nuclear-news

Yucca licensing a waste of money and won’t solve nuclear waste issues

What stands in the way of a solution to the high-level nuclear waste
problem in the U.S.? Answer: Yucca Mountain. For 35 years Nevadans have
fought to keep the federal government and commercial nuclear industry from
putting waste in a place that cannot safely contain it.

The only sensible action for Congress to take regarding Yucca Mountain is to end the project
officially. Once Congress does that, the nation can finally move on with a
new commitment to establish a safe and acceptable nuclear waste management
and disposal policy.

In 1987, Congress designated Yucca Mountain as the
sole site to be studied to become the nation’s high-level nuclear waste
repository. Over the strong objections of a majority of Nevadans,
investigations began. After 20 years of conflicting scientific discoveries
and opinions, opposition continued to grow.

In 2008, the Department of
Energy (DOE) submitted a license application to the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) for a construction authorization to begin to build a
repository. The next year saw nearly 300 contentions (contentions are
specific arguments by parties opposing a license) submitted by 17 parties
— including the state of Nevada — raising red flags about the safety
and sustainability of the project. Before the project could move forward,
each contention would have to be adjudicated with evidence and witnesses
presented.

With years of litigation on the horizon and Nevada’s federal
delegation finding growing support against Yucca Mountain in Washington, in
2010, the DOE informed the NRC that it was withdrawing the license
application. There was a court challenge that concluded the application
could not be withdrawn, requiring the process to continue if there was
funding available to do so. For the past 12 years there has been no federal
money allocated for Yucca Mountain, so the project lingers.

Las Vegas Sun 7th Aug 2022

https://lasvegassun.com/news/2022/aug/07/yucca-mountain-licensing-is-a-waste-of-money-and-w/

August 8, 2022 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, wastes