Interim Storage & Waste Disposal

A watchdog group in California on Thursday filed a federal lawsuit aimed at preventing storage of spent nuclear fuel at the closed San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS). The lawsuit, from La Mesa-based Public Watchdogs, comes just months after a settlement to resolve a prior legal challenge against expansion of the plant’s dry storage pad […]

A citizens’ organization in California is proposing an alternate means for long-term storage of spent fuel that would take the waste away from nuclear power reactors without necessarily relying on the Department of Energy building a permanent repository. Citizens’ Oversight says its proposal would protect key water resources found near many nuclear plants still holding […]

Canada’s Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) on Friday said it had begun collecting core samples from one potential deep geologic repository site in Ontario for spent fuel from the nation’s nuclear reactors. Drilling is underway in a rock formation roughly 22 miles west of the township of Ignace, according to an NWMO announcement. This is […]

U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry on Thursday played down any danger of placing nuclear waste in a planned geologic repository under Yucca Mountain in Nevada. “I’m sure that Yucca Mountain is the most studied piece of land in the world. I’m think it’s a safe location. Scientists tell us that it’s a safe location, but […]

Thomas Gardiner The transfer of spent fuel at the shuttered Vermont Yankee nuclear plant is proceeding as planned, a manager for owner Entergy said last week during a meeting of the state’s Nuclear Decommissioning Citizens Advisory Panel. “We are transferring an average of one canister per week,” according to Joseph Lynch, the power company’s senior […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in September spent $66,799 of its remaining Nuclear Waste Fund balance as it gears up for potential resumption of adjudication of the license application for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in Nevada. That leaves the regulator with $532,220 that has not been spent or obligated until such time as […]

The transfer of spent fuel at the shuttered Vermont Yankee nuclear plant is proceeding as planned, a manager for owner Entergy said Thursday during a meeting of the state’s Nuclear Decommissioning Citizens Advisory Panel. “We are transferring an average of one canister per week,” Joseph Lynch, Entergy senior manager for government affairs, said during an […]

Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee reiterated their support for a major nuclear-waste policy bill Tuesday, despite misgivings that the measure might delay the day spent reactor fuel is moved away from the power plants that generated it. If the the 45-page Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2017 became law, it would […]

Congressman John Shimkus’ (R-Ill.) legislation aimed at advancing development of the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository also sets a deadline for the Environmental Protection Agency to prepare a final remedy for cleanup of radioactive material at the West Lake Landfill in Missouri. “Not later than one year after the date of enactment of this Act, […]

Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee reiterated their support for a major nuclear-waste policy bill Tuesday, despite misgivings that the proposal might delay the day spent reactor fuel is moved away from the power plants that generated it. If the the 45-page Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2017 became law, it would […]

Nevada’s lone GOP representative predicted the House will pass a major nuclear-waste policy bill before the holiday shopping season starts, and the Las Vegas Sun tore the bill’s sponsor a new one on its Sunday editorial page. At a Friday breakfast sponsored by the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, Rep. Mark Amodei (R-Nev.) said the […]

Congressman John Shimkus’ (R-Ill.) legislation aimed at advancing development of the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository also sets a deadline for the Environmental Protection Agency to prepare a final remedy for the West Lake Landfill in Missouri. “Not later than one year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Environmental […]

A House bill that would make it easier for the federal government to build a permanent nuclear-waste repository at Nevada’s Yucca Mountain took a big step toward a floor vote this week, though none was scheduled as of Friday. On Thursday, House leadership at last placed H.R. 3053, the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of […]

The House of Representatives is now considering two pieces of legislation that would provide $15 per kilogram payments to communities stuck with spent reactor fuel at nuclear power plants. Rep. Joe Courtney’s (D-Conn.) “Stranded Nuclear Waste Accountability Act of 2017” and Rep. Brad Schneider’s (D-Ill.) “STRANDED Act of 2017” were both introduced in the first […]

Thomas Gardiner Former Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz on Wednesday endorsed consolidated-interim and consent-based storage for U.S. nuclear waste while the federal government pursues a permanent repository. “I think we’ve got to reach point where questions of moving fuel away to consolidated storage can’t be held hostage to a lack of progress getting a geological […]

Nuclear Regulatory Commission member Jeff Baran told senators recently he has not determined his position on licensing of the planned Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in Nevada. “I have not formed an opinion on the merits of the Yucca Mountain geologic repository application. As a Commissioner, I have a responsibility to be open-minded and unbiased […]

A House bill that would make it easier for the federal government to build a permanent nuclear-waste repository at Nevada’s Yucca Mountain took a big step toward a floor vote this week, though none was scheduled as of Friday. On Thursday, House leadership at last placed H.R. 3053, the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of […]

Former Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz on Wednesday endorsed consolidated-interim and consent-based storage for U.S. nuclear waste while the federal government pursues a permanent repository. “I think we’ve got to reach point where questions of moving fuel away to consolidated storage can’t be held hostage to a lack of progress getting a geological repository open,” […]

The House of Representatives is now considering two pieces of legislation that would provide $15 per kilogram payments to communities stuck with spent reactor fuel at nuclear power plants. Rep. Joe Courtney’s (D-Conn.) “Stranded Nuclear Waste Accountability Act of 2017” and Rep. Brad Schneider’s (D-Ill.) STRANDED Act of 2017 were both introduced in the first […]

In congressional testimony Thursday, Energy Secretary Rick Perry stressed the importance of getting spent nuclear fuel away from the power plants that generated it, even if that means finding “alternatives” to a planned permanent repository at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. “I don’t want to get stuck that Yucca’s the only place that you can go,” […]

After Sunday’s mass shooting in Las Vegas, the author of a bill to update U.S. nuclear waste laws and clear the way for the Energy Department to build the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in the state said he is in no rush to get the measure to the floor. “In light of the tragedy, […]

Thomas Gardiner Federal legislation introduced this week could mean millions of dollars in relief for communities still housing spent reactor fuel at nuclear plants, according to two lawmakers from Illinois. The catalyst for the bill is the former Zion plant in Illinois, where used fuel remains in storage nearly two decades after the facility’s closure […]

Thomas Gardiner Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman John Barrasso (R-Wy.) had some tough questions for Jeff Baran during his confirmation hearing Wednesday for reappointment to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, drawing particular attention to the nominee’s position on the planned Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository. Barrasso’s panel is the gatekeeper for Baran’s nomination for […]

A new buyer for Waste Control Specialists is expected to be announced in October, four months after a federal judge blocked a prior acquisition attempt, President and CEO Rod Baltzer said Monday. Baltzer mentioned the timeline during a presentation at the Nuclear Decommissioning and Used Fuel Strategy Summit in Charlotte, N.C., according to multiple industry […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission as of August had less than $600,000 in available, unobligated funds for its work on the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository. The regulator is waiting to see whether Congress will approve its request for $30 million in fiscal 2018 to resume adjudication activities for the Department of Energy license application […]

After Sunday’s mass shooting in Las Vegas, the author of a bill to update U.S. nuclear waste laws and clear the way for the Energy Department to build the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in the state said he is in no rush to get the measure to the floor. “In light of the tragedy, […]

Nuclear Regulatory Commission member Jeff Baran on Wednesday took some heat at his reappointment hearing on Capitol Hill for dissenting against plans to take further steps, and spend more money, in the licensing process for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in Nevada. In June, Baran was the lone opponent among the three sitting commissioners […]

Proposed legislation could mean millions of dollars in relief for communities still housing spent reactor fuel at nuclear plants, according to two lawmakers from Illinois. The catalyst for the upcoming bill is the former Zion plant in Illinois, where used fuel remains in storage nearly two decades after the facility’s closure in 1998. “Zion and […]

A new buyer for Waste Control Specialists is expected to be announced this month, President and CEO Rod Baltzer said Monday. Baltzer mentioned the timeline during a presentation at the Nuclear Decommissioning and Used Fuel Strategy Summit in Charlotte, N.C., according to multiple industry representatives who were in attendance. The conference was closed to Weapons […]

Canada’s Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) is accepting public input through Nov. 30 on the draft version of its latest update to the five-year plan toward development of a geologic repository for the nation’s spent nuclear fuel. The NWMO expects by 2023 to select the single site for construction of the repository 500 meters below […]