PRIVATE SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL STORAGE HITS ANOTHER SNAG
ECA Staff | 04/04/2024 The path to temporarily store spent nuclear fuel (SNF) is stalled once again following the most recent ruling by the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on the Eddy-Lea Alliance site in Southern New Mexico. This is the second ruling by the Fifth Circuit that ends with a Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) license vacated in the last two years. The issue at hand is not about the viability of private nuclear storage or the safety of storage (which occurs in other countries and at 75 sites around the US) – instead it is whether the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission (NRC) has the legal authority to grant a license for such storage facility. At the center of the legal
situation are the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 and the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (NWPA), as amended. Under the NWPA Congress designated Yucca Mountain in Nye County, NV to be the permanent SNF and nuclear waste site. The US has, to date, abandoned the Yucca Mountain project. The question now is whether NWPA requires for Yucca Mountain to be the only place for off-site storage or if the NRC is authorized to license a facility for the storage of spent nuclear fuel
away-from-the-reactor. On March 27, 2024 the Fifth Circuit ruled in Fasken Land and Minerals v. NRC, that NRC did not
have the authority to grant a license to Holtec International Corp. to temporarily store SNF in Lea County, New Mexico. This is not the first ruling on NRC’s authority by the Court in. In August 2023, the Fifth Circuit also vacated an NRC license for a facility proposed by Interim Storage Partners (ISP) in Andrews County, Texas. In Texas v. NRC, the court ruled: “The Atomic Energy Act does not confer on the [NRC] the broad authority it claims to issue licenses for private parties to store spent nuclear fuel away-from-the-reactor… the Nuclear Waste Policy Act establishes a comprehensive statutory scheme for
dealing with nuclear waste generated from commercial nuclear power generation, thereby foreclosing the Commission’s claim of authority.” The Fifth Circuit referred to the earlier ruling during their most recent decision, “Because this court’s holding in Texas v. NRC dictates the outcome here, we grant Fasken’s and PBLRO’s petition for review and vacate the Holtec license. The NRC’s motion to transfer the petition for review to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is denied as moot.” The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is currently reviewing a case that is challenging the NRC’s authority to grant a HI-STORE CISF license to Holtec, in Beyond Nuclear, Inc. v.
NRC. The court has previously found the NRC to have the authority to license private, away-from-reactor nuclear waste storage facilities in Bullcreek v. NRC. Holtec’s Director of Government Affairs and Communications, stated that, “Holtec believes that the Texas and the Holtec decisions are incorrect and that the government, ISP and Holtec are likely to bring one or both of these decisions to the US Supreme Court which is likely to overturn the Fifth Circuit’s decisions.” The parties have 90 days to file a petition with the high court, unless they request and are granted an extension. Other previous federal court rulings have also affirmed the NRC’s authority to grant licenses for such facilities. These clashes show a clear split between the circuits. It is expected for the U.S. Supreme Court to review the 5th Circuit Court’s
order. As the legal battle ensues, there are currently at least 86,000 metric tons of nuclear waste that is currently being
stored at 75 nuclear power plant sites in 33 states and at several DOE owned sites, such as the Hanford site in Tri-Cities, WA, Idaho National Lab in Idaho Falls, ID, and the Savannah River Site in Aiken, SC. These cases highlight the stalemate that is occurring in this country on waste disposal. ECA will continue to provide updates as these cases move forward.
REGISTRATION IS LIVE FOR ECA's New Nuclear Forum: Building Nuclear Partnerships and Projects, May 8-9, 2024 in Kennewick,
WA
ECA is excited to be hosting its third New Nuclear Forum, the only meeting designed to bring together DOE, federal, state, local and tribal governments and policymakers with developers, utilities,
regulators, industry, and academia to identify opportunities, challenges and to build the partnerships necessary to support nuclear development. Communities across the country are considering nuclear projects for many reasons - from diversifying regional economies, creating clean energy jobs or meeting carbon reduction goals, to increasing energy security and rebuilding the U.S. supply chain. Some communities have a familiarity with nuclear energy projects, while others are just beginning to evaluate potential interest. The ECA
Forum is designed to enable shared learning so that local, State and Tribal governments evaluating nuclear projects can be meaningfully engaged - and prepared - to match the strengths and needs of their communities with new nuclear opportunities.
INTERESTED IN BEING A SPONSOR? To learn more about sponsorship opportunities, please contact Autumn Bogus, ECA Forum Staff, at abogus@la-inc.com.
QUESTIONS?
For any questions, comments, or to learn more about the ECA New Nuclear Forums, please contact Kara Colton,
ECA Director of Nuclear Policy, at kara.colton@energyca.org or Faith Sanchez, ECA Program Director, at faiths@energyca.org.
ENERGY AND COMMERCE CHAIRS RODGERS AND DUNCAN ANNOUNCE HEARING ON IMPROVING SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL MANAGEMENT
House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Energy, Climate, and Grid Security Subcommittee Chair Jeff Duncan (R-SC) announced a hearing today titled “American Nuclear
Energy Expansion: Spent Fuel Policy and Innovation.” “Improving the management of spent nuclear fuel is important as we
work to unleash American nuclear energy. A critical piece of this is making sure the federal government is fulfilling its legal responsibility to provide a path for ultimate disposal of spent nuclear fuel, while assisting in reducing management and cost burdens on taxpayers and ratepayers.” said Chairs Rodgers and Duncan. “We look forward to hearing from experts about the opportunities to enhance long-term spent fuel policy and prospects for innovation
in spent fuel management to cement American leadership in nuclear energy.” Energy, Climate,
and Grid Security Subcommittee hearing titled “American Nuclear Energy Expansion: Spent Fuel Policy and Innovation.” WHAT: Subcommittee hearing on improving the management of spent nuclear fuel. DATES: Wednesday, April 10, 2024 TIME: 10:30 A.M. ET LOCATION: 2322 Rayburn House Office Building This notice is at the direction of the Chair. The hearing will be open to the public and press and will be live streamed online at https://energycommerce.house.gov/. If you have any questions concerning the hearing, please contact Kaitlyn Peterson at Kaitlyn.Peterson@mail.house.gov. If you have any press-related questions, please contact Sean Kelly at Sean.Kelly@mail.house.gov.
ENERGYWERX FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
ENERGYWERX strives to discover, engage, and accelerate innovation in support of DOE's missions to expand the development and deployment of clean energy solutions, heighten energy security, and strengthen
national security ecosystems. The site offers multiple federal funding opportunities ECA communities can qualify for! ENERGYWERX
will administer programs that accelerate partnership formation in support of DOE’s missions to expand development and deployment of clean energy solutions, heighten energy security, and strengthen national security ecosystems. Other potential activities include:
- Facilitating collaboration, matchmaking, networking, and/or connections between DOE programs and projects, DOE National Labs, and external solution providers
- Coordinating rapid prototyping, demonstration, deployment, and/or manufacturing
- Providing technical
assistance to increase outreach and lower barriers of access for domestic small businesses, academic institutions, and other non-traditional partners
- Performing technology and market research and scouting
NEW MEDIA: Gone Fission Nuclear Report: Cleanup and the Nuclear Renaissance March 25, 2024 | S4E6 The Department of Energy’s environmental cleanup program is helping to facilitate a resurgence in the growth of nuclear energy. Cleaning up formerly contaminated land has created a new home for
advanced reactor concepts that have become the centerpiece of the nuclear renaissance. In this week’s episode, the Gone Fission Nuclear Report examines how environmental cleanup is helping to position the nation for a clean energy future. Guests are Ashley Saunders of UCOR, Dr. Wes Hines, Head of the Nuclear Engineering Department at the University of Tennessee, and Jim Little, E-4 Carolinas board member.
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Check out ECA's latest
report! DISPOSAL DRIVES CLEANUP: RE-ENERGIZING MOMENTUM FOR DISPOSAL SOLUTIONS FOR RADIOACTIVE WASTE
This report calls on the Department of Energy to launch the initiative to develop the actual waste disposition approaches. The Department could potentially save hundreds of billions of dollars in cleanup costs by using its available tools and implementing the report’s recommendations.
Interactive guide for communities and governments to help navigate nuclear waste cleanup The Energy Communities Alliance (ECA) recently released the Guide to Successful Environmental Cleanup, an interactive online resource that provides frequently asked questions, case studies, and recommendations regarding nuclear waste cleanup. To assist local government officials, their communities, and federal agencies in deciphering
the complexities of the environmental cleanup process, ECA developed this guide to facilitate future successful cleanups.
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Stay Current on Activities in the DOE World Read the latest edition of the ECA Bulletin, a regular newsletter providing a detailed brief of ECA activities,
legislative news, and major events from across the DOE complex. Have suggestions for future editions? Email bulletin@energyca.org. |
Learn More about Cleanup Sites with ECA's DOE Site Profiles ECA's new site profiles detail DOE's active Environmental Management cleanup sites and national
laboratories, highlighting their history, missions, and priorities. The profiles are a key source for media, stakeholders, and the public to learn more about DOE site activities, contractors, advisory boards, and their surrounding local governments.
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