Vol. 11, No. 39 
NRC Approves License Transfer for Vermont Yankee
-
Decommissioning
Utility Board Votes to Accelerate Fort Calhoun Decommissioning
The Board of Directors for the Omaha, Neb., Public Power District (OPPD) voted Thursday to expedite decommissioning of the shuttered Fort Calhoun Station nuclear power plant. The new approach is expected to shave nearly four decades from the timeline for decommissioning, starting less than two years from now and wrapping up in 2028. It should […]
-
High-Level & Tank Waste
DOE Taking Comments on Proposed High-Level Waste Reclassification
The public has 60 days to weigh in on a proposal to modify the fashion in which the Department of Energy classifies “high-level radioactive waste” (HLW), following publication Wednesday of a formal notice in the Federal Register. The Energy Department announced Oct. 4 it would seek to classify HLW more on its radioactive traits and […]
-
Budget & Policy
Committee Schedules Hearing for DOE Nuclear Energy Nominee
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee has scheduled a confirmation hearing next month for the White House nominee to lead the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy. The White House last week announced the intended nomination of Rita Baranwal as assistant energy secretary for nuclear energy. The actual nomination paperwork was submitted to […]
-
Interim Storage & Waste Disposal
NRC Staff Backs Two Requests to Intervene in Review of Spent Fuel Storage Application
By John Stang Staff at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has recommended that two environmental organizations be allowed to intervene in deliberations over Holtec International’s license application to build and operate a used reactor fuel storage site in southeastern New Mexico. However, staff also determined several watchdog organizations and spent fuel storage container manufacturer NAC […]
-
Interim Storage & Waste Disposal
NRC Spends Some Nuclear Waste Fund Balance on Legal Costs
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in August spent $5,892 from its remaining Nuclear Waste Fund balance, with some of it going to legal costs in a petition against one of the commissioners. The agency after that spending had $443,310 remaining in unexpended, unobligated money from the fund intended to pay for development of the planned […]
-
Cleanup & Remediation
PacTec Presses Patent-Infringement Claim Against Rival, Denies Counterclaim
PacTec, a maker of industrial bags for radioactive and hazardous waste, this month reasserted its federal court patent-infringement claim against a rival and fought back against that company’s counterclaim of improper behavior. In an Oct. 1 filing in U.S. District Court, the Clinton, La.-based company acknowledged that an employee in early May photographed work being […]
-
Commercial Decommissioning
No Environmental Impact Seen in Renewing Three Mile Island Waste Storage Pad License
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has tentatively determined there would be no environmental impact from renewing the license for a storage pad for waste from reactor Unit 2 of the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania. The Department of Energy has requested a 20-year renewal of the license for the independent spent fuel […]