Senate confirms former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm as energy secretary

Jennifer M. Granholm's official portrait was unveiled in the state Capitol where it will hang in the Gallery of the Governors. The portrait features the governor amid symbols that tell the story of her administration's efforts to diversify Michigan's economy, educate and train its citizens, and protect them in tough economic times during the two-terms she served as Michigan's 47th governor.As reported by Axios.

See Beyond Nuclear radioactive waste specialist Kevin Kamps's statement about Jennifer Granholm's record, as MI AG and governor, on nuclear power and radioactive waste issues, at the time of her nomination by President Biden. (Kamps has served as a board member of Don't Waste Michigan, the state-wide anti-nuclear coalition, since the early 1990s.)

In response to questions raised by U.S. Sen. Cortez Masto (D-NV) during her U.S. Senate confirmation hearing last month, Energy Secretary Granholm expressed support for consent-based siting, and therefore opposition to the Yucca Mountain high-level radioactive waste dump targeted at Nevada. The state, and the Western Shoshone Indian Nation, have both expressed strong opposition to the proposed dump, for the past 34 years.

Although no U.S. Senators questioned Granholm about the Consolidated Interim Storage Facilities targeted at Texas and New Mexico, the Energy Secretary must surely also oppose them, as well, right? Neither targeted "host" state consents to the siting of either dump (the Texas dump is immediately upon the New Mexico border, and upstream; the New Mexico dump is not far from the Texas border). Both governors (Republican Greg Abbott in Texas, and Democrat Michelle Lujan Grisham in New Mexico) have spoken out strongly against both dumps, as have many Members of Congress from both states, state legislators in both states, and a growing groundswell of grassroots groups and concerned citizens.

BEYOND NUCLEAR V. NRC -- 'We'll See You in Court" on TX CISF!

Public commenters just say "NO!" at NRC environmental scoping meeting on the ISP CISF in Andrews, TX, Feb. 2017We've filed a federal court appeal against the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, regarding its rubber stamps of Interim Storage Partners' highly radioactive waste consolidated interim storage facility (CISF), targeted at the Waste Control Specialists national "low" level rad. waste dump in Andrews County, West Texas. See our press release here, with links to relevant documents. NRC is violating multiple federal laws, which we intend to prove at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, the second highest court in the land, just under the U.S. Supreme Court. Last June, we also appealed against NRC's rubber stamps in Holtec's CISF case, targeting majority minority New Mexico. Both CISFs, just 40 miles apart, represent radioactive racism and environmental injustice.

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"THEY'RE BAAAAACK!" -- Mobile Chernobyl bill on Capitol Hill

Image compliments of NIRSThe anti-nuke movement has, by blocking proposed bad dumps, fended off Mobile Chernobyl legislation, session after session, for a quarter-century -- although sometimes by the narrowest of margins! Now, the Democratic U.S. House Environment Subcommittee is reportedly poised to push CISF-authorizing legislation (see related entry), which will likely also be pro-Yucca dump. What can you do? Please contact and urge your U.S. Representative, and both your U.S. Senators, to strongly oppose any bills -- whether authorizing or appropriations -- promoting environmentally unjust, and non-consent based siting, high-level radioactive waste dumps! You can also be patched through to your Members of Congress via the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121. If any one of these Southwest dumps opens, in NM, NV, and/or TX, high-risk Mobile Chernobyls would be launched through most states!

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