34. 



SATURDAY EVENING SESSION 

 September 10, 1955 



The meeting reconvened at eight o'clock, Dr. Hess presiding. 



CHAIRMAN HESS: We start the evening session with a good 

 many people, judging from -what I have heard since the last session, 

 who are doubtful whether we have very much of a problem or any 

 problem at all. Many of the things that seemed to be problems have 

 disappeared as the chemical processing of wastes has improved. 



Dr. Lieberman of the AEC is the next speaker and he will 

 point out what problems we really have to solve here and how serious 

 they are . 



Dr. Joseph A. Lieberman 

 Sanitary Engineer 

 Atomic Energy Commission 

 Washington 25, D. C. 



DR. LIEBERMAN: I certainly hope that I can disabuse you of 

 the idea that we have any solution that will solve immediately the prob- 

 lems of waste disposal. We feel hopeful that improvements in tech- 

 nology will, as the nuclear industry develops, reduce the complexity 

 of the problem, perhaps through following some of the approaches al- 

 ready described or perhaps along lines on which research is just start- 

 ing. The whole problem is divisible into two major categories, one of 

 immediate concern, lasting at least five, ten, or maybe more years, 

 and the other, a longer range problem subject to much estimating of 

 future power requirements and production, much speculation about the 

 proportion of power we will be getting from nuclear fission, and much 

 debate about what kind of reactors will be the best. 



The amount of fission products produced is a rather simple 

 arithmetical calculation. When a gram of uranium fissions, 24,000 

 kilowatt hours, or one megawatt day, of heat energy are produced and 

 about one gram of fission products result. The total quantity of fission 

 products accumulated at any time depends on the output of energy being 

 produced by nuclear fission, how long the nuclear reactors have been 

 operating, and other factors related to chemical processing of nuclear 

 fuels. Mr. Davis, Director of the Reactor Division, has estimated 



