DOE to introduce consent based siting consortia in webinar 

The Department of Energy invited the public to attend the kickoff of the agency’s Consent Based Siting Consortia, the group among which the agency split $26 million in federal funding to help define what it means to consent to the storage of spent nuclear fuel.

The 13 consortia members were set to be online for the three-hour online session July 25. Anyone interested in attending can register on DOE’s website.

Yucca Mountain, the only congressionally authorized, permanent disposal facility for spent nuclear fuel in the U.S., is effectively dead because of political pressure from the crucial swing state of Nevada. DOE cannot legally build an interim storage site until it builds a permanent storage site. 

In the meantime, the agency is attempting to make progress on the margins on collecting and disposing of spent nuclear fuel stranded at U.S. power plants.

The 13 consortia members include representatives of the nuclear industry, academia and antinuclear groups. The full list is:

Awardees are:

• American Nuclear Society of Illinois, with South Carolina Universities Research and Education Foundation, Northern Arizona University, University of New Mexico and South Carolina State University.

• Arizona State University.

• Boise State University, with the National Tribal Energy Association, Arizona State, Colorado State, Idaho State, Montana State, University of Idaho, University of Wyoming and University of Michigan.

• Clemson University, with South Carolina Universities Research and Education Foundation.

• Energy Communities Alliance, with Environmental Council of the States, DOE’s State and Tribal Government Working Group, National Association of Attorneys General, National Conference of State Legislatures and National Governors Association. All but the tribal group are based in Washington.

• Good Energy Collective of California, with the University of Notre Dame.

• Holtec International, Jupiter, Fla., with University of Florida, McMahon Communications of Massachusetts, Agenda Global of Washington, American Nuclear Society and the Washington-based Nuclear Energy Institute.

• Keystone Policy Center of Colorado, with Social and Environmental Research Institute, GDFWatch of the United Kingdom and the National Association of Regional Councils of Washington.

• Missouri University of Science & Technology, with University of Missouri – Columbia, University of Illinois, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Nevada (NV), Taylor Geospatial Institute of Missouri and St. Louis University (in Missouri).

• North Carolina State University (NC) as the lead, with the yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini Northern Chumash Tribe of San Luis Obispo County and Region in California, Mothers for Nuclear in California and the Tribal Consent Based Coalition – Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant in California. 

• Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York, with Schenectady Foundation of New York and Stockbridge-Munsee Community Band of Indians in Wisconsin. 

• Southwest Research Institute in Texas, with Deep Isolation of California, Westra Consulting of Nebraska, Community Transition Planning of Mississippi and Prairie Island Indian Community Tribal Nation of Minnesota as partners.

• Vanderbilt University in Tennessee, with Rutgers University of New Jersey and Oregon State University.