Long Term Storage, The Failure of the Federal Government, and NIMBY

 The current methods of storage are running out of space and are not intended for long- term use  The government was required by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 to provide long- term storage for waste  So far, the federal government has scrapped Yucca Mountain, and it is considering alternative storage methods

 The US has more than 64,000 metric tons of nuclear waste ◦ “Enough to cover a football field about seven yards deep”  The half-life of the fuel is more than 1 million years  Legal requirements: Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982

 Spent Fuel Pools  Dry cask storage  Long-term Storage: Yucca Mountain  Reprocessing

 Spent fuel rods are stored in cooling ponds  On-site at the reactors  Protects surroundings from radiation  Absorbs heat generated during radioactive decay

 They were only intended as a temporary solution  They are quickly reaching full capacity

 Two options for storage: horizontal and vertical  Surrounded by inert gas, steel, and concrete  Must be licensed by the NRC ◦ 22 different licensed designs  9,000 metric tons are stored this way

 Even proponents admit this is only viable for a certain number of years – right now they are licensed for 50 years  Transportation to offsite is difficult  Potential terrorist target

 So far, rate payers have paid in $27 billion to the Nuclear Waste Fund  The government has spent $8 billion of this money  The site was required by law and contract to begin collecting waste in 1998

 Two billion years ago, uranium in Gabon was caught in a chain reaction  Plutonium was produced and trapped in the rock  Since then, the radioactivity has moved only slightly and the plutonium has devolved into nonreactive substances

 Nevada exercised its state veto right under the NWPA, but it was overruled by both houses of Congress  Nevada has protested: ◦ There is significant wildlife in the area ◦ Nevada is the fastest growing state in the nation which could change the location ◦ Upset other sites were not considered after 1987  Concerns over transporting to Nevada

 Approved by Congress in 2002  Cancelled by Pres. Obama in 2009  Potential alternative sites are being considered  There’s a Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future

 Only 3% high level waste remains  Results are mostly Plutonium and some Uranium-235  Current capabilities: 1/3 of the world’s fuel

 In spent fuel, Plutonium is trapped in bulky assemblies, but after reprocessing it is stored in powdered form  Plutonium after reprocessing is significantly less radioactive  It is hard to keep track of all of the material at a reprocessing facility  Some storage and disposal is still required  Would divert funds from a permanent storage facility  Incredibly high price tag – perhaps $100 billion to reprocess the existing spent fuel

 After reprocessing, there is little security threat  The resulting Plutonium can be used in MOX fuel but not as easily in weapons

 § 302(a)(5). Contracts entered into under this section shall provide that— ◦ (A) following commencement of operation of a repository, the Secretary shall take title to the high- level radioactive waste or spent nuclear fuel involved as expeditiously as practicable upon the request of the generator or owner of such waste or spent fuel; and ◦ (B) in return for the payment of fees established by this section, the Secretary, beginning not later than January 31, 1998, will dispose of the high-level radioactive waste or spent nuclear fuel involved as provided in this subtitle.

 Federal government was to begin collecting waste in 1998 under the NWPA  Courts have found the DOE violated its contracts under the NWPA  65 claims have been filed for damages requesting $548 million. Delays past 2010 are estimated at $500 million a year  State regulators have also sued over the nuclear waste fund containing billions of dollars ◦ They say to at a minimum stop collecting the $750 million a year  Projected money owed is estimated to reach $7 billion by 2017 and $11 billion by 2020  Taxpayers are also being saddled with lawyers’ fees and damage expenses in the cases

 A federal repository as required by statute is likely a long way off because no one wants it in their state ◦ When plants are decommissioned, there is some material like parts of the plant that need to go into an underground repository  Reprocessing provides an interim solution that would also provide fuel that can be used in some instances  Even if Yucca Mountain is finished, it will only hold 70,000 metric tons, so what currently exists would fill it up