Joint Yucca Mountain Tour and Briefing

NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF STATE LEGISLATURES

National Conference of State Legislatures and Southern States Energy Board
Joint Yucca Mountain Tour and Briefing
October 11 and 12, 2005
Tour and Briefing Summary

On October 11 and 12, 2005, the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) and the Southern States Energy Board (SSEB) jointly hosted a Yucca Mountain Tour and Briefing in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Yucca Mountain Site is the proposed home of a geological repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. The NCSL and SSEB event was designed to inform NCSL’s new High-level Radioactive Waste Working Group members about Yucca Mountain, as well as to garner more involvement from SSEB’s legislative members.

The first day of the event consisted of a tour of the Yucca Mountain Site, which is located approximately 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas. The participants were transported by bus to the site and were given a full day of opportunities to view, explore, and discuss all aspects of the repository. Tour guides were available to field questions, as well as lead the tour into the mountain itself. The group was guided underground to Tunnel 2, where a presentation was given that described several of the experiments that have taken place to ensure the site is appropriate for the disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste.

The Monday of October 12 gave the tour participants different local, state, and federal perspectives on the development of Yucca Mountain. An array of speakers presented differing viewpoints on the repository and the impacts that it could have on the surrounding areas.

To open, Delegate Sally Jameson of Maryland welcomed the assembled group and discussed the importance of understanding the Yucca Mountain Site and the issues that surround its development. Furthermore, Mr. Mike Cash, Chair of the SSEB Radioactive Materials Transportation Committee, discussed his involvement with the Yucca Mountain development. Also at this time, Ms. Linda Sikkema, Program Director of NCSL and Mr. Cloyce Brackett, Policy Analyst for SSEB, provided remarks about their respective organizations and their combined efforts to provide a forum for discussion related to Yucca Mountain.

The first presentation of the morning was then provided by Mr. Russ Dyer, Assistant Deputy Director for Technical and Regulatory Programs with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM). An overview of his agenda was provided, and included:

Background and History
Organization
Budget requests
Project Update

Licensing Support Network
License Application (LA)
Location and Site Description

Summary
Questions

In providing this information, Mr. Dyer outlined the OCRWM Mission, which is to manage and dispose of high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel in a manner that protects health, safety, and the environment; enhances national security; and merits public confidence. In order to achieve this mission, OCRWM has identified several priority components. One such priority is a continued commitment to protecting public health, safety, and the environment. Also, OCRWM plans to move ahead to submit a license application for repository construction authorization.

In accomplishing these goals, OCRWM will provide solutions for multiple issues. These issues include supporting commercial nuclear energy production; supporting defense complex clean-up; advancing non-proliferation goals; and supporting the nuclear navy mission.

Mr. Dyer relayed information providing a timeline of events that created a legal obligation to dispose of nuclear waste. The Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) of 1982 established a national policy for the disposition of high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel. The next milestone was the 1987 decision of the U.S. Congress to characterize only the Yucca Mountain site. The latest development was the recommendation of the Secretary of Energy and President Bush that Yucca Mountain be developed into a repository and the subsequent approval given by Congress.

Furthermore, Mr. Dyer addressed the organization of OCRWM and the steps being taken to develop Yucca Mountain. He provided details of the OCRWM budget, as well as detailed information regarding the licensing support network, status of the license application, and the license application content and supporting documents.

The last portion of the presentation focused on the location of Yucca Mountain and the proposed layout of the site. Additionally, Mr. Dyer showed graphics of the subsurface configuration of the repository.

Mr. Alex Thrower of the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of National Transportation (ONT) followed with an update of current activities. His presentation highlighted the following areas:

Recent decisions and accomplishments
ONT funding
2006 priorities
Cask and rolling stock acquisition
Nevada Rail development
Institutional and operations planning activities
Funding under 180(c) of Nuclear Waste Policy Act

The recent accomplishments of ONT, as presented by Mr. Thrower, include the DOE decision, as of July 18, 2005, to use dedicated trains as the usual shipment mode to Yucca Mountain. Also, an environmental assessment was published as part of a public land order submitted to the Department of Interior through the Bureau of Land Management. Mr. Thrower also showed the funding amount for his organization.

The transportation priorities of ONT for 2006 were detailed next. ONT will focus on completing a draft of the Nevada Rail Alignment Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Another priority will be to initiate steps in the acquisition of casks by contracting for conceptual designs to close the capability gap. Mr. Thrower described the ONT’s commitment to continue working with state regional groups and tribes during this process. One aspect of this commitment will be to coordinate with key stakeholders through the Transportation External Coordination Working Group regarding route selection criteria, 180(c) development, and security planning. Another activity of 2006 will be the updating of the OCRWM section of the Radioactive Material Transportation Practices Manual. Additionally, the ONT will begin the conceptual design work on rail cask cars and conduct trade studies that further establish requirements for transportation support facilities.

Mr. Thrower also reported on cask acquisition by ONT, which has a preference for systems that provide the maximum flexibility in terms of facility and fuel compatibility. In this area, work is ongoing to ensure that the transportation casks are compatible with the Yucca Mountain surface facilities. Moreover, multiple cask procurements will be undertaken to accommodate differing inventories of waste, and differing facility capabilities.

With regarding to rolling stock acquisition, Mr. Thrower's presentation detailed meetings ONT has had with passenger and freight car manufacturers to discuss designs of cask, escort, and buffer cars. The decision to procure a fleet of locomotives or to utilize locomotives supplied by the railroads will be made in the future, but DOE is currently evaluating the Association of American Railroad’s Performance Specification for trains used to carry spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste.

The Nevada Rail Development was the following item presented by Mr. Thrower. Currently, the ONT is completing technical data collection along the corridor and a Rail Alignment EIS draft will be issued in 2006, with a final EIS planned to be released in 2007. After these activities, a Record of Decision will be issued and the ONT will finalize the design and begin construction of the rail line.

Other ONT activities for Yucca Mountain include the development of the Classification Guide for Secure Transportation of Nuclear Waste. Moreover, the ONT will evaluate international transportation sabotage studies and refine transportation logistics and routing models.

In summary, Mr. Thrower highlighted the progress that has been made and the ONT’s continued efforts to work cooperatively with its stakeholders to develop a safe, secure, and efficient transportation system.

The briefing agenda next included a presentation from Mr. Patrick Guinan, Senior Research Analyst with the Nevada Legislative Counsel Bureau. Mr. Guinan delivered information to the group regarding the background of the Nevada High-Level Waste Committee. He provided a copy of the Nevada Assembly Joint Resolution No. 4, which urges the Federal government to recognize the unsuitability of Yucca Mountain as the site for a repository to store and dispose of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. His conveyed the Committee’s position that most of the residents of Clark County, Nevada, which includes the city of Las Vegas, as well as most of the state’s legislature, were opposed to the Yucca Mountain project. The Committee opinion also includes the idea that there are better alternatives to Yucca Mountain and that these options should be studied further.

The meeting agenda included time for Mr. Bob Loux of the Nevada Nuclear Projects Office, who would provide a perspective for the State of Nevada. Mr. Loux was not present at the briefing and attempts to contact him to enable him to provide his presentation via phone were unsuccessful. Subsequently, Ms. Irene Navis, Clark County Nevada Nuclear Waste Planning Manager, presented the Clark County Perspective in this time slot.

Ms. Navis provided information detailing the opposition of the Clark County Commissioners to the Yucca Mountain Project. As part of this opposition, Ms. Navis referenced the 1.8 million citizens living in the county, as well as the growth rate that includes 6,000 new residents per month. Another aspect of the county’s opposition reflects the amount of funding provided per citizen. The amount of funding needed to adequately prepare for these shipments, according to Ms. Navis and Clark County, would be $3.7 billion for 24 years.

This opposition also deals with the scientific data that concerns the planned repository. Ms. Navis gave examples of unanswered scientific questions related to earthquakes, volcanic activity, and water infiltration. Ms. Navis also referenced numerous resolutions during the past 15 years that express local opposition to the continued development of Yucca Mountain. Additionally, a survey was conducted by the county that included 600 calls to a varied group of Clark County residents. The results showed that most of the survey group was opposed to Yucca Mountain.

The presentation that followed offered a differing viewpoint. Ms. Candace Trummell, a Nye County Commissioner, gave the opinion of Nye County regarding Yucca Mountain. Nye County includes the repository site within its boundaries.

Ms. Trummell stated that Nye County is “pro Yucca Mountain”. She noted several reasons for this position, which included the fact that the repository storage area is 1000 feet above the water table while being 1000 feet below the ground surface. Given this information, along with other scientific evaluations, Nye County believes that the scientific data regarding Yucca Mountain is sound.

Ms. Trummell referenced a 1978 resolution by Clark County, Nye County, and Las Vegas that stated all three entities wanted the repository to be located within Nevada.

Nye County maintains that the waste at Yucca Mountain should be accessible and retractable, and the county is in favor of reprocessing. However, it is the county's position that reprocessing of fuel does not negate the need for Yucca Mountain.

The benefits of Yucca Mountain to Nye County are, according to Ms. Trummell, the creation of jobs for local residents and the ability to receive additional funding for local agencies.

Speaking next, and in accordance with the views of Ms. Trummell, was Mr. Kevin Phillips, Mayor of the City of Caliente, located in Lincoln County, Nevada. The city is the site of the start of the proposed rail line that would ship waste material to the Yucca Mountain site.

Mayor Phillips asserted that there are already numerous hazardous waste shipments going through Caliente and Nevada by truck. He estimated that there are 125 hazardous waste shipments made through Caliente everyday. However, he stated that there are only 175 planned shipments of spent fuel, by train, to Yucca Mountain per year.

Mayor Phillips told the group he has concluded that the controversy concerning the Yucca Mountain proposal is politically motivated. He voiced the opinion that many involved are more motivated by political science than by scientific data. Mayor Phillips believes the benefits of Yucca Mountain outweigh any risks associated with the project.

Mayor Phillips concluded the presentations. Afterwards the participants joined in a roundtable discussion and wrap-up.

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