13 Mar (NucNet): US energy secretary Steven Chu has promised lawmakers he will convene a blue ribbon commission on spent fuel storage, disposal and reprocessing and reaffirmed his support for nuclear energy.
Mr Chu announced plans for the high-level commission of independent experts while giving evidence to the Senate budget committee on 11 March 2009. He heard strong bi-partisan support from senators on the need for nuclear energy in the US and concern about the reduction in the budget for the national Yucca Mountain repository programme.
Mr Chu said the administration’s budget submission for financial year 2010 would include 26.3 billion US dollars (about 21 billion euro) for the Department of Energy (DOE). He said his priorities were science, loan guarantees, the electricity grid, security and non-proliferation at DOE sites, reduction in funding for Yucca and implementation of a cap and trade bill for greenhouse gas emissions.
“Nuclear must play an important role,” said Mr Chu, who described his overall approach as support for investments in all technologies. He said funding reductions in the Yucca Mountain programme would not hurt potential investment in nuclear new-build.
Mr Chu said the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission should not put applications for plants on hold because dry cask storage for spent fuel “is viable”. He said the DOE would encourage generic licensing activities focusing on designs offered by Westinghouse and General Electric.
“We are working hard to get generic licences through the door… nuclear will be part of our energy future, it has to be,” he added.
Senators expressed concern over the future of the Yucca Mountain project after Mr Chu said that President Barack Obama’s administration, which took office in January 2009, was developing a new policy for dealing with nuclear waste, including consideration of spent fuel recycling.
On 5 March, Mr Chu told a Senate energy and natural resources committee hearing: “Based on what we know today, it is prudent to step back and… develop a comprehensive policy to reduce the amount of nuclear waste.” Mr Chu said there would “probably” be a programme of short-term storage “that will give us the option to recycle and break down some of the waste”.
>>Related reports in the NucNet database (available to subscribers)
Steven Chu Confirmed As Obama’s Secretary Of Energy (News in Brief No. 8, 21 January 2009)
Industry Responds To USD 206 Million Budget Cut For Yucca Mountain (News No. 29, 12 March 2009)
