Feedback sought on nuclear-waste storageBy Christine Legere, Cape Cod Times, Hyannis, Mass.
May 28--BOSTON -- After decades of pressure from the nuclear industry and host communities, the U.S. Department of Energy has set a meeting to discuss a plan to allow commercial reactors to get rid of the 70,000 metric tons of nuclear spent fuel now on their sites. The proposal would move the fuel to interim storage facilities built in areas willing to take the radioactive waste. The public forum to gather local feedback on so-called "consent-based siting" is set for 5 to 9:30 p.m. Thursday at the Hyatt Regency Boston, 1 Avenue de Lafayette. Mary Lampert, founder and president of the citizens group Pilgrim Watch, is one of the evening's panelists. Moving the waste from Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth is the right thing to do, Lampert said. "I think there's no question storing spent fuel on the coast, where it is susceptible to sea level rise, corrosion, major storms and security issues, isn't a good idea," she said. "Plymouth is the wrong place for this, but I'm not just saying to put it anywhere. Set up criteria for where it should be." Lampert said it was important that any region hosting a storage facility know what it is getting into. "For consent to be meaningful, they have to be informed: what doses of radiation will be allowed, security requirements, monitoring for leaking casks," Lampert said. "Also communities should have the capability of having experts with scientific knowledge." States also must be given regulatory authority, Lampert said. Currently, state and local authorities are pre-empted by federal laws related to radiation health and safety. When the U.S. fleet of commercial nuclear reactors started churning out electricity more than 50 years ago, the intent had never been to store the radioactive byproduct of the process, known as spent fuel, on the reactor sites. That is where it currently remains, however, tightly racked in wet pools or contained in mammoth dry casks. The location for a permanent repository for nuclear waste has yet to be identified. Yucca Mountain, a Nevada site that had been the longtime target location, was taken off the table by the Obama administration in 2010. A commission was then appointed to study the problem. Its recommendation is for interim facilities to be located with the consent of those who live near the target location. Key features of the "consent-based siting" will be giving affected communities the opportunity to decide whether to accept the facility; making sure they understand key decisions; and making certain standards for operation are rigorous, protecting safety and the environment. In return for providing a storage site, the communities could expect economic benefits. Initially interim storage facilities would take the spent fuel from reactors that were permanently shut down. The removal of waste would free the former plant sites for other economically and socially beneficial uses and eliminate the cost of storing spent fuel, such as the continued requirement for security and monitoring. Diane Turco, president of Cape Downwinders, said she and her group planned to offer comments Thursday. "We will speak for full public input," she said. "One of our concerns will be they may target low-income areas." Even though the consent-based process is still in the early stages of review, a private waste company, Waste Control Specialists, submitted an application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission last month for an interim dry cask storage facility in Andrews County, Texas. The facility would accept and store the spent fuel from shut-down commercial reactors across the country. Andrews County, which covers about 1,500 square miles, has a population of only 17,000, and the Andrews County Commission already has endorsed the proposal. Waste Control Specialists hopes the facility will be ready to open in 2021. Transportation of the spent fuel is expected to generate considerable conversation as the federal agency proceeds with vetting the consent-based siting plan. The proposal calls for transporting the spent fuel by rail, wherever possible. In areas where rail infrastructure is not sufficient, the spent fuel will be moved on barges and trucks. Other panelists Thursday will include John Kotek, acting assistant secretary for nuclear energy with the U.S. Department of Energy, also will address the group. -- Follow ___ (c)2016 Cape Cod Times, Hyannis, Mass. Visit Cape Cod Times, Hyannis, Mass. at www.capecodtimes.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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