Antinuclear

Fears of a proposed nuclear waste repository between Carlsbad and Hobbs extended beyond the two cities, stirring anxiety from residents across New Mexico and west Texas.

Leona Morgan, co-coordinator of the Albuquerque-based Nuclear Issues Study Group and a Diné activist, said the potential horrors of nuclear exposure were already felt by Native American residents in the Four Corners Region of New Mexico, where uranium was mined until the late 1990s.

Morgan said the concerns of Native Americans, such as the Navajo Nation, are often ignored by the federal government.

“I’ve heard a lot of warm sentiments about how this part of the state knows about nuclear science, and how much you all welcome it,” she said.

“In our part of the state, we know about the cancers, and the contamination of our lands and our water. We know this will impact us for generations to come.”

Holtec International, a New Jersey-based company specializing in nuclear storage, applied to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in March 2017 for the first phase of an interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel rods.

The first phase would include 500 canisters of spent nuclear fuel rods, brought in by rail cars from nuclear power plants across the country, and stored at the property about 35 miles east of Carlsbad.

In total, 10,000 canisters could be stored at the site, totaling up to 120,000 metric tons of spent nuclear fuel.

 The Holtec project is intended as a temporary storage facility, until a permanent repository is developed.  [i.e. stranded wastes – just as is planned for Kimba, South Australia] 

The concept of interim storage was first devised as a proposal for a permanent disposal facility in Yucca Mountain, Nevada, recently stalled.

Opponents of Holtec’s proposal contended the waste should be stored at the generator sites on an interim basis, and only moved when a permanent repository is available.

…. Morgan said the project was an example of “nuclear colonialism,” forcing low-income and minority-majority regions to unfairly bear the risk of storing nuclear waste.

“The contamination that was left by the United States government is an atrocity. It is a sin,” she said. “It is a violation of our human rights, and it is a form of genocide. New Mexico should not be proud of its nuclear legacy. It is the birth place of nuclear colonialism.”

Myriad activists, scientists, local leaders and business owners spoke for and against the project at Thursday’s meeting.

The debate centered around a potential canister leak, and contamination of nearby soil and natural resources.

…….. Karen Hadden, executive director for the Sustainable Energy and Economic Development Coalition said even with monitoring, the risk of radiation exposure was too high to support the project.

A similar, smaller interim storage facility was proposed near Andrews, Texas – about 40 miles across the eastern state line, by Waste Control Specialists (WCS) and French nuclear company Orano.

The project was re-docketed by the NRC earlier this year, after it stalled.

“They’re both a risk to our communities,” Hadden said of the facilities. “This is a project of huge magnitude that could impact this entire country. It cannot be taken lightly.”

She said the consequence of Holtec’s proposal could be felt across the nation, and residents from outside Carlsbad, and along the transport paths, deserve a place at the table.

“I am unhappy about some of the statements made earlier that some who do not favor bringing the nation’s waste here are uninformed, or fear mongering,” she said. “This site (Holtec) poses more risk to the people of Texas than WCS. All the trains would come through our state. It’s a shared concern.” ……. Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516,achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on Twitter.  https://www.currentargus.com/story/news/local/2018/05/04/nuclear-storage-site-southeast-new-mexico-navajo-nation-nuclear-colonialism/581529002/