10 C.F.R. Part 72 is a binding federal regulation issued by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). It governs the licensing and operation of facilities that store spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste, including both on-site storage at nuclear plants and off-site or centralized storage installations.
This regulation is part of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, which contains the federal government’s core rules for nuclear safety and oversight.
Part 72 has the force of law and sets the rules that must be followed before nuclear waste can be stored:
- It establishes the requirements, procedures, and criteria for issuing licenses to store, handle, and possess spent nuclear fuel and related radioactive materials.
- It defines the technical, environmental, financial, and safety information that companies or government entities must submit to obtain approval.
- It sets design, safety, and security standards for storage facilities, including radiation protection, site suitability, and long-term containment.
- It governs both independent storage facilities (ISFSIs) and federal “monitored retrievable storage” sites operated by the Department of Energy.
- It also creates a system for approving storage cask designs and enforcing compliance through inspections and penalties.
In short, this rule is the legal foundation the NRC uses to approve or deny nuclear waste storage facilities.
