Spent Power Reactor Fuel: Pre-Disposal Issues
March 6, 2017
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Robert Alvarez of the Institute for Policy Studies has prepared a power point presentation (click here for .pptx version; click here for .pdf version) re: the many costs, risks, and liabilities of irradiated nuclear fuel "interim storage" -- most to all of which, the public will be burdened with.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has acknowledged that highly radioactive irradiated nuclear fuel remains hazardous for a million years. Thus, it must be kept isolated from the living environment for that entire time period. Otherwise, a catastrophe would unfold. This applies to "interim storage," whether on-site (in pools or dry casks) at the atomic reactors where it was generated in the first place, as well as to away-from-reactor storage, and even permanent disposal, sites.

Such costs, risks, and liabilities are very relevant to proposed centralized interim storage facilities, such as the one targeted at WCS, TX.

Article originally appeared on Beyond Nuclear (https://archive.beyondnuclear.org/).
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