Waste Site Awaits Political Approval

The U.S. Department of Energy approved Yucca Mountain in Nevada last week as a site for the nation's nuclear waste. The site was endorsed by Spencer Abraham, secretary of the DOE.

Carolina Power & Light Co. officials said waste from the Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Plant will be shipped to Yucca Mountain if it opens.

Aaron Perlut, spokesman for CP&L, said the federal government has spent 20 years and $16 billion studying possible sites for a central nuclear storage facility.

"We're very supportive of Secretary Abraham's decision and believe it's the right decision to store (nuclear waste) in one site," Perlut said. "Our hope is that Yucca Mountain ends up being the site."

Perlut said delays in choosing a location have forced Shearon Harris to increase its on-site storage capacity. Officials opened Shearon Harris' third storage pool last summer, despite the protest of local activists.

"Despite significant investment, the government is four years late on its mandate for developing the federal repository," Perlut said. "This has left nuclear waste repositories around the country with no option but to increase the amount stored."

Perlut said the Nevada site is far from reaching final approval but that Shearon Harris is adequately prepared to handle the facility's own waste.

"It still has to go through the president and Congress, as well as the government in Nevada," Perlut said. "There is certain to be some political wrangling in the future."

Jim Warren, spokesman for the N.C. Waste Awareness and Reduction Network, said he approves of the plan to keep the waste in a central location.

"Even if the government does get Yucca Mountain, it will be at least a decade before the facility is ready," Warren said.

But Warren said expanding local facilities should only be a short-term solution.

"We don't think CP&L should continue shipping to Shearon Harris over the next decade in order to minimize the risk of the nuclear material," he said.

Warren said the Yucca Mountain site is more ideal politically than scientifically.

"The bottom line is that the site has failed to pass the standards necessary for this type of storage," Warren said. "The only way to get the site open is if politics override good science."

Orange County Commissioner Barry Jacobs said that given the events of Sept. 11 pressure to put all of the nuclear material in one place has increased with the fear of another terrorist attack.

"We have to make sure (nuclear waste) is safe -- environmentally and from people who want to target it," Jacobs said. "It's safer than having it scattered where security is left up to different individuals."

When the site comes up for official consideration, Congress will make the final decision. Bridget Lowell, press secretary for Rep. David Price, D-N.C., said Price is supportive of the Nevada site.

"He does support the site if they know for sure that it's going to be safe."

The City Editor can be reached at citydesk@.unc.edu.