The chairwoman of the House Appropriations panel responsible for nuclear energy and waste suggested in a hearing this week that the committee create a task force to deal with radioactive waste disposal and storage.
Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), who chairs the House Appropriations energy and water development subcommittee, proposed the idea during a Thursday hearing on energy innovation. The task force could call witnesses and gather information before the subcommittee has a more serious discussion about what to do with radioactive waste, Kaptur said.
Thursday’s committee featured witness testimony from Dr. Rich Powell, executive director of energy nonprofit ClearPath. Powell said during the hearing that nuclear is an “indispensable” part of a clean energy agenda.
Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.) raised the issue of waste disposal to Powell, who responded that “we ought to be doing more” to address the back end of the nuclear fuel cycle.
Rep. Susie Lee (D-Nev.) concurred that waste disposal should be part of the conversation around advanced nuclear energy. The moribund Yucca Mountain geologic repository site is located in Nye County, Nevada. Newly-minted energy secretary Jennifer Granholm assured the Silver State’s Senate delegation at her confirmation hearing Jan. 27 that the Biden administration would not develop the site.
Ranking member Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Ida.) said at Thursday’s hearing that the conversation surrounding nuclear waste was “not a technology issue, but a political issue.”
Before the House Appropriations Committee could really move the needle on a new nuclear-waste storage option, authorizers on the House Energy and Commerce and Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee would have to authorize the change in separate legislation.
“We need an answer on where to store nuclear waste,” Kaptur said Thursday. “I’m tired of the issue.”
