The New Mexico House of Representatives is considering a measure that would express its opposition to plans for a facility in the state intended to temporarily store spent reactor fuel from nuclear power plants around the nation.
The House Energy, Environment, and Natural Resources Committee on Feb. 3 approved House Memorial 21, sponsored by panel Chairman Matthew McQueen, a Democrat from Santa Fe. The memorial is now waiting on action on the House floor.
The measure carries only the resolve “that the house of representatives oppose the transportation of high-level radioactive waste to, and storage in, New Mexico.” If passed, copies of the memorial would be distributed to New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D), the state’s delegation to Congress, Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette, and Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy Rita Baranwal.
Holtec International, an energy technology company based in Camden, N.J., has applied for a 40-year federal license for storage of up to 8,680 metric tons of spent fuel. With additional approvals from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the facility could operate for up to 120 years and hold in excess of 100,000 metric tons of radioactive waste.
The consolidated interim storage site, along with a smaller facility planned by another corporate team in West Texas, could enable the Department of Energy to meet its legal mandate to remove spent fuel from power plants in the absence of a permanent repository.
The Grisham administration has vehemently opposed the project, citing potential dangers to the state environment and economy. Its concerns are cited directly in McQueen’s memorial.
Given the absence of a federal repository, “temporary” storage could turn into permanent disposal in New Mexico, according to the legislator.
The state receives over $5 billion in annual revenue from its industrial, agricultural, ranching, and oil and gas sectors, the memorial says. These “could be negatively affected by the proposed facility, including that high-level radioactive waste could threaten the land values and marketability of those products.”
