Nuclear Waste Storage Plans Restarted by Supreme Court
The Supreme Court has restarted plans to temporarily store nuclear waste at sites in rural Texas and New Mexico, despite the nation being at an impasse over a permanent solution. The justices, by a 6-3 vote, reversed a federal appeals court ruling that invalidated the license granted by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to a private company for the facility in southwest Texas.
The outcome of this decision should also reinvigorate plans for a similar facility in New Mexico, roughly 40 miles away. The federal appeals court in New Orleans had previously ruled in favor of the opponents of the facilities. The licenses would allow the companies to operate the facilities for 40 years, with the possibility of a 40-year renewal.
Background of the Case
The court’s decision is not a final ruling in favor of the licenses, but it removes a major roadblock. Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s majority opinion focused on technical procedural rules, concluding that Texas and a major landowner in southwest Texas forfeited their right to challenge the NRC licensing decision in federal court.
The justices did not rule on a more substantive issue: whether federal law allows the commission to license temporary storage sites. However, Kavanaugh wrote that “history and precedent offer significant support for the commission’s longstanding interpretation” that it can do so.
Dissenting Opinion
Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote in dissent that the NRC’s “decision was unlawful” because spent nuclear fuel can be temporarily stored in only two places under federal law: at a nuclear reactor or at a federally owned facility. Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas signed on to the dissenting opinion.
Roughly 100,000 tons of spent fuel, some of it dating from the 1980s, is piling up at current and former nuclear plant sites nationwide and growing by more than 2,000 tons a year. The waste was meant to be kept there temporarily before being deposited deep underground.
Nuclear Waste Storage Crisis
The NRC has said that the temporary storage sites are needed because existing nuclear plants are running out of room. The presence of the spent fuel also complicates plans to decommission some plants, according to the Justice Department. Plans for a permanent underground storage facility at Yucca Mountain, northwest of Las Vegas, are stalled due to opposition from most Nevada residents and officials.
The NRC’s appeal was filed by the Biden administration and maintained by the Trump administration. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, and New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, are leading bipartisan opposition to the facilities in their states.
State Opposition
Lujan Grisham said she was deeply disappointed by the court’s ruling, reiterating that Holtec International, awarded the license for the New Mexico facility, wasn’t welcome in the state. She vowed to do everything possible to prevent the company from storing what she called “dangerous” waste in New Mexico.
“Congress has repeatedly failed to secure a permanent location for disposing of nuclear waste, and now the federal government is trying to force de-facto permanent storage facilities onto New Mexico and Texas,” she said. “It is a dangerous and irresponsible approach.”
Facility Details
The NRC granted the Texas license to Interim Storage Partners, based in Andrews, Texas, for a facility that could take up to 5,500 tons of spent nuclear fuel rods from power plants and 231 million tons of other radioactive waste. The facility would be built next to an existing dump site in Andrews County for low-level waste such as protective clothing and other material that has been exposed to radioactivity.
The Andrews County site is about 350 miles west of Dallas, near the Texas-New Mexico state line. The New Mexico facility would be in Lea County, in the southeastern part of the state near Carlsbad.
Conclusion
The Supreme Court’s decision to restart plans for temporary nuclear waste storage facilities in Texas and New Mexico has significant implications for the nation’s nuclear waste management. While the decision is not a final ruling, it removes a major roadblock and paves the way for the construction of these facilities.
However, opposition from state officials and residents is likely to continue, and the search for a permanent solution to the nation’s nuclear waste crisis remains ongoing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the current status of nuclear waste storage in the US?
A: The US currently has no permanent storage facility for nuclear waste, and temporary storage sites are filling up. Roughly 100,000 tons of spent fuel are piling up at current and former nuclear plant sites nationwide.
Q: What is the proposed solution for nuclear waste storage in Texas and New Mexico?
A: The proposed solution is to construct temporary storage facilities in rural Texas and New Mexico, which would store spent nuclear fuel rods and other radioactive waste for up to 40 years, with the possibility of a 40-year renewal.
Q: Why is there opposition to the proposed facilities?
A: There is opposition from state officials and residents due to concerns about the safety and environmental impact of storing nuclear waste in their states. They argue that the federal government is trying to force de-facto permanent storage facilities onto their states without a permanent solution.
