Nuclear Waste Fund Treasury Securities Holdings Grow to $40.9 Billion

Exchange Monitor - Nuclear Waste Fund Treasury Securities Holdings Grow to $40.9 Billion - By Exchange Monitor

11/27/19: Beyond Nuclear on Sputnik International's "Loud & Clear"

https://www.spreaker.com/user/radiosputnik/beyond-nuclear-with-kevin-kamps_78

Hosts Brian Becker and Nicole Roussell are joined by Ian Zabarte, Principal Man of the Western Bands of Shoshone Indians, and Secretary of the Native Community Action Council, as well as Beyond Nuclear's Radioactive Waste Specialist, Kevin Kamps.

A good part of the discussion was about the Yucca Mountain high-level radioactive waste dump, targeted at Western Shoshone Indian land in Nevada.

The Staggering Timescales Of Nuclear Waste Disposal

• Forbes - The Staggering Timescales Of Nuclear Waste Disposal - Christine Ro

Pro-Yucca dump congressional advocates pat themselves on the back

• Ripon Advance - Shimkus, Upton, Walden commend House committee passage of nuclear waste disposal bill - By Ripon Advance News Service

Tellingly, U.S. Representatives Shimkus (R-IL) and Walden (R-OR) have announced they will not seek re-election after the current congressional session. Yucca dump opponents from coast to coast say good riddance, after years and even decades of environmental injustice, environmental racism, radioactive racism, and violation of the 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley with the Western Shoshone Indian Nation, the supreme law of the land, equal in stature to the U.S. Constitution itself! That is what the Yucca dump they have been and still are pushing represents! Shimkus, Upton (R-MI), and Walden have led these despicable efforts.

And Upton is one of the nuclear power industry's best friends in Congress. See the following Beyond Nuclear exposés on Upton:

• Individual Contributions to Rep. Upton Associated with the Nuclear Industry
  October, 2010 update based on Federal Election Commission data
• Rep. Upton's Campaign Contributions from Nuclear Industry Related PACs
  October, 2010 update based on Federal Election Commission data
• Fred Upton, One of the Nuclear Industry's Best Friends in Congress
  2 page summary, updated 10/10/10
• Fred Upton, One of the Nuclear Industry's Best Friends in Congress
  22 page report, with citations, 2008

Beyond Nuclear and dozens of other organizations also called Upton on his hypocrisy. In H.R. 2699, the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2019, Upton (as well as Democrat Debbie Dingell from Michigan), say that high-level radioactive waste has no place near the Great Lakes, vis-a-vis long-term or permanent storage or disposal there. But Upton has been fine with long-term storage of high-level radioactive waste on the Great Lakes shores, ever since taking office in 1986. He has been one of the biggest cheerleaders for high-level radioactive waste generation, and long-term storage, not only at the three reactors in his own s.w. MI congressional district (Palisades, Cook Units 1 and 2), but at reactors beyond, nationwide, including on the Great Lakes shoreline, as well as just upstream and upwind.

See that letter here:

Beyond Nuclear, and 25 allied organizations from the U.S. and Canada, called out Dingell's and Upton's hypocrisy in an open letter sent to Great Lakes members of the U.S. Congress, during earlier consideration of very similar legislation (H.R. 3053, the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2017 and 2018, during the last congressional session). See the Dec. 20, 2017 coalition letter here; see the Jan. 4, 2018 press release here.

U.S. congressional high-level radioactive waste legislation -- bills that Beyond Nuclear opposes, and supports

Beyond Nuclear opposes these bills:

H.R. 2699, the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2019 [Sponsored by U.S. Rep. Jerry McNerney (Democrat from CA-9), U.S. Rep. John Shimkus (Republican from IL-15), et al.]

[See analyses of and commentary on H.R. 2699, by Robert Halstead, director, State of Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects, from June 2019:

---U.S. House Subcommittee hearing testimony;

---Analysis of and commentary on H.R. 2699];

See this November 20, 2019 post re: passage of H.R. 2699 by the U.S. House Energy & Commerce Committee, by voice vote. 

See this September 26, 2019 post re: passage of H.R. 2699 by the U.S. House Environment and Climate Subcommittee by voice vote. 

Here is the link to the Subcommittee's own website post re: voice vote passage of H.R. 2699 during mark up, one of 15 bills. Here are the opening remarks by Committee Chairman Pallone (D-NJ) at the subcommittee mark up.

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S. 2917, the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2019 [Sponsored by U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY), and U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND); identical to H.R. 2699].

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H.R. 2995, the Spent Fuel Prioritization Act of 2019 [Sponsored by U.S. Rep. Mike Levin (Democrat from CA-49), et al.].

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H.R. 3136, the Storage and Transportation of Residual and Excess Nuclear Fuel Act of 2019 (a.k.a. the STORE Nuclear Fuel Act) [Sponsored by U.S. Rep. Doris Matsui (Democrat from CA-6), et al.].

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See the U.S. House Energy & Commerce Committee hearing from 6/13/19, re: all three House bills mentioned above (H.R. 2699, H.R. 2995, H.R. 3136), at this link. There you will find the video of the hearing, as well as links to witness introductory remarks and full written testimonies.

See a Beyond Nuclear letter for the record submitted to the U.S. House Energy & Commerce Committee for the hearing on 6/13/19, expressing opposition to all three bills.

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S. 1234, the Nuclear Waste Administration Act of 2019 [Sponsored by U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Republican from AK), U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander (Republican from TN), and U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (Democrat from CA)].

See the video of the 6/27/19 Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee hearing on this bill, with links to witness introductions and full written testimonies, at this link.

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Beyond Nuclear also opposes funding for the Yucca Mountain, Nevada dump-site, as well as for the New Mexico and Texas consolidated interim storage facilities, in both congressional budget as well as appropriations bills. The Trump administration roll out for Fiscal Year 2021 budget figures is scheduled for February 10, 2020.

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Beyond Nuclear supports these bills*:

H.R. 1544, the Nuclear Waste Informed Consent Act/ S. 649, the Nuclear Waste Informed Consent Act.

[In the U.S. House, sponsored by Dina Titus, Steven Horsford, and Susie Lee, Democrats from Nevada. In the U.S. Senate, sponsored by U.S. Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen, Democrats from Nevada, and co-sponsored by U.S. Sens.: Cory Booker (Democrat from NJ); Kamala Harris (Democrat from CA); Amy Klobuchar (Democrat from MN); Bernie Sanders (Independent from VT); Elizabeth Warren (Democrat from MA); and Kirsten Gillibrand (Democrat from NY)]

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S. 1985, the STRANDED Act of 2019 (a.k.a. the Sensible, Timely Relief for America's Nuclear Districts' Economic Development Act of 2019). [Sponsored by Tammy Duckworth, Democrat from IL, et al.]

H.R. 5608, the STRANDED Act of 2019 [Sponsored by Bradley Scott Schneider, Democrat from IL, et al.; identical to S. 1985, immediately above]

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H.Res. 805, Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the President and the Secretary of State should ensure that the Government of Canada does not permanently store nuclear waste in the Great Lakes Basin [Sponsored by Dan Kildee, Democrat from MI, John Moolenar, Republican from MI, et al.; identical to S. Res. 470, immediately below]

S.Res. 470, A resolution expressing the sense of the Senate that the President and the Secretary of State should ensure that the Government of Canada does not permanently store nuclear waste in the Great Lake Basin [Sponsored by Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters, Democrats from MI, et al.; identical to H.Res. 805, immediately above]

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*Please note, Beyond Nuclear's support for these bills would include their passage as stand-alone bills, or as part of broader environmental-, health-, and safety-protection legislation. However, their inclusion as sweeteners in dangerously bad bills, like those listed above that Beyond Nuclear opposes, is unacceptable.