotted twenty-four (24) month period;
- (A) Including whether a significant volume reduction in wastes requiring disposal will be achieved by allowing short-lived radionuclides to decay.
- (iii) Whether a significant reduction in radiation exposure to workers can be achieved by allowing short-lived radionuclides to decay; and
- (iv) Other site specific factors which the Department may consider appropriate on a case-by-case basis, such as the regulatory requirement of other government agencies, lawsuits, groundwater treatment activities, monitored natural groundwater restoration, actions that could result in more environmental harm than deferred cleanup, and other factors beyond the control of the licensee.
(g) After submittal and upon approval of the decommissioning plan by the Department, the licensee shall decommission in accordance with the approved plan. As a final step in the decommissioning the licensee shall: - (i) Certify the disposition of all licensed material, including accumulated wastes, by submitting a completed Department Form URP-314 or equivalent;
- (ii) Conduct a radiation survey of the premises where the licensed activities were carried out and submit a report of the results of this survey, unless the licensee demonstrates in some other manner that the premises are suitable for release in accordance with the criteria for decommissioning in this Chapter or the requirements in Criterion 6(6) of 10 C.F.R. Part 40, Appendix A. The licensee shall:
- (A) Report levels of gamma radiation in units of microroentgen (millisieverts) per hour at one meter from surfaces, and report levels of radioactivity, including alpha and beta, in units of microcuries (disintegrations per minute or megabecquerels) per 100 square centimeters removable and fixed for surfaces, microcuries (megabecquerels) per milliliter for water and picocuries (becquerels) per gram for solids such as soils or concrete; and
- (B) Specify the survey instrument(s) used and certify that each instrument is properly calibrated and tested.
020-4 Wyo. Code R. § 4-17