Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson is urging Energy Secretary Steven Chu to support additional funding for Yucca Mountain as our nation’s long-term repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level nuclear waste. Simpson and a number of his Congressional colleagues wrote to the Energy Secretary today highlighting the complex problems associated with abandoning the Yucca Mountain project.

“We are writing to express our strong support for the continuation of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository program and its related Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensing review,” wrote Simpson and his colleagues.

The letter stressed the fact that the Department of Energy has no alternative plan for these materials and the significant costs associated with switching directions now.  “Currently, there is no “Plan B” for the disposition of DOE’s inventory of spent fuel and high-level waste accumulating at DOE EM cleanup sites.  The  proposed Blue Ribbon Commission to study options to Yucca Mountain is unlikely to find a “a silver bullet solution”, since we already have over 50 studies by prestigious institutions, like the National Academy of Sciences, and Yucca still remains a suitable repository site.   Any attempt to find a new repository site would likely take an additional 20 years and upwards of $15 billion to develop,” wrote Simpson.

The letter also specifically referenced the requirements of the Batt Agreement and the complications of missing milestones under it and other state agreements. Among the impacts of abandoning Yucca, the letter outlined the following:

 ·      Delay the timely removal and final disposition, as well as increase costs, of defense spent fuel and high-level waste from DOE cleanup programs, including Hanford, Idaho, Oak Ridge, and Savannah River.  Such delays are almost certain to cause DOE to be in non-compliance with its commitments under Tri-Party Agreements and consent orders with the states in which this DOE defense waste is located; and

·      Disrupt the U.S. Navy spent nuclear fuel defueling and storage plans, and impact planned shipments of Navy fuel from Idaho to Yucca Mountain in accordance with the Idaho Batt agreement.

“In order to avoid further delays and to provide the expeditious removal of DOE defense waste compliant with court-stipulated agreements, we strongly support additional funding of the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository. The Yucca Mountain repository is an important national asset that is needed for disposal of the defense waste generated as part of our nuclear weapons program,” concluded Simpson and his colleagues.

A copy of the letter and complete list of co-signers is available upon request.