NAC459.812. Financial requirements: Assurances of sufficient money for closure and stabilization.

     1. The applicant must provide assurances before the commencement of operations that sufficient money will be available to carry out closure and stabilization of the disposal area, including the decontamination or dismantling of structures in the disposal area, so that after transfer of control over the disposal area to its governmental owner, the need for active maintenance is eliminated to the extent practicable and only minor custodial care, surveillance and detection of radiation are required. These assurances must be based on cost estimates approved by the Division for carrying out the plan for closure and stabilization. The applicant’s estimates of cost must take into account the total costs that would be incurred if an independent contractor were hired to perform the work of closure and stabilization.

     2. In order to avoid duplication and unnecessary expense, the Division will accept sureties or undertakings that have been consolidated with other undertakings established to meet the requirements of other federal, state or local governmental agencies for decontamination closure and stabilization. The Division will accept these consolidated undertakings only if:

     (a) They are considered adequate to satisfy the requirements of this section; and

     (b) The portion of the undertaking which covers the closure of the disposal area is clearly identified and committed for use in accomplishing those activities.

     3. The licensee must annually submit his or her sureties or other arrangements to the Division for its review to ensure that sufficient money is available for completion of the plan for closure, assuming that the work will be performed by an independent contractor.

     4. The amount of the undertaking must be changed in accordance with the predicted cost of final closure and stabilization. Factors affecting the estimated costs of closure and stabilization include monetary inflation, increases in the amount of disturbed land, changes in engineering plans, any closure and stabilization that has already been accomplished and any other conditions affecting costs. The undertaking must also be sufficient at all times to cover the costs of closure of the disposal units that are expected to be used before the next renewal of the license for the disposal area.

     5. The term of any undertaking must be unlimited unless the applicant or licensee can demonstrate that another arrangement, such as the one described in NAC 459.8125, will provide an equivalent level of assurance.

     6. Financial arrangements which are generally acceptable to the Division include surety bonds, cash deposits, certificates of deposit, deposits of government securities, escrow accounts, irrevocable letters or lines of credit, trust funds or any combination of them. Other types of arrangements may be approved by the Division. Self-insurance or any other arrangement which essentially constitutes pledging the assets of the licensee will not satisfy the requirement for an applicant that is not a governmental agency, because it provides no additional assurance other than that which already exists through licensing.

     7. Liability of a surety or upon another undertaking must remain in effect until the program for closure and stabilization has been completed and approved by the Division and the license has been transferred to the governmental agency which owns the disposal area.

     (Added to NAC by Bd. of Health, eff. 4-27-84)