Nuclear powerIdaho debating nuclear waste storage
For two decades, the Yucca mountain nuclear waste repository in Nevada was viewed as a long-term solution to the growing problem of radioactive waste generated by the 104 active nuclear power generation plants in the United States. One of the Obama administration’s first acts was to “defund” the project, in effect outing an end to it. States such as Texas, New Mexico, and North Carolina have fashioned their own interim solution to the problem of nuclear waste storage, and the governor of Idaho wants his state to follow these states’ example.
Idaho Governor C..L. Otter’s Leadership in Nuclear Energy (LINE) commission has conducted a study and concluded that when it comes to nuclear energy in Idaho, a significant industrial opportunity exists.
Citizens in the state have given their opinion on the safety and environmental protection recommendations, but the study says these concerns can be met since nuclear storage and disposal technologies have improved.
The Idaho State-journal reports that due to a federal government’s decision not to use Yucca Mountain, Nevada as a long-term national nuclear waste storage facility, Congress will now have to find another site for long-term nuclear waste storage.
One solution could be to develop an interim storage plan for the 70,000 tons of high-level spent nuclear fuel, which currently sit in pools on the sites of nuclear reactors located in states which have agreed to accept the highly toxic waste. Idaho currently has 300 tons of spent nuclear fuel, and like many other states will have to find a way to deal with the waste since the Yucca Mountain option is no longer available.
The State-Journal notes that until that happens, Eastern Idaho business leaders and lawmakers are attempting to get the state to emulate New Mexico, North Carolina, and Texas to propose its own interim sites.
Idaho’s nuclear watchdog group, Snake River Alliance, is concerned about the state allowing nuclear waste shipments, and is also worried about Otter reopening a 1995 agreement between the state and the federal government which limited the amount of storage of nuclear waste in Idaho.
“It has been evident all year that the commission is eyeing the settlement agreement, given the direction it took from its very first meeting,” Snake River Alliance executive director Liz Woodruff told the State Journal. “Idahoans should read this report very carefully and ask themselves whether they believe, as this commission evidently does, that Idaho might somehow be able to cash in on our country’s worsening nuclear waste fiasco.”
LINE conducted a year-long review of the Idaho National Laboratory and nuclear related activities in the state, including a series of nine public meetings, dozens of presentations, and several hundred comments from the public.
The commission’s final report was released last week at a special joint meeting of the Senate Resources and Environment and House Environment Energy and Technology committees, as a part of the Idaho Council on Industry and the Environment’s “Gold Room Workshop” series.
“I concur, wholeheartedly, with the commission’s assessment that the Idaho National Laboratory is a significant state asset,” Otter said in a news release. “The state of Idaho should take immediate and long-term steps to enhance the future of the nation’s lead nuclear research and development laboratory that is responsible for over 24,000 jobs and has an annual economic impact on Idaho of more than $3.5 billion.”
The LINE commission recommended the creation of a Nuclear Advisory Council in order to ensure Idaho’s interests are protected.
“Practically every segment of Idaho’s economy has a council or commission dedicated to enhancing opportunities within that sector,” LINE Commission chairman Jeff Sayer told the State Journal, who is also the director of the Idaho Department of Commerce.
The Commission announced six recommendations for Idaho to consider.
- Continue to work with the U.S. Department of Energy and other states to address remaining environmental risks and continue cleanup at the INL site.
- Exercise leadership as the U.S. government formulates federal energy and nuclear waste management policies.
- Capitalize on Idaho’s nuclear technology competencies by supporting the growth of existing nuclear businesses, the corresponding infrastructure, and the attraction of new nuclear businesses.
- Invest in infrastructure to enable the INL and Idaho universities to successfully compete for U.S. and global research opportunities.
- Develop and promote the Center for Advanced Energy Studies as a regional, national and global resource for nuclear energy research.
- Strengthen and expand nuclear education and workforce training offerings.
