Editors's Note

All manuscripts submitted to the Practice Periodical of Hazardous, Toxic, and Radioactive Waste Management should be accompanied with a list of four potential reviewers that are suggested by the author(s). This list should include the complete name, address, telephone and fax numbers, e-mail address, and a list of at least five key words that identify the expertise of each reviewer. The periodical is not obligated to use all or any of the recommended reviewers; however, we feel that this policy will lead to an improved review process. The new manuscripts should be submitted to

  Journals Department

  ASCE

  1801 Alexander Bell Dr.

  Reston, VA 20191-4400

We have had several dedicated issues in the past on special topics and we plan to follow this practice in the future. The following topics are planned for future dedicated or special issues:

For authors who are interested in submitting an article for consideration for one of the specialty issues, they should contact the Editor by phone at (913) 551-7453 or by e-mail at [email protected] to submit a paper and to confirm deadlines and schedules for special issues. Each of the special issues may also contain a few articles that are not related to the topic.

Jennifer Biedscheid is a senior engineer with the National TRU Program of Washington TRU Solutions LLC (WTS). WTS is the U.S. Department of Energy contractor managing and operating the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) as the first geologic repository for the permanent disposal of transuranic (TRU) waste. Biedscheid received a bachelor of science degree in biology from the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and a master of science degree in environmental technology management from the Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. Her experience of more than $10\text{years}$ has been in the areas of radioactive waste transportation, characterization, and certification; environmental audits; and the preparation of regulatory documents related to waste characterization. Biedscheid is currently leading an effort to efficiently consolidate TRU waste from small sites across the United States at larger sites, for which formal waste characterization programs for WIPP disposal have been established. She is a member of the American Nuclear Society and the Waste Management Symposium Program Advisory Committee, and a former member of the Water Environment Federation Literature Review Committee. Current interests include the role that nuclear waste management and disposition play in public discussions on the future use of nuclear energy, and the transfer of lessons learned in the waste arena to the nuclear energy debates with respect to the critical element of stakeholder trust and acceptance.

Murthy Devarakonda is a senior advisor with Washington TRU Solutions LLC and the managing and operating contractor for the WIPP located in Southeastern New Mexico. Devarakonda has more than $16\text{years}$ of experience in the areas of radioactive waste management, development of TRU waste certification programs, industrial and hazardous waste treatment, mathematical modeling, and the study of unsteady-state biological systems used in waste management. He has a bachelor of technology degree in chemical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Chennai, India, and a doctorate from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana. Current programs that Devarakonda is active in include safety analysis for the shipment of remote-handled TRU wastes, developing a path-forward for orphan TRU wastes without a current disposal path, gas generation issues in radioactive waste transportation, and investigating a unified approach for stakeholder interactions in radioactive waste management decisions. Devarakonda is a member of several expert panels, advisory committees, and professional organizations including the Program Advisory Committee for the Waste Management Symposium and the International Conference on Environmental Management.