Interim Storage & Waste Disposal

Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff on Wednesday recommended that the agency grant an operating license to an interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel proposed for eastern New Mexico, according to a new report. In the final environmental impact statement (EIS) for Holtec International’s proposed interim storage project, NRC staff recommended “issuance of a license to […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission planned to release this week its findings on the environmental safety of a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel in New Mexico, the agency said Tuesday. NRC staff are “aiming for this week” to publish its final environmental impact statement (EIS) for Holtec International’s proposed interim storage project, an […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission asked a federal appeals court Monday to let its lawyers file a full response to the state of Texas’s claim that the agency’s decision to license a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel in the state was nullified by a recent Supreme Court decision, court documents show. If the […]

The Department of Energy is planning to continue this year a legally-mandated working group aimed at developing incentives for communities impacted by spent nuclear fuel transportation efforts, the agency told the government’s independent nuclear waste technical committee in a recent letter. DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy plans to resume operation of its Nuclear Fuels Storage […]

Happy Friday, nuke-watchers. Before we head off for the weekend, here are a couple of other stories RadWaste Monitor was tracking across the civilian nuclear power space this week. WCS sponsors Paducah chamber of commerce event featuring McConnell Nuclear services company Waste Control Specialists (WCS) this week bought lunch for a Kentucky business community hosting […]

Nevada’s congressional delegation wants to codify the consent-based siting of future nuclear waste repositories, an amendment filed for the House’s 2023 National Defense Authorization Act shows. If the House adopts Rep. Dina Titus’ (D-Nev.) amendment to the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the law would prohibit the Department of Energy from unilaterally using cash […]

A recent Supreme Court ruling nullifies the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s authority to issue a license for a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel in Texas, the state argued in court this week. The high court’s June 30 ruling in West Virginia v. EPA “demonstrates that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission lacks statutory authority” to […]

Nevada’s congressional delegation wants to codify the consent-based siting of future nuclear waste repositories, an amendment filed for the House’s 2023 National Defense Authorization Act shows. If the House adopts Rep. Dina Titus’ (D-Nev.) amendment to the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the law would prohibit the Department of Energy from unilaterally using cash […]

Sam Brinton is the Department of Energy’s new deputy assistant secretary for spent nuclear fuel and waste disposition, Brinton announced this week. “It’s official. As of June 19th, I now serve my nation as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Spent Fuel and Waste Disposition in the Office of Nuclear Energy in the Department of Energy,” […]

House appropriators during a budget markup this week came out swinging against two proposed commercial interim storage facilities for spent nuclear fuel in Texas and New Mexico. “The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is racing to license the construction of high level [nuclear waste] storage sites both in New Mexico and in Texas,” Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) […]

House appropriators this week reversed course and agreed to the White House’s request to move interim spent fuel funding out of the Department of Energy’s dedicated Nuclear Waste Disposal account, according to a draft budget report. Interim storage funding proposals in the House Appropriations energy and water development subcommittee’s 2023 budget report, published Monday, appeared […]

House appropriators during a budget markup Tuesday came out swinging against two proposed commercial interim storage facilities for spent nuclear fuel in Texas and New Mexico. “The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is racing to license the construction of high level [nuclear waste] storage sites both in New Mexico and in Texas,” Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) told […]

Sam Brinton is the Department of Energy’s new deputy assistant secretary for spent nuclear fuel and waste disposition, according to an internal DOE email seen by the Exchange Monitor. It is Brinton’s first government job. In the role, Brinton will take the helm of DOE’s frustrated, decades-long effort to find a home for more than […]

House appropriators on Monday reversed course and agreed to the White House’s request to move interim spent fuel funding out of the Department of Energy’s dedicated Nuclear Waste Disposal account, according to a draft budget report. Interim storage funding proposals in the House Appropriations energy and water development subcommittee’s 2023 budget report, published Monday, appeared […]

The ranking member of the House’s energy and water appropriations subcommittee said this week he wants more clarity on a White House proposal to move cash for its consent-based interim storage effort out of the Nuclear Waste Fund Oversight program. “I don’t know what the reasoning behind it is,” Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) told RadWaste […]

Environmental groups cannot use a lawsuit centered on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s conduct during the licensing of a commercial interim storage site for spent nuclear fuel as a backdoor for canceling the license, the company in charge of the project argued this week in court. The environmentalists, led by anti-nuclear group Don’t Waste Michigan, are […]

The ranking member of the House’s energy and water appropriations subcommittee said Tuesday he wants more clarity on a White House proposal to move cash for its consent-based interim storage effort out of the Nuclear Waste Fund Oversight program. “I don’t know what the reasoning behind it is,” Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) told Exchange Monitor […]

In less than two months, a federal judge may hear oral arguments in the state of Texas’s lawsuit against the Nuclear Regulatory Commission over a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel in the Lone Star State, court documents show. If the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals holds such an oral session, tentatively scheduled […]

Common environmental hazards and transportation corridors give New Mexico the right to sue the Nuclear Regulatory Commission over a proposed interim storage facility in west Texas, the Land of Enchantment’s top lawyer said in court this week. In May, NRC argued that New Mexico has no jurisdiction to challenge the agency’s September decision to license […]

The American public might be broadly receptive to recycling spent nuclear fuel, the Department of Energy’s recently confirmed assistant secretary for nuclear energy told a professional gathering this week. “I really hope that we can kind of bring some attention to the value in recycling spent nuclear fuel,” Kathryn Huff, the new head of DOE’s […]

It might be years before there is any legal way for the Department of Energy to build a federally operated interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel before first building a permanent repository, the agency’s acting head of nuclear waste management said at an industry conference this week. “We recognize that there are a limited […]

It might be years before there is any legal way for the Department of Energy to build a federally operated interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel before first building a permanent repository, the agency’s acting head of nuclear waste management said at an industry conference Wednesday. “We recognize that there are a limited amount […]

In less than two months, a federal judge may hear oral arguments in the state of Texas’s lawsuit against the Nuclear Regulatory Commission over a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel in the Lone Star State, court documents show. If the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals holds such an oral session, tentatively scheduled […]

Continuing its support for a long-awaited spent fuel storage solution, the federal government’s independent nuclear waste experts recommended that the Department of Energy open its aperture to new approaches for including the public in its quest to site a federal interim storage facility, according to a letter sent to the agency’s nuclear power chief this […]

SUMMERLIN, NEV. — Although its Nuclear Regulatory Commission license has been delayed four times now, Holtec International’s proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel could be up in running in New Mexico, at least partially, by 2025, an executive said here. NRC’s May announcement that it would hold off on licensing the proposed Holtec […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission again urged a federal appeals court this week to scrap a lawsuit filed by a coalition of anti-nuclear groups aimed at blocking a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel, court documents show. Despite arguments to the contrary from the coalition, which includes environmental group Beyond Nuclear and Texas-based minerals […]

A federal judge this week gave New Mexico’s attorney general another seven days to fine-tune his next argument in a lawsuit challenging a proposed consolidated interim storage facility in neighboring Texas, court filings show. June 16 is now the deadline for state attorney general Hector Balderas to make his next move in New Mexico’s ongoing […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission this week dashed Holtec International’s hopes of getting a federal license for its proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel sometime in the near future, as the agency pushed its timeline for a final safety review to early next year. NRC staff determined that Holtec still has not provided enough […]

Orano’s company-led inspection of its own waste storage canisters at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station revealed no degradation after nearly two decades, the company in charge of waste management at the site said this week. During the months-long inspection that began in November, Orano USA found no signs of chloride-induced stress corrosion in the […]

The state of Texas doubled down this week on its argument that federal law precludes the Nuclear Regulatory Commission from licensing a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel in the Lone Star State, new court filings show. NRC’s claim that neither the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) nor the Atomic Energy Act prevented […]