As expected, South Carolina has denied a rural economic group’s request to intervene in the state’s lawsuit against the Department of Energy. The federal agency has failed to pay the state $100 million for a missed milestone at the Savannah River Site’s Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility (MFFF). The Southern Carolina Regional Development Alliance, which represents four of the most rural, impoverished counties of the state, including two counties that border SRS, is seeking inclusion in the lawsuit.
Following the Feb. 9 filing of the lawsuit, the Alliance told the state that it should receive some portion of any money South Carolina collects from the federal government. The group filed a motion about three weeks ago to intervene in the lawsuit, and its president, Danny Black, said he was told at that time the state would likely oppose the motion.
The state made good on its verbal proclamation on Monday when it filed a response to the motion in the U.S. District Court for South Carolina. In the response, the state highlighted and underlined a segment of the 2003 agreement between South Carolina and DOE, which says DOE must “pay to the state of South Carolina” $1 million a day, beginning Jan. 1, 2016, for missing a key plutonium disposition milestone at SRS. The MFFF, which is still under construction, would help meet the terms of a U.S.-Russian agreement by converting 34 metric tons of weapon-usable plutonium into commercial nuclear fuel. The Energy Department was supposed to either process 1 metric ton of plutonium by the Jan. 1 deadline, or remove a ton from South Carolina, according to the 2003 agreement.
Since neither occurred, DOE was supposed to begin paying the money, which has a $100 million cap that was reached earlier this month. “The statute provides only for payment to the State, and not to any other person or entity, including the Alliance. As a result, the Alliance cannot show that it possesses an interest in the subject matter of this action, as is required for intervention as of right,” the state wrote in the response. “Nor can the Alliance show that there is a common question of law or fact, as is required for permissive intervention. For these reasons, as well as others set forth herein, the Alliance’s Motion to Intervene should be denied.”
The motion will go in front of a judge to make the final decision on whether the state group can intervene. There’s been no reported timeline on when that may occur. Meanwhile, Black maintains his position that the Alliance should be included, stating the group owns and operates several multi-county industrial parks that encompass more than 2,000 acres of industrial property for development in proximity to SRS. That includes the 1,600-acre South Carolina Advanced Technology Park directly adjacent to SRS and within a few miles of the K Reactor where the plutonium is stored, Black added.
“While we regret that the State of South Carolina opposes the intervention of the local community, we feel that our involvement is necessary to ensure a lasting resolution, and therefore will continue to seek intervention,” he said.
The federal government has not responded to the state lawsuit, but on Tuesday received an extension to respond by May 2.
