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Experts say Vt. Yankee’s nuke waste is here to stay: Times Argus Online

Experts say Vt. Yankee’s nuke waste is here to stay

Times Argus By Daniel Barlow Vermont Press Bureau – Published: January 30, 2009

MONTPELIER – Don’t count on Yucca Mountain or any other national solution for the long-term storage of spent nuclear fuel, a consulting group told lawmakers Thursday.

As the Vermont Legislature considers Vermont Yankee’s proposal to continue operating past its 2012 expiration date, lawmakers should assume that all the radioactive spent fuel left will be stored on-site in Vernon, nuclear consultants said.

Bruce Lacy, the founder of Iowa’s Lacy Consulting Group, told members of several House and Senate committees that dry cask storage of this waste material at nuclear power plants has become the default United States policy……………………..Here in Vermont, lawmakers are considering a request by the owners of Vermont Yankee to extend the Vernon plant’s operating license for another 20 years beyond its 2012 end date. Storage of the nuclear waste – the byproduct of creating nuclear power – is one of the chief concerns lawmakers are struggling with………………………Rep. Sarah Edwards… said she worried about the long-term storage of the waste at the Vernon facility, especially if there is a natural disaster there, such as flooding.

She was surprised Thursday to learn that federal regulators did not consider the possible implications of global warming in their flooding predictions for the facility.

Experts say Vt. Yankee’s nuke waste is here to stay: Times Argus Online

February 2, 2009 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, wastes