Lessons Learned and Present Day Challenges of Addressing 20th Century Radiation Legacies of Russia and the United States

The decommissioning of nuclear submarines, disposal of highly-enriched uranium and weapons-grade plutonium, and processing of high-level radioactive wastes represent the most challenging issues facing the cleanup of 20th century radiation legacy wastes and facilities. The US and Russia are the two primary countries dealing with these challenges, because most of the world's fissile inventory is being processed and stored at multiple industrial sites and nuclear weapons production facilities in these countries.