Commission Set Up To Explore Post-Yucca Waste Options
Written by NucNet
Sunday, 31 January 2010
Waste Management
The US has set up a special commission to provide recommendations for developing a long-term solution to managing the nation’s used nuclear fuel and nuclear waste, the Department of Energy (DOE) has said.
The Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future was set up as part of the Obama administration’s commitment to restarting America’s nuclear industry and in light of the government’s decision not to proceed with the Yucca Mountain deep geological repository, the DOE said on 29 January 2010.
The commission is being co-chaired by former congressman Lee Hamilton and former national security advisor Brent Scowcroft. It is made up of 15 members who have a range of expertise and experience in nuclear issues, including scientists, industry representatives, and former elected officials.
Defence secretary Steven Chu said in March 2009 that both he and the president had decided Yucca Mountain was not a workable option.
The government’s budget for the 2010 fiscal yearbegan to eliminate funding for Yucca Mountain with cuts of 206 million US dollars (USD) (about 148 million euro).
Marvin Fertel, president and chief executive officer of the industry group the Nuclear Energy Institute welcomed the commission.
He said it was “the right time” to weigh options for the nuclear fuel cycle, from the management of used fuel to the potential for reprocessing and recycling.
But Mr Fertel called on Mr Chu to suspend the requirement for consumer payments into the federal Nuclear Waste Fund. He said while the commission was deliberating electricity customers should no longer contribute more than USD 750 million in annual payments into a fund that has a USD 22 billion surplus and earns annual interest in excess of USD 1 billion.
He said: “Electric utilities and users of nuclear-generated electricity have lived up to their obligations under the Act, supplying USD 30 billion since the early 1980s for waste management programmes.”
