Dominion Gets Tentative OK for More Nuclear Waste Storage at Millstone

Reported and written by Jayne Keedle.

The Connecticut Siting Council has tentatively approved Dominion's request to expand its dry cask storage of nuclear waste on the site of Millstone Nuclear Power Plant in Waterford. 

After touring the site, reviewing the information submitted with the application, holding a public hearing and a finding of fact on the issue, the nine-member Siting Council, as is their practice, took a straw poll vote on the request. 

Seven members voted in favor of allowing the plant to expand its storage facility. Two members, one a representative of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and the other a member of PURA, which regulates utilities in Connecticut, abstained from voting. 

Their abstentions had nothing to do with the merits of the application, Siting Council Executive Director Linda Roberts explained. Both were alternate council members who were not party to the fact-finding portion of the program. The permanent council members for whom they were substituting will be present for the formal vote at the Council's next meeting on May 2, Roberts said. 

Although the decision won't be official until the council meets next week, the straw poll is a good indication that Dominion's request will be approved. 

"It’s not binding but rarely have I seen anyone change their mind," Roberts said. 

Millstone Spokesman Ken Holt said he's waiting until the official decision before commenting. "I don’t really want to comment on the straw polls," Holt said. "We look forward to receiving the Siting Council’s final decision."

Millstone's Plan for Waste Storage On Site

Millstone currently has 19 dry cask storage containers to house nuclear waste on the site in Waterford. However, it estimates it will need to build another 116 such structures to meet future storage requirements. 

The Connecticut Siting Council gave approval for Millstone to do the necessary groundwork to install the 500-foot cement pad needed for the structures in 2004. This latest application was for permission to install the top layer of cement to finish the job. 

Millstone officials agree that on-site storage is not an ideal solution but until the federal government comes up with a more permanent disposal site for the nation's nuclear waste, there are really no alternatives. 

"It is the federal government's obligation to take possession of this fuel and until they are ready to do that, we will continue to protect it," Holt said. 

A New Bill Urges Federal Action on Nuclear Waste  

Although there has been little progress at the federal level since President Barack Obama's administration scrapped plans to build a permanent storage facility for nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain, Nevada, there are signs that the federal government may be prepared to tackle the issue again.    

On April 25, four senators (two Democrats and two Republicans) introduced a draft bill that would allow the spent nuclear fuel that is currently housed at commercial nuclear facilities such as Millstone to be transferred to intermediate storage facilities. The bill would also allow interested state and local governments to apply to be considered as sites for a long-term waste repository. 

The Hill reports that the bill includes a proposal to create a new federal agency that would be responsible for managing nuclear waste. Currently, that task falls to the Department of Energy. 
 
“Our country can’t wait any longer to find a long-term solution for disposing of nuclear waste," Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said in a statement. Wyden is a leading proponent of the new bill, which is co-sponsored by Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)