IMPACTS OF THE USE OF INSTITUTIONAL CONTROLS ON RISK ASSESSMENTS FOR US DEPARTMENT-OF-ENERGY FACILITIES

This paper summarizes some of the major issues related to the use of i nstitutional controls at hazardous waste sites under the auspices of t he U.S. Department of Energy Field Office, Oak Ridge/Environmental Res toration Division (DOE-OR/ERD). In particular, the impacts that assump tions regarding institutional controls have on the results and interpr etation of the risk assessment, both in the Remedial Investigation (RI ) and the Feasibility Study (FS) are addressed. The approaches and ass umptions relating to institutional controls focus on the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), sin ce it is the regulatory driver for hazardous waste sites at Department of Energy (DOE) facilities. In order to provide a contrast to approac hes adopted under CERCLA, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act ( RCRA) and radiation regulatory authorities (i.e., Nuclear Regulatory C ommission (NRC) regulations/guidance, DOE orders, and U.S. Environment al Protection Agency (EPA) standards) are briefly outlined. To demonst rate the implications of the use of institutional controls at DOE faci lities, the approaches and results of a recent baseline risk assessmen t for Solid Waste Storage Area 6 at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORN L) are summarized.