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U.S. Rep. Deb Haaland joins opposition to nuclear waste site near Carlsbad, Hobbs

Carlsbad Current-Argus

More New Mexico elected officials came out against a proposed project to build a facility intended to temporarily store spent nuclear fuel near the border of Eddy and Lea counties in the southeast region of the state.

Holtec International applied for a license with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to build the facility that would hold up to 120,000 metric tons of spent nuclear fuel rods on a 1,000-acre property owned by the Eddy-Lea Energy Alliance.

Supporters touted Holtec’s experience in nuclear facilities, claiming the facility would be safe and the waste could be transported to the site via rail from generators across the country – many near large bodies of water or highly-populated areas.

Opponents questioned the safety of the project both in holding the waste and transporting it to the site.

More:New Mexico State Land Office: Holtec mislead federal government on nuclear waste site near Carlsbad

On Friday, U.S. Rep. Deb Haaland (D-NM) joined a growing group of elected officials, both at the state and federal level, opposed to the project.

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She wrote a letter to the U.S. Department of Energy expressing her oppositions, read a Friday news release from Haaland’s office, arguing that the waste be left where it is: at generator sites throughout the U.S.

In the meantime, Haaland said the federal government must devise a permanent repository for high-level nuclear waste.

More:Billions in federal funds coming to New Mexico's nuclear sites, military bases

Such a project was in the past proposed at Yucca Mountain in Nevada but met opposition from state lawmakers and funding was cut by then-President Barrack Obama.

“I believe such a facility poses too great a risk to the health and safety of New Mexicans, our economy and our environment,” Haaland wrote. “Rather than wasting time and money on an interim storage facility that increases the risk posed by nuclear waste, we should be focusing on storing the waste more securely at the sites where it currently resides while we develop a permanent repository.”

More:What's going on at WIPP? Nuclear facility takes on several summer construction projects

A cut away of a cask used by Holtec international to transport spent nuclear fuel

She said the concept of consolidated interim storage (CIS) is “inherently flawed” as it would require the waste be moved twice, increasing danger not only at the storage site but along delivery routes that would likely span the entire country.

A severe accident, Haaland said, could millions, even billions in damages depending on the location of such an incident.

She said one cask could release enough radiation to contaminate 42 square miles, with clean-up taking years and costing up to $620 million in a rural area and up to $2 billion in urban areas.

More:More waste coming to WIPP? DOE looks to redefine 'high-level' nuclear waste

“Operation of this facility would require shipping of high-level radioactive waste along railways and roads throughout our state. Our existing railways were not built to withstand the weight of waste containers and there are no plans for new construction or renovations within this proposal,” Haaland wrote.

“Cities and counties across New Mexico, as well as the state itself, would be asked to bear the cost of the infrastructure improvements needed for safe transportation, as well as for the emergency response personnel and equipment that will be needed to respond to an incident.

“Based on the risks that an interim storage facility for high-level radioactive waste or spent nuclear fuel poses to the state of New Mexico, I am opposed to the Holtec application.”

The project was also opposed by U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Lujan following opposition by New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

Spokesperson for Lujan Lauren French said the congressman has “deep concerns” about the project, and called on the federal government to consider opposition from State and local communities.

“Congressman Luján shares the concerns of Gov. Lujan Grisham,” French said.

“While he believes interim storage can play a role in a comprehensive waste management program, he has deep concerns that plans to move forward with interim storage facilities, such as the proposed Holtec consolidated interim storage facility in southeastern New Mexico, would only make it more likely that these interim storage sites become the de facto substitute for a permanent storage facility.

“Additionally, broad support from the state, local communities, and any affected Native communities should be a requirement of any interim storage site.”

Opposition to the project also made its way to the U.S. Senate; Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, both New Mexico Democrats, said they could not support the facility.

“I cannot support establishing an interim storage facility anywhere until we are sure there will be a path forward to permanent disposal," Heinrich said. "There must be an open and transparent process that allows for input on what's best for our entire state."

And Udall worried the "interim" facility would ultimately become permanent, saddling his state with the nation's high-level nuclear waste.

“Any proposal to increase our nuclear waste role must have strong state consent, which this proposal does not. New Mexico reached a hard-fought agreement to open WIPP and accept defense-related, transuranic waste only and bar high level waste there," Udall said.

"I will continue to oppose any interim disposal site in southeastern New Mexico when there is no reliable plan to ensure the same nuclear waste is not permanently abandoned, leaving states to deal with the associated economic, environmental, and public safety risks without any real end in sight.”

More:Allies clap back at Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's resistance to nuclear site near Carlsbad

Candidate for New Mexico governor Michelle Lujan Grisham addresses voters during a campaign stop, Aug. 29, 2018, in Carlsbad.

State of New Mexico also questions project

The project was also previously opposed to publicly by New Mexico's governor who wrote her own letter to the DOE.

She called the project “economic malpractice” in a letter to U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry.

“The interim storage of high-level radioactive waste poses significant and unacceptable risks to New Mexicans, our environment and our economy,” Lujan Grisham wrote. “Furthermore, the absence of a permanent, high-level radioactive waste repository creates even higher levels of risk and uncertainty around any proposed interim storage site.”

More:Environmentalist groups appeal federal licensing of nuclear waste facility near Carlsbad

Cabinet Secretary of the New Mexico Environment Department James Kenney said he agreed.

Kenney said NMED was “in alignment” with the governor’s position in opposition to the Holtec project.

“We’re absolutely in alignment with the letter. The governor and her cabinet agencies, there’s no distance,” he said. “At this point, she says there’s unacceptable risk, and that’s our perspective. We stand behind her letter.”

More:No more hearings on nuclear waste storage site near Carlsbad, project proceeding

Kenney said NMED was in talks with ELEA, but the Alliance had yet to submit any permit applications, which Kenney said would likely be for storm or waste water as the only the federal government regulates nuclear waste.

“We’re continuing to learn new information so if a permit application does come to us, we’ll more about what they intend to do,” he said. I think she (Lujan Grisham) was pretty clear that there’s potential for economic disruption. We have to keep a close look at that.”

More:WIPP seeks re-certification after 20 years of nuclear waste shipments

New Mexico State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard was also against the project, citing the potential it could disrupt nearby oil and gas operations.

"I’m not aware of any studies demonstrating the safety of fracking beneath a nuclear storage site,” Garcia Richard said. “There is no guarantee that high-level nuclear waste can be safely transported to and through New Mexico."

More:Udall, Heinrich seek to 'protect' federal nuke board with amendment

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Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on Twitter.