The City Council of Las Cruces, N.M., on Tuesday narrowly approved a resolution opposing plans for transportation and storage of spent nuclear reactor fuel in the state.
With the 4-3 vote, the city joined Albuquerque and a number of other municipalities in voicing their concerns over Holtec International’s proposal to temporarily store more than 100,000 metric tons of radioactive waste in Lea County in southeastern New Mexico. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is reviewing the New Jersey energy technology company’s license application, and with approval storage operations could begin by 2022.
The planned location between the cities of Hobbs and Carlsbad is seen as ideal for reasons including the availability of water, room for expansion, and existing nuclear waste infrastructure – specifically the Department of Energy’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad, Las Cruces Economic Development Deputy Director Griselda Martinez said in a presentation to the council.
The resolution cites the potential environmental, economic, and human health risks connected to transport and storage of high-level radioactive, including exposure that “can be fatal or lead to birth defect, genetic damage, and various kinds of cancers.”
The material would be shipped by rail, which Martinez acknowledged suggests it would not pass through Las Cruces, a city of about 100,000 in south-central New Mexico. But any truck transport or new rail lines could change that, she said.
Holtec has an exceptional safety record and financial standing, said John Heaton, vice chairman of the Eddy-Lea Energy Alliance, a group of four cities and counties in the region that is partnering on the storage project. In his presentation to the council, he emphasized the multiple layers of containment that would be used for moving and holding the spent fuel.
Some council members said they did not have enough information to make a ruling on the matter, but an amendment to change “Oppose” to “Question” in the resolution failed on a 2-5 vote.
