The Nuclear Energy Institute, the Energy Communities Alliance and six other groups Monday urged Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm to set up a Nuclear Waste Management office to oversee both civilian- and defense-nuclear waste.
The federal government “has effectively failed to pursue a nuclear waste program for over a decade,” according to the letter. “We request that you establish an office within DOE that reports directly to you and is dedicated to developing and managing an integrated nuclear waste storage, transportation and disposal program.”
The letter said the office would provide a “focal point” for the federal government for both spent nuclear fuel from commercial power plants and high-level radioactive waste, such as the material leftover from Manhattan Project and Cold War nuclear weapons production at sites that now belong to DOE’s Office of Environmental Management.
The document was signed by leaders of the American Nuclear Society, the Decommissioning Plant Coalition, Energy Communities Alliance, the National Association of Utility Regulatory Commissions, Nuclear Energy Institute, the Nuclear Waste Strategy Coalition, the Sustainable Fuel Cycle Task Force and the U.S. Nuclear Industry Council.
Also in their letter, the groups said the proposed DOE waste management office should be the primary point of contact for communities interested in hosting consolidated nuclear storage sites.
Holtec International and the Eddy-Lea Energy Alliance are seeking a Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) license for a consolidated interim storage facility in southeastern New Mexico. Orano USA and Waste Control Specialists have a joint venture seeking a license for interim storage at the latter’s existing facility in Andrews County, Texas.
Meanwhile, there remains little interest in Washington in resuscitating the long-stalled permanent repository at Yucca Mountain in Nye County, Nev. President Joe Biden remains opposed to Yucca, which has gotten scant attention from the White House since a few funding requests early in the Donald Trump administration. President Barack Obama halted Yucca Mountain’s licensing process with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) early in his first term.
Yucca remains the only site in the country authorized by Congress to host a permanent, deep-underground nuclear waste repository.
DOE did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
