Editing Radioactive waste (section)

=== Transuranic waste ===
{{main|Transuranic waste}}
{{Globalize|article|USA|2name=the United States|date=November 2013}}
Transuranic waste (TRUW) as defined by U.S. regulations is, without regard to form or origin, waste that is contaminated with alpha-emitting transuranic [[radionuclide]]s with [[half-lives]] greater than 20 years and concentrations greater than 100&nbsp;[[Nanocurie|nCi]]/g (3.7&nbsp;[[MBq]]/kg), excluding high-level waste. Elements that have an atomic number greater than uranium are called transuranic ("beyond uranium"). Because of their long half-lives, TRUW is disposed of more cautiously than either low- or intermediate-level waste. In the United States, it arises mainly from nuclear weapons production, and consists of clothing, tools, rags, residues, debris, and other items contaminated with small amounts of radioactive elements (mainly [[plutonium]]).

Under U.S. law, transuranic waste is further categorized into "contact-handled" (CH) and "remote-handled" (RH) on the basis of the radiation dose rate measured at the surface of the waste container. CH TRUW has a surface dose rate not greater than 200 [[mrem]] per hour (2&nbsp;mSv/h), whereas RH TRUW has a surface dose rate of 200&nbsp;mrem/h (2&nbsp;mSv/h) or greater. CH TRUW does not have the very high radioactivity of high-level waste, nor its high heat generation, but RH TRUW can be highly radioactive, with surface dose rates up to 1,000,000&nbsp;mrem/h (10,000&nbsp;mSv/h). The United States currently disposes of TRUW generated from military facilities at the [[Waste Isolation Pilot Plant]] (WIPP) in a deep salt formation in [[New Mexico]].<ref>[http://www.wipp.energy.gov/fctshts/whywipp.pdf Why Wipp?] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060517054021/http://www.wipp.energy.gov/fctshts/whywipp.pdf |date=2006-05-17 }}. wipp.energy.gov</ref>