Publications: Nuclear Energy & Radwaste Monitor

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission affirmed to two U.S. senators recently that is only authorized to license the Department of Energy for permanent disposal of spent nuclear reactor fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), top members of the Senate Environment and Public Works clean air and nuclear safety, […]

The second intercameral congressional confrontation over Yucca Mountain in as many years seemed all but imminent Friday, after the Senate scheduled a Monday vote on a Department of Energy appropriations bill that would again provide no funding for the proposed nuclear-waste repository. The Senate has been debating a so-called fiscal 2019 minibus appropriations package all […]

By John Stang The Senate appears set to vote Monday on its version of a fiscal 2019 “minibus” appropriations bill that merges three funding measures covering the Department of Energy, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and a number of other agencies. The upper chamber of Congress closed up shop for the week on Thursday, but not before scheduling […]

The Energy Department said recently it had nearly $38 billion in the Nuclear Waste Fund, in the first of what it pledged will be annual summaries of the finances for the federal account intended to pay for the radioactive waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nev. In a letter attached to the summary, DOE Deputy General […]

By John Stang The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is reviewing a petition contending FirstEnergy Solutions decommissioning trust funds have enough money to shut down and dismantle three nuclear power plants. The Chicago-based Environmental Law & Policy Center submitted the petition earlier this year as FirstEnergy Solutions filed for bankruptcy and announced it will shut down […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued an export license for UniTech Services Group to return up to 10,000 metric tons of radioactively contaminated material to Canada. The export license dated April 30 covers “tools, metals and other solid materials contaminated with byproduct materials,” and was signed by David Skeen, deputy director for the NRC’s […]

By John Stang Executives with power company Entergy said Tuesday bringing the struggling Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts up to operational snuff will not affect its scheduled closure by June 1, 2019. During a briefing of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Commissioner David Wright asked Entergy officials to rate the likelihood of the boiling-water reactor […]

The federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) on Monday reported that exposure to radioactive materials near St. Louis, Mo., could be linked to a heightened danger of various types of cancer. Coldwater Creek in north St. Louis County was contaminated by upstream storage facilities for radiological waste from uranium extraction operations in […]

The state of California should by the first quarter of 2019 give formal approval for major decommissioning to begin on the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS), an executive with the decommissioning general contractor said on June 8. SONGS Decommissioning Solutions, a partnership of AECOM and EnergySolutions, expects the California State Lands Commission will by the […]

Nevada last week formally requested that one of the newest members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission recuse himself from any decision-making on the license for the planned radioactive waste repository at Yucca Mountain in the state. Commissioner David Wright’s participation in the NRC adjudication of the Department of Energy license application would essentially disregard the […]

Louisiana-based PacTec Inc., a maker of industrial containment bags used at both Energy Department and commercial nuclear cleanup sites, said in a new federal lawsuit that another company is violating its patents. PacTec claims Pennsylvania-based ICE Service Group and two Tennessee-based affiliates, ICE Packaging and Strategic Packaging, are “making, using, offering for sale, selling, or […]

Rep. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) late Tuesday secured her party’s nomination to oppose Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nev.) for a U.S. Senate seat in November’s general election. Rosen, who was endorsed by the Democratic National Committee shortly after declaring she would run to take Heller’s seat, defeated four opponents in Nevada’s closed Demcoratic primary. Rosen collected 77 […]

By John Stang Significant technical challenges remain to the eventual rail shipment of the nation’s used nuclear reactor fuel to temporary storage or permanent disposal, issue experts acknowledged Wednesday. To start, there is not yet an approved railcar to carry commercial spent fuel – though a specially designed railcar is in development. Also, no agency […]

Executives with a major U.S. utility and the trade group for the nuclear industry last week said they were largely satisfied with the set of proposed regulations for power reactors making the transition from operations to decommissioning. “Overall, we’re pretty pleased with the proposal as it came out. Our main goal obviously was just to […]

Interim Storage Partners — a joint venture of Orano USA and Waste Control Specialists (WCS) — on Monday submitted to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission a renewed license application to build and operate an interim storage facility for used nuclear reactor fuel. The consolidated interim storage facility (CISF) pad would be built on WCS’ 14,900-acre waste […]

The federal fund intended pay for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in Nevada was valued at $44.5 billion at the end of fiscal 2017, down by $1.5 billion from the prior year, according to a newly released report from the Department of Energy Inspector General’s Office. The Nuclear Waste Fund as of Sept. 30, […]

For the second year in a row, the full House has passed a Department of Energy budget bill that would fund the agency’s application to license Yucca Mountain in Nye County, Nev., as a permanent repository for nuclear waste. And, also for the second consecutive year, the measure faces stiff opposition in the Senate, where […]

Stakeholders urged the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to move cautiously as it studies potentially establishing a new designation and disposal approach for what is now informally called very low-level radioactive waste (VLLW). More than 40 separate comments were submitted ahead of the May 15 deadline after the agency in February initiated a broad program to enhance […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission says its regulatory framework accounts for potential effects from “changing environmental conditions” on spent fuel storage installations at U.S. nuclear power plants. The agency on May 29 responded to an April 23 letter from Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), who had expressed concerns about potential impacts of climate change on used […]

Colorado Lt. Gov. Donna Lynne on Wednesday signed legislation enabling the state to establish regulations for management of certain radioactive materials. Lynne assumed the duties of governor while Gov. John Hickenlooper was out of the state. The state’s Radiation Control Act prohibited Colorado from establishing regulations on naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) and technologically enhanced naturally […]

The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals on June 1 dismissed a lawsuit filed by the state of Texas demanding that the federal government complete licensing proceedings on the long-planned radioactive waste disposal site at Yucca Mountain, Nev. Writing for a three-judge panel, Judge Patrick Higginbotham said Texas had failed to submit its claim in […]

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and a Texas company are making plans for the shipbreaking of the STURGIS barge. The Army Corps in May issued a $1.9 million contract to International Shipbreaking Ltd., which is expected in September to tow the formerly nuclear reactor-equipped vessel to its facility in Brownsville. “We are currently working […]

By John Stang In the wake of President Donald Trump ordering the federal government to help keep struggling nuclear and coal-fired power plants afloat, FirstEnergy Solutions contends it still needs help from the governments of Ohio and Pennsylvania to keep its four reactors online. Several news organizations reported a week ago that Trump has ordered Energy […]

NASHVILLE — A Waste Control Specialists-Orano team could be within days of formally refiling a license application for consolidated interim storage of spent nuclear reactor fuel in West Texas, an executive said Thursday. The companies have previously said they would revive Waste Control Specialists’ suspended license application with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission by the end of […]

By John Stang Proposed changes in federal rules for nuclear reactors transitioning into decommissioning this week drew little or no concern from three nuclear power providers. Last week, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission unveiled a set of proposed regulations that would be specific to reactors that are no longer operational, covering areas ranging from physical […]

Months of testing in 2017 provided strong evidence that spent nuclear fuel can be safely transported by sea, road, and rail, according to a researcher with the Department of Energy’s Sandia National Laboratories. A team of researchers from the United States, South Korea, and Spain over 54 days from June to October collected 8 terabytes […]

The two newest members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission have been sworn into office as of Wednesday. Commissioner Annie Caputo was sworn in Tuesday by NRC Chairman Kristine Svinicki, followed by Commissioner David Wright on Wednesday. The Senate last week confirmed the two, nearly a year after President Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate […]