The South Dakota House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a bill that would require the Legislature’s or governor’s approval for processing or depositing high-level nuclear waste in the state.
House Bill 1071, introduced by Rep. Lana Greenfield (R), will need confirmation from the Senate and Gov. Dennis Daugaard (R).
Nuclear waste has been a controversial issue in South Dakota. Last year, residents in Spink County thwarted the Department of Energy’s attempt to perform a field test for deep-borehole storage of nuclear waste with contractor Battelle Memorial Institute. Residents and officials voiced concern that the estimated five-year, $35 million project would lead to actual nuclear waste storage in the state.
After walking away from two separate sites in North Dakota and South Dakota, DOE resolicited the contract earlier this year. It’s now moving forward with four more potential sites, one of them being in Haakon County, S.D., where South Dakota-based Respec hopes to drill. DOE has stressed that the tests will not involve any nuclear waste.
According to the Black Hills Pioneer, Daugaard’s office supported the law at a House committee hearing.
