Antinuclear

Thousands of tons of nuclear waste could be coming to southeast New Mexico, and state lawmakers are asking the public to speak up – for or against.

The Radioactive and Hazardous Waste Committee of the New Mexico Legislature, a bicameral committee made up of state senators and representatives to analyze the facility during its permitting process, called its second meeting for 9 a.m., Thursday at the Center of Recreational Excellence in Hobbs.

The committee was tasked with providing state-level oversight to a proposal from Holtec International, to design and build a consolidated interim storage (CIS) facility to hold spent nuclear fuel rods temporarily as a permanent repository is being devised.

The only proposed permanent resting place for the waste, Yucca Mountain in Nevada, was blocked by Nevada lawmakers as federal funding was cut, but President Donald Trump included $120 million in a recent budget proposal to restart Yucca’s licensing process.

But that could take decades, and Holtec hopes to provide a safe location to hold the rods – away from large bodies of water and dense population centers – in the meantime.

Environmentalists worried the Holtec site, about 500 acres 35 miles from Carlsbad and Hobbs, could become permanent.

Rose Gardner, a Eunice resident and founder of the Alliance for Environmental Strategies said the opposition outweighs public support.

She cited concerns from local farmers and ranchers and residents in the area and across New Mexico, during multiple public hearings held by the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the agency overseeing Holtec’s permitting process.

Gardner said local governments are also in opposition to the facility, pointing to resolutions against the facility passed in Bernalillo County, Albuquerque, Lake Arthur, Jal and by the statewide New Mexico Cattle Growers Association.

“There is growing opposition to the proposed radioactive waste project” Gardner said. “There was overwhelming public opposition at five NRC meetings.”………https://www.currentargus.com/story/news/local/2018/07/17/opposition-rallies-ahead-public-hearing-holtec-site/793687002/