Las Vegas Review-Journal: ‘Yucca Mountain is dead’: 5 other states targeted for nuclear waste hubs
Federal officials said Tuesday that five states have been chosen as possible sites to host facilities that would accept nuclear waste from around the country — a development welcomed by Nevada elected officials who oppose using Yucca Mountain as a nuclear waste dump.
The likelihood that the proposed Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campuses will be constructed outside the Silver State could put the long-controversial Yucca Mountain repository proposal on the back burner. Nevada officials on both sides of the political aisle have for decades opposed using the mountain, which is about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, as a nuclear waste storage site.
The Department of Energy said in a news release that it has entered into preliminary agreements that could make Utah, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Idaho potential host states, describing them as initial contenders. The five Republican governors touted the possible partnership.
Gov. Joe Lombardo praised the announcement.
‘Yucca Mountain is dead’
Some in Nevada’s congressional delegation also lauded the announcement.
26 states applied
The DOE did not immediately return a message seeking comment about what the announcement might mean for Nevada.
The proposed nuclear campuses, the department said, would be designed to support the full life cycle of nuclear fuel, including its fabrication, enrichment and final disposition. If built as planned, the sites could create nearly 25,000 jobs, generate up to $50 billion in capital investments and as much as $10 billion in tax revenues, according to the news release.
Secretary of Energy Chris Wright said in the release that the energy department had reviewed 28 applications from 26 states.
‘Monumental victory for Nevada’
Titus said the announcement aligns with the Nuclear Waste Informed Consent Act she introduced last year, co-sponsored by her Nevada Democratic Reps. Steven Horsford and Susie Lee.
If signed into law, the legislation would require written consent from the governor, affected local governments and impacted tribes before a nuclear repository facility could move forward. Neither proposal has advanced out of committee.
“Nevada has made clear for decades that forcing a state to become a nuclear dumping ground does not work,” said a statement from Lee. “Instead, we must move forward with a process grounded in the consent of the communities that would be impacted. The selection of five potential states to host nuclear lifecycle innovation campuses is a critical first step in this process, but we have a long way to go.”
The offices of Horsford and Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., did not immediately comment on the development. On Monday, Horsford shared a Politico story that reported on leaked documents related to the energy department’s announcement.
The announcement comes as Trump attempts to quadruple domestic nuclear energy production amid surging electricity demand from data centers and artificial intelligence.
Trump also has moved to reshape the independent Nuclear Regulatory Commission to speed up nuclear reactor development. Under Trump’s direction, the commission has proposed eliminating a foundational safety principle that for 50 years minimized the radiation people in the United States are exposed to.