The Waste Management Symposia on Tuesday said both attendees at this year’s event who showed signs of possible COVID-19 infection had tested negative.
Test results for “Attendee #1” were received Tuesday, one day after the results for “Attendee #2,” according to a statement from James Gallagher, chairman of the board for the annual nuclear cleanup and waste management industry conference in Phoenix.
Both participants are believed to be staffers with the Energy Department’s Office of Environmental Management, which each year sends a large contingent of presenters and personnel to the Waste Management Symposia.
Barring further developments, this is the last of the daily WMS updates on the COVID-19 situation, Gallagher wrote. However, organizers “will notify WM2020 conference attendees of any new developments,” he added.
The 2020 Waste Management Symposia drew roughly 2,100 people to the Phoenix Convention Center from March 8-12. That was down by about 10% from the usual attendance, due to travel concerns related to the viral respiratory disease.
Gallagher issued the first post-conference attendee update on March 16, writing that one participant was being tested for infection and another was limiting contact with others after experiencing “flu-like symptoms.”
Symptoms of COVID-19 can be similar to those of the flu, including fever and shortness of breath. However, the mortality rate for COVID-19 is significantly higher– between 3% and 4%, compared to under 0.1% for the seasonal flu, according to the World Health Organization.
As of noon Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had confirmed 85,356 cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. and 1,246 deaths.
While the Phoenix conference went forward under nearly normal circumstances, a significant number of other events in the nuclear field have been canceled or postponed.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Regulatory Information Conference, scheduled for the same week just outside Washington, D.C., was the first to go. The event was simply canceled, scheduled to return in March 2021.
The Nuclear Energy Institute, the Washington-based policy association for the nuclear industry, has already canceled several events that had been scheduled through the spring and early summer. These include: Nuclear Innovation Week, scheduled for March 23-26 in the nation’s capital; the World Nuclear Fuel Cycle Conference (with the World Nuclear Association), scheduled for April 20-22 in Stockholm, Sweden; the Used Fuel Management Conference, May 5-7 in Las Vegas; the Nuclear Energy Assembly, planned for May 20-22 in Washington, D.C.; and the Radiological Effluents and Environmental Workshop in Bonita Springs, Fla., from June 22-25.
In all cases, full refunds are being provided to registrants.
“Our paramount concern is the health and safety of our employees and those of our member companies,” an NEI spokesperson said by email. “We have canceled, postponed or moved to teleconference/webinar all events from March through May. When possible and appropriate, meetings are taking place remotely.”
The Nuclear Energy Institute did not provide any details regarding anticipated attendance at the conferences, along with revenue loss from the cancellations.
Full registration for NEI conferences can cost thousands of dollars. For example, the regular registration fees for the Nuclear Energy Assembly were $1,410 for members and $2,820 for nonmembers, with rebates for early bird and advance registration.
The ExchangeMonitor’s Decommissioning Strategy Forum, organized with support from NEI, is scheduled for June 8-9 in Nashville. A decision on the event is pending, according to a statement from the ExchangeMonitor’s parent company, Access Intelligence.
“The Decommissioning Strategy Forum team is watching the situation closely. With regard to our upcoming Forum in Nashville, scheduled for June 8-9, the health and well-being of attendees and speakers is our greatest priority,” Access Intelligence said Tuesday. “We are currently working to evaluate all of our options. As of this writing, information is rapidly changing on how far into the future the current suspensions on conferences, sporting events, and other large gatherings may be in effect. Whatever happens, we will keep our community posted.”
Rates for the event are: $1,045 for general attendees, $445 for utilities, $795 for government representatives, and $2,495 for organizations that also plan a tabletop display. There were over 200 registrants at the 2019 conference.
Meanwhile, spent nuclear fuel management company NAC International this week postponed its Nuclear Fuel Cycle Seminar, which had been planned for April 6-9 at its headquarters in Peachtree Corners, Ga. A new date has not been set.
“Like many businesses, NAC International is closely monitoring the rapidly evolving global response to the COVID-19 pandemic,” the company said in a statement Tuesday. “As the health and safety of our employees, clients and others are high priorities, we are postponing our Nuclear Fuel Cycle Seminar and will reschedule it at an appropriate time in the future.”
NAC also did not discuss revenue or registration figures for the session. The registration fee was $2,950.
The American Nuclear Society also pushed back its Student Conference from this month to April 2021 at North Carolina State University, with refunds for 2020 registrants. Fees for that event topped out at $455, for full professional registration for nonmembers.
