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Low-level waste (LLW) refers to a type of nuclear waste that has less radioactivity than high-level waste or toxic radioactive by-products such as spent nuclear fuel (SNF), transuranic waste and uranium tailings. LLW mixed with very toxic wastes is called mixed low-level waste, which must be treated or disposed according to the rules applied to hazardous waste and radioactive waste. There is no definite meaning of LLW, though the International Atomic Energy Agency sets forth recommendations. Each country specifies the radioactivity of LLW. France for instance has various subcategories for LLW.

LLW disposal and treatment sites in the U.S. are supervised by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), which sets forth the rules for classifying and disposing various types of radioactive wastes. EnergySolutions operates LLW sites in South Carolina and Clive, Utah, while U.S. Ecology runs one in Richland, Washington. There are many more LLW facilities across the U.S. under the management of the Department of Energy, like those in the Savannah River Site, Hanford Reservation, Nevada Test Site, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Los Alamos National Laboratory.

The description of each type of radioactive waste is set forth in 10 C.F.R. § 61.55 Waste Classification. LLW is subdivided into three classes: Class A to C, where C has the highest radioactivity. NRC allows Class A waste to be disposed on the ground, whereas C and B LLW must be buried.

NRC has the exclusive right to allow the free disposal of radioactive waste at its discretion. The total radioactivity of such LLW should be 1 mrem/yr or less. Examples of LLW that can be disposed on any landfills are smoke detectors and radium-powered watches. To find out what ssd is, click here.