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Where will nuclear waste go? A quiet effort is underway to bring it to rural Colorado

High voltage transmission lines near the Intermountain Power Plant in Delta, Utah, Oct. 29, 2021.
Jon Reed
/
KUER
High voltage transmission lines near the Intermountain Power Plant in Delta, Utah, Oct. 29, 2021.

Utah’s push to become a nuclear power hub is gathering steam on several fronts.

On the state policy end, lawmakers are moving ahead with the legal framework that would pave the way for nuclear energy production. It would, among other things, create a council to oversee the nuclear industry, establish a process for designating energy development zones, and create a fund to finance these efforts.

In his 2026 fiscal year budget recommendations, Gov. Spencer Cox proposed dedicating $20 million to nuclear energy development as part of Operation Gigawatt — the state’s goal to at least double energy production in the next decade.

Zooming out, Utah is also part of a lawsuit filed against the federal government’s Nuclear Regulatory Commission aiming to loosen regulations around nuclear. The case argues that some microreactors should not require the commission’s approval. Those small reactors are part of Utah’s nuclear power plan.

As nuclear plans for Utah proceed, one big complication looms. All of that power will produce nuclear waste, and that waste will have to be stored somewhere

In 2022, Cox sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Energy detailing serious concerns about interim storage for spent fuel, and that any plan must be rooted in a “workable solution” for permanent disposal.

Right across the border from Utah in rural northwestern Colorado, some proponents are quietly working to build the relationships and infrastructure to store nuclear waste.

KUNC, an NPR affiliate in Northern Colorado, produced a three-part series about the effort called "Toxic Waste or Economic Fuel." KUER’s Pamela McCall spoke with investigative reporter Scott Franz about what he learned.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Pamela McCall: What was the genesis of pursuing a waste storage site in rural Colorado?

Steve Franz: The Associated Governments of Northwest Colorado have accepted grant money to explore the possibility. The waste site is being pitched as being temporary and a potential economic development opportunity. This group says that because Colorado's coal mines and power plants are shutting down due to the energy transition, they're looking for economic development opportunities and potentially storing nuclear waste. But, there are concerns that this site could become a permanent storage facility.

PM: Where might it be located?

SF: Just across your border, in northwest Colorado, places like Moffat County [and] Rio Blanco County, that share a state line with Utah. No specific site has been floated yet, but those are the areas being looked at.

PM: What are opponents saying?

There is a deep level of mistrust over how the government has handled waste in the past. I'm starting to see environmental groups raise concerns about the dangers of radioactive nuclear waste. There's a Government Accountability Office report calling it some of the most dangerous man-made material ever. There is also a bigger fear about any temporary storage becoming permanent. Even in the nuclear engineer community, there are debates about the safety of this. I talked to a nuclear scientist who says, without a permanent location, there is the risk of it becoming a de facto permanent waste repository.

PM: How far along is this plan?

SF: You know, the leaders of this group [The Associated Governments of Northwest Colorado] caution that these are very preliminary discussions. They're mostly asking questions right now and trying to gauge interest and see what concerns people have.

Read More via KUNC: Many states have resisted nuclear waste storage plans. Northwest Colorado is quietly opening the door

Corrected: February 4, 2025 at 10:58 AM MST
An earlier version of this story incorrectly named KUNC investigative reporter Scott Franz. We regret the error.
Pamela is KUER's All Things Considered Host.
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