The National Safety Council conducts a variety of outreach and education activities on radiation. These efforts are supported by grants from federal agencies:
Understanding Radiation in Our World
http://www.nsc.org/ehc/rad/radbroch.htm
We benefit from many uses of radiation but it can also pose serious health risks, leading to two major questions:
The National Safety Council has created a kit to help teachers explore these questions and others with their students. The new kit is available FREE to high school teachers to help educate students about radiation and risk. Single copies of the guidebook Understanding Radiation in Our World are also available free to the general public in the United States.
- How big a risk does radiation pose to our families, our environment, and to future generations?
- What should individuals and society do to ensure that the benefits of radiation are not outweighed by the risks?
Low-Level Radioactive Waste
http://www.nsc.org/public/ehc/rad/lowleve.pdf
During the next several decades, the U.S. Department of Energy expects to manage nearly 9 million cubic meters of low-level radioactive waste and 26 million cubic meters of contaminated soil. We hope A Guide to The U.S. Department of Energy's Low-Level Radioactive Waste will help readers understand issues and processes involved in managing low-level waste. The guide provides basic information about radiation, radioactive waste, and DOE management of low-level waste, including transportation, emergency response, storage, and disposal.
Yucca Mountain
http://www.nsc.org/ehc/yuccamt.htm
NSC is working to promote public awareness and understanding of Yucca Mountain, site of the U.S. Department of Energy's proposed geological repository designed to accept spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. If approved, the site would be the nation's first geological repository for permanent disposal of these types of radioactive waste. Yucca Mountain is located approximately 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada.
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant
http://www.nsc.org/ehc/wipp.htm
The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is a U.S. Department of Energy facility located in southeastern New Mexico, 26 miles southeast of Carlsbad. The facility began receiving waste shipments on March 26, 1999. These pages contain background information on WIPP. For information on current activities, visit U.S. Department of Energy's WIPP site; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's WIPP site, or the State of New Mexico's WIPP Transportation Safety Program site.
Foreign Research Reactor Spent Fuel
http://www.nsc.org/ehc/rad/frrsf.htmNSC published A Guide to Foreign Research Reactor Spent Fuel to provide basic information about the current U.S. program to take back spent nuclear fuel from research reactors in 41 foreign countries. Published in June 1998, this guide is designed to be a resource to anyone seeking information about the program and how the spent fuel is to be transported, handled, safeguarded, and stored when it arrives in the United States.