Halt the License for Radioactive Waste Storage: Environmental and Health Concerns

Strategic Insights -

Kamala Platt, a Ph.D. and MFA holder, has written to the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission, expressing her concerns regarding the proposed Consolidated Interim Storage Facility (CISF) in Andrews County, Texas. This facility would store 40,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel from reactors across the country for 40 years, posing significant environmental and health risks to the Latinx population and the surrounding ecosystem.

Key Takeaways:

  • The proposed CISF would import and store 40,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel in Andrews County, Texas, for 40 years, despite the region's unsuitability for radioactive waste storage due to natural hazards and environmental concerns.
  • The Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) fails to address key health and safety issues raised in thousands of previous comments and 100 legal contentions, including inadequate risk assessment, transportation accidents, and terrorism threats.
  • The DEIS does not consider alternative storage options, such as Hardened Onsite Storage Systems (HOSS), and ignores available scientific data on the risks associated with radioactive waste storage.
  • Potential cumulative impacts of the proposed facility and nearby sites on workers, local people, and the environment are also ignored by the DEIS.
  • Radioactive Waste Management Associates' study estimates that 1370 latent cancer fatalities could result from a rail accident with spent nuclear fuel, with costs ranging from $145 billion to $270 billion.
  • A fire and radiation release at the nearby WIPP site cost $2 billion to remediate, but this was not considered in the DEIS.
  • The proposed facility poses significant risks to surrounding ecosystems, including the potential for groundwater contamination and damage to wildlife habitats.

Statistics:

  • 40,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel would be stored at the proposed CISF.
  • 42 square miles of land could be permanently contamined in the event of a small accident.
  • 1370 latent cancer fatalities could result from a rail accident with spent nuclear fuel, according to Radioactive Waste Management Associates' study.
  • Costs of a severe accident could range from $145 billion to $270 billion.
  • A fire and radiation release at the WIPP site cost $2 billion to remediate.

Sources:

  • Federal Register Notice: 85FR27447
  • Comment Number: 3814
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  • Date & Time: 8/29/2020 12:07:06 PM