Role of the Confirmation Team

DOE-HDBK-1148-2002

Review the material provided by the Identification Team and any other documentation

required for confirmation. Documentation and presentations provided by the

Identification Team should facilitate an understanding of the work and the set of

standards selected and the rationale for a judgment of adequacy. The Confirmation

Team should be free to draw upon whatever additional resources they feel are

necessary to arrive at an independent conclusion. If additional documentation from the

identification process is needed, this should be requested through the Process Leader.

The Confirmation Team's principal focus is to assess the adequacy and feasibility of the

proposed WSS set, not to repair shortcomings identified or to lobby for alternative

standards.

Determine whether the proposed set of standards is adequate and feasible. These

conclusions should represent independent judgments by the Confirmation Team, based

on their collective knowledge and experience. Confirmation does not seek to reproduce

the WSS set from scratch, nor is it a "rubber stamp" for judgments made by the

Identification Team. Rather, the Confirmation Team provides an independent

assessment of the adequacy and feasibility of the proposed WSS set. The confirmation

process is guided by the expectations defined by the Convened Group and draws upon

the results and documentation from the identification process.

Document the confirmation activities and their results. As in the identification process,

documentation from the confirmation process should be prepared according to the

Process and team protocols developed earlier. This documentation together with that

prepared by the Identification Team will form the basis for a decision by the Approval

Authorities. It will also be a key tool for communicating the Process and its results to

Stakeholders and other Interested Parties, and should be prepared accordingly.

If the Confirmation Team judges the proposed WSS set to be inadequate or infeasible, the

Convened Group should be informed and the Confirmation Team's findings should be referred

back to be addressed by either the original or a new Identification Team. The Confirmation

Team should provide a thorough explanation and rationale for their decision, so that problematic

areas can be appropriately addressed. Even if the proposed WSS set is judged to be adequate

or feasible, information from confirmation may suggest the need for rework or improvement in