New deal could push nuke fuel out of San Onofre
Source:
Orange County Register
Activists hope the deal will also kick-start discussions to solve the nuclear waste dilemma nationwide, while others say it accomplishes little. "What we've done has never been done before; work
with a utility to develop a plan to move nuclear fuel,
despite the fact that there's no (existing) federal
repository," said "We're happy that there's a plan to do something, where there was a plan to do nothing," she added. "It's not just a local issue, but a national issue. What do we do with the nuclear waste in our country?" Severson, like many others, questions the wisdom of storing nuclear fuel in a heavily populated area that is vulnerable to earthquakes. Under the settlement filed in court Monday morning,
Edison agreed to spend up to This team must be assembled and hired within the next
five months, and will examine the feasibility of moving
San Onofre's waste to the The team will also explore temporary storage sites in Edison -- the "SCE is proud to take a leadership role in what we
expect will become an industry-wide effort over many
years to work with the federal government and other key
stakeholders to achieve off-site storage," said "We will be vigilant in our efforts to prompt the federal government to act, and until we can secure off-site storage, will continue our 30-year track record of safely storing used fuel at San Onofre." From no hope, to hope Two years ago, shortly after the The A trial was set for April, and postponed when the two
warring parties agreed to sit down for settlement talks.
Everyone shared a common goal to transfer the waste
off-site as soon as reasonably possible, Edison vice
president and chief nuclear officer That nuclear waste piles up in the first place is a failure of the federal government. To encourage the development of nuclear power -- seen
50 years ago as a cheap source of electricity -- Utilities and their customers pumped about Some Meantime, taxpayers have shelled out some "Citizens have gone from having no hope, to hope," Severson said. No change? The head of the volunteer "With just two exceptions, it is my understanding
that Edison is doing all this already," said "Edison is consulting experts. It is developing plans for moving the spent fuel out of here as soon as that option might become available.... We have talked about this at every CEP meeting for at least two years." The new elements of the agreement, in Victor's view,
include the idea of a deal at "I am sure that some folks will see these timetables as proof that they are holding Edison's feet to the fire on a strict schedule. But virtually none of these timetables has any relevance because they relate to activities that are already happening," Victor said by email. "It's a nuthin' burger," Langley said. "The nuclear
waste isn't going anywhere soon and this is a defeat,
not a victory, for consumers. "The only solution is to transfer fuel assemblies to thick-wall transportable casks that don't have these problems," she said. What this agreement does deliver, said Severson noted that, in court, prevailing parties get their legal costs covered by the parties that don't win. "We're happy to be playing a part in moving the process along," she said. Full speed ahead Most of San Onofre's radioactive waste is stored in comparatively-vulnerable spent fuel pools, where it has been cooling for years. Experts say waste is much safer in dry storage, such as the steel-and-concrete bunker that's being built in San Onofre to accommodate longer term but still temporary storage. Dry storage offers greater protection against earthquakes, fire, tsunamis and terrorist threats, and getting it into canisters for dry storage is the first step toward transferring it off-site when a facility finally becomes available. Edison plans to have all of San Onofre's waste in dry storage by 2019. It will remain there until another home is found. Many see that process as a step in the right direction. "I believe this agreement is consistent with the
major issues that the CEP has been addressing and is
working on, including offsite storage and
transportation," said "The path forward by the CEP and this agreement clearly (is) to address the near-term and longer-term final solution to the storage of spent fuel at SONGS to benefit the local community," Quinn added. The court must sign off on the agreement, and will retain jurisdiction to enforce the settlement terms. ___ (c)2017 The Orange County Register (Santa Ana, Calif.) Visit The Orange County Register (Santa Ana, Calif.) at www.ocregister.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. http://www.energycentral.com/news/new-deal-could-push-nuke-fuel-out-san-onofre |