Next stop, federal court!

Last month, the Blue Ribbon Commission (BRC) on America's Nuclear Energy Future released its long-awaited full draft report to Secretary Chu, based upon the findings of each of its subcommittees. Several nuclear bloggers offered their thoughts on the draft summary of the BRC recommendations when they were posted back in May. Since that time, the release of the full draft report expands upon earlier BRC recommendations, which largely focused upon centralized interim storage for spent nuclear fuel until a new permanent geological repository can be sited.

ANS President Eric Loewen sends letter to Chairman Jaczko and NRC commissioners to stress the importance and obligation to complete licensing application

The August issue of Nuclear News is available in hard copy and electronically for American Nuclear Society members (click here-log-in required).

The American Nuclear Society issues a comprehensive spent fuel report

On May 13, the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future released its draft conclusions and recommendations. Despite its more general sounding title, the commission's work mostly concerned the nuclear waste issue. It was created by President Obama's administration primarily to investigate alternatives to the proposed Yucca Mountain repository, after the administration moved to shut that program down. While the commission did release some recommendations on other issues such as advanced reactors and Fukishima, this post will focus on its recommendations concerning nuclear waste policy.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments on March 22, 2011, for the lawsuit brought by three private citizens of Washington State challenging the president's authority to cancel the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository.

The court will decide Yucca Mountain's future, not the president