The head of the New Mexico State Land Office on Wednesday became the latest official to express strong opposition to Holtec International’s plans for a spent fuel storage facility in the state.
“I understand that we need to find a storage solution, but not in the middle of an active oil field, not from a company that is misrepresenting facts and unwilling to answer questions, not on our state trust lands,” State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard wrote on Twitter.
In a letter Wednesday to Holtec International President and CEO Kris Singh, Garcia Richard said the New Jersey energy technology company had not been fully truthful in describing its planned Lea County, N.M., facility to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Carlsbad Current Argus reported. Specifically, Holtec “falsely” indicated local energy operators had committed to limiting their oil and gas extraction activities nearby, according to the letter.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is reviewing Holtec’s application for a 40-year license for underground storage of 5,000 metric tons of spent fuel from nuclear power reactors around the nation. The site, with further regulatory approvals, could ultimately hold more than 100,000 metric tons of radioactive material for up to 120 years.
In a June 7 letter to NRC Chairman Kristine Svinicki and Energy Secretary Rick Perry, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) said used fuel storage in the state would be “unacceptable.”
Holtec did not immediately comment on the Garcia Richard letter. But following the letter from Lujan Grisham, the company said its top priority “remains the health and safety of the local communities that we serve and our employees while also protecting the environment.”