NRC ruling won't end fight over nuclear waste
"I think we gave up on the NRC a long time ago," said Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah. "We could see where they were headed."
The timing of the ruling was more surprising. The NRC was set to rule Friday on the last in a long line of appeals by the state, this one over the issue of military over-flights by fighters using the Utah Test and Training Range.
The NRC denied that appeal, as expected, but then, in a 3-1 vote, ordered its staff to go ahead and issue Private Fuel Storage a license to store up to 40,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel in above-ground casks.
"Our decision today concludes this protracted adjudication, which has generated more than 40 published board decisions and more than 30 published commission decisions," the commission wrote in its ruling. "The adjudicatory effort, plus our staff's separate safety and environmental reviews, gives us reasonable assurance that PFS's proposed (storage facility) can be constructed and operated safety."
"Although this is certainly a setback," said Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., "it does not mean that spent nuclear fuel will be shipped to Utah any time soon. This is a battle that will take several years to fight to completion, but it is also a battle that I intend to win."
Republican Sens. Orrin Hatch and Bob Bennett agree. Hatch said there are "just too many administrative and legal hurdles to clear for this to ever become a reality," and he pledged to continue pursuing every avenue of opposition.
"It's no secret that the NRC had its own motivations for granting this license, and up until now the PFS plan has enjoyed the protection of the NRC process," Hatch said. "Today's decision opens the proposal up for legal challenges from the state and administrative challenges from the Department of Energy and the White House, and we are still pursuing legislative solutions."
Appeals to come
Not long after the NRC decision, Utah's congressional delegation fired off a letter to Interior Secretary Gale Norton, urging her not to approve the lease agreement between PFS and the Goshutes before all the legal, economic, environmental and safety issues are resolved.
"You should know that the Utah congressional delegation will use every means at our disposal to block the construction of the proposed PFS site at Skull Valley," the delegation wrote.
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