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Independent regulatory commissions

New Mexico Residents Oppose Holtec's Nuclear Waste Storage Plan

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

New Mexico residents are strongly opposing Holtec International's plan to build and operate a Consolidated Interim Storage Facility for Spent Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Waste in the state. The proposal has been met with fierce resistance from Native American communities, environmental groups, and local governments, who argue that the plan poses significant risks to the environment, human health, and cultural properties. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Draft Environmental Impact Statement has been criticized for its inadequate assessment of the project's impact, and many are calling for the license to be denied.

Key Takeaways:

  • Over 30,000 residents commented during the 2018 scoping period opposing the project, with many citing concerns about radiation exposure, environmental racism, and cultural and historic site destruction.
  • The proposed site is located near or on two lagunas or playa lakes, which are culturally significant to the Hopi and Mescalero Apache nations, and have been extensively studied for decades.
  • The site is also home to 200 archeological sites within six miles, and would have devastating consequences on wildlife, including threatened species that rely on the lagunas for drinking water and surrounding area as a critical habitat.
  • The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as amended, does not allow the federal government to take title to high-level radioactive waste until a permanent geologic repository is operating, making Holtec's project illegal under current U.S. law.
  • Cumulative impacts from the damage the nuclear industry has already inflicted on New Mexicans for the past 75 years, including uranium mining and milling, the Trinity Test, and the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, have not been adequately considered in the DEIS.
  • Environmental justice principles are being violated by the NRC's determination that nuclear waste would have "small" or "no environmental impact" in a majority minority state.

Statistics:

  • Over 9,000 comments were received during the 2018 scoping period regarding the Holtec project.
  • 173,600 metric tons of high-level radioactive waste would be stored at the proposed site.
  • One in five New Mexicans are Native American, and would be disproportionately affected by the project.
  • The proposed site is 40 miles east of the current Waste Control Specialists low-level radioactive waste site.
  • The license for a high-level radioactive waste storage facility cannot be issued until either a permanent repository is operating, or U.S. law is changed.

Sources:

  • Felicia N. Trujillo, ND International FELDENKRAIS Assistant Trainer, DOCTORS W.A.R.N. (Wireless And Radiation Network) letter to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, September 22, 2020.
  • New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, New Mexico State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard, and more than a dozen county and city governments, opposing the Holtec project.
  • Alliance for Environmental Strategies, New Mexico Cattle Growers Association, and the Nuclear Issues Study Group, opposing the Holtec project.
  • U.S. Fish & Wildlife, New Mexico Game & Fish, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and New Mexico Environment Dept (NMED) letters to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission regarding the importance of Laguna Gatuna.

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