The Beyond Nuclear Power Network urges state legislators to protect Texans from
legislation that increases the state’s share of liability or the cost to
taxpayers for the management of radioactive waste. Profits from radioactive waste
management should not be privatized while liability for accidents, clean-up, and
long-term care of the site is borne by the public. Legislation proposed in previous
sessions has required the state to immediately take title to radioactive waste—amounting
to a public subsidy for private companies.
The Network urges lawmakers to vote against any legislation that does not include
the following principles:
1. LICENSE HELD BY PUBLIC AGENCY
A publicly accountable state agency, not a private company, should be licensed
to a manage radioactive waste. The State may contract with private companies
to operate management sites. Private companies have an economic incentive to
handle/import as much waste as possible to maximize profits. Issuing a private
license opens the door to creating a national radioactive waste dump in Texas
and increases the financial risk to Texas taxpayers. The House Environmental
Regulation Committee correctly stated that "effective long-term management
and monitoring low level radioactive waste requires a stable entity, without
the potential for bankruptcy or abandonment."
2. CLOSE THE COMPACT LOOPHOLE: PROHIBIT IMPORTATION OF OUT-OF-STATE WASTE
No new states should be added to the existing radioactive waste compact (Texas
Health & Safety Code Chapter 403). Currently, Texas is the host state and
Vermont is the only party state (Maine dropped out). The compact "loophole,"
allowing Governor-appointed Compact Commissioners to contract with any state,
group of states, or company to import unlimited amounts of radioactive waste
to be disposed of in Texas must be closed. The use of compact sites for the
disposal of nuclear weapons waste should be prohibited. The compact should be
amended to require that Texas and Vermont permanently manage waste produced
within their respective borders. The compact is up for Congressional review
in 2003, so changes made now can easily be ratified in 2003.
3. NO BURIAL/BELOW GROUND DISPOSAL
All six existing commercial radioactive waste landfills have leaked. Above-ground
storage has the potential to avoid the health hazards of burial grounds prone
to releasing radioactivity and avoid the high cost associated with remedial
action that, inevitably, will be required. Assured Isolation (AI) is a relatively
new concept for which there are currently no federal or state regulations or
rules for licensing. If Texas decides to use AI, it must be statutorily defined
so as to require the following for the length of time the waste remains radioactive:
· inspection and monitoring on all sides of the facility (interior and
exterior)
· environmental monitoring
· easy access to the waste canisters and ability to repackage the waste
as leaks are detected
· preventative maintenance
· adequate financial assurances to repair damage or degradation
· zero-release as a design objective
4. MINIMIZE WASTE TRANSPORT KEEP WASTE NEAR OR AT SITE OF GENERATION
Whenever radioactive materials are handled or transported, the risk of accident
or injury to workers and the public rises. Security issues also arise when radioactive
waste is transported on busy highways through densely populated areas. Radioactive
waste should be kept as near the site of generation as possible, with sites
of the largest generators (the nuclear power plants) used for management of
waste from other locations. Since the power plants create the vast majority
of the risk (in both volume and radioactivity of the waste), their sites should
be used as permanent repositories.
West Texas should not be viewed as a radioactive waste disposal area because
of the large transportation distances.
In Texas, 96% of all low level waste comes from the two nuclear power plants.
Over 75% of the total amount of low level radioactive waste (LLRW) from Texas
Compact generators over the next 35 years will come from nuclear power plant
decommissioning alone. In all, only 44 entities in Texas generate radioactive
waste on an annual basis.
5. INCREASE ROLE OF PUBLIC IN DECISIONS
All decisions on the management, siting, storage, and transportation of radioactive
waste should be made with full and effective public participation so that decision-makers
and the public have a full range of information on which to base decisions.
The opportunity for a contested case hearing should accompany any licensing
for radioactive waste storage, processing, assured isolation, disposal, or license
amendments. The public should be represented in any agency decision making by
a Public Interest Counsel that has the authority to appeal agency decisions
and a budget that allows it to hire independent technical experts in order to
adequately protect the public interest. Affected citizen parties should also
receive assistance (as applicants do) in order to participate in contested case
hearings on a level playing field with applicants.
