Classification of Radioactive Waste

Low-Level Waste (LLW)

Defined by what it is not. It is radioactive waste not classified as high-level,spent fuel, transuranic or byproduct material such as uranium mill tailings. LLW has four subcategories: Classes A, B, C, (and Greater-Than Class-C (GTCC), not applicable). On average, Class A is the least hazardous while Class C is the most hazardous.

  • Class A

    • On average the least radioactive of the four LLW classes. Primarily contaminated with "short-lived" radionuclides. (average concentration: 0.1 curies/cubic foot)
     
  • Class B

    • May be contaminated with a greater amount of "short-lived" radionuclides than Class A. (average concentration: 2 curies/cubic foot)
     
  • Class C

    • May be contaminated with greater amounts of long-lived and short-lived radionuclides than Class A or B. (average concentration: 7 curies/cubic foot)
    Definition:

    Curie: Named after Madame Curie, the famous French scientist who later died of radiation poisoning, a curie is a unit of radioactivity equal to the radioactivity of 1 gram of radium-226. It is equal to 37 billion disintegrations per second.

    Source: Institute for Energy and Environmental Research
    http://www.ieer.org/clssroom/r-waste.html