Nuclear Waste Management Engineer
The job description
Tech stack. Waste classification (10 CFR 61), dry cask storage systems, waste processing technologies, transportation regulations (10 CFR 71), decommissioning waste planning, ALARA for waste operations, Python for inventory tracking
About the role
You will manage the radioactive waste the plant produces for a nuclear utility, ensuring every cubic foot is characterized, processed, stored, and shipped safely and legally. The team handles low-level waste, spent fuel storage, and waste minimization programs across the site. You will classify waste, plan shipments, oversee processing vendors, and maintain the records regulators audit. This role matters because waste management is where the industry's long-term responsibility becomes tangible, and your engineering keeps every drum, cask, and shipment defensibly safe. You will also develop the waste management chapters of decommissioning plans, projecting waste volumes decades into the future. Your characterization programs will use the latest assay techniques to minimize the volume requiring the most expensive disposal pathways. You will audit waste vendors rigorously, verifying that their processes meet your specifications rather than assuming compliance. Your minimization campaigns will engage the entire site workforce, because waste reduction is a culture before it is a program.
What you will achieve
- Maintain waste classification and shipping programs with zero regulatory violations across all inspections.
- Reduce low-level waste generation volumes 20 percent through minimization programs and process improvements.
- Complete dry cask loading campaigns on schedule with all thermal, criticality, and dose analyses verified.
- Optimize waste processing vendor contracts and techniques reducing disposal costs 15 percent.
- Deliver waste inventory records accurate enough to support decommissioning planning decades ahead.
What you will bring
Must-haves
- 2 to 5 years in radioactive waste management, health physics, or related nuclear operations roles.
- Knowledge of waste classification requirements under 10 CFR 61 and disposal facility waste acceptance criteria.
- Experience with dry cask storage systems: loading operations, thermal analyses, and aging management.
- Understanding of transportation regulations under 10 CFR 71 and package certification.
- Ability to manage vendor contracts for waste processing with technical oversight of their work.
- Meticulous records management: waste records must survive decades of regulatory scrutiny.
- ALARA mindset applied to waste handling operations protecting workers.
Nice-to-haves
- Experience with greater-than-Class-C waste or decommissioning waste streams.
- Familiarity with DOE waste disposition programs and options.
- Knowledge of waste solidification, compaction, or incineration technologies.
- Experience supporting NRC or state inspections of waste programs.
GE Vernova
Westinghouse
X-energy
TerraPower
Constellation
Oklo