The state of New Mexico has sued the federal government, more specifically the Nuclear Regulatory Commission over concerns of the high-level nuclear waste interim storage plans in Southeastern New Mexico. Holtec International has applied for a storage license to store up to 500 canisters of spent nuclear fuel in Lea County, with up to 20 additional amendments over their 40 year licensing span.
At the center of the lawsuit is the fact that a permanent deep geological repository has not been established yet, and according the the 1982 Nuclear Waste Policy Act and the 2012 Blue Ribbon Commission’s published report, interim storage of SNF can only be done in conjunction with a permanent site in the works.
34 states, in over 76 nuclear reactor sites across the United States, have stranded spent nuclear fuel in them, without proper public consent. The SNF has no where to go at the moment. The federal government has not acted promptly in accordance with the law when it comes to finding a solution to high-level nuclear waste in America.
Two private companies have jumped at the idea of profiting off of this national problem, Holtec International and Interim Storage Partners. Both are located in the Permian Basin region of the Southwest: the largest and most prolific oil field in America. New Mexico’s lawsuit against the NRC alleges that the planned project by Holtec places New Mexicans at risk of de facto SNF storage, continued environmental threats, and future generations’ unconsented responsibility of the maintenance of the Holtec facility.
