Fixing Our Broken Nuclear Waste Management Program

Floor Speech

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Mr. CARTER of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my good friend and chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment's legislation, the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2017.

This legislation is important, not only because of what it means for the future of clean energy opportunities for this country, but also what this means for the safety of our communities. Nuclear energy has become a safe and effective way to generate large amounts of energy capability, while maintaining a source that doesn't produce greenhouse gas emissions.

We have come a long ways from Three Mile Island and the safety standards in place to ensure our communities and our grid aren't negatively impacted by nuclear energy. The Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act would finally put in place a permanent repository for the waste generated by energy production that powers millions of homes and businesses across the United States.

As of December, there were 61 nuclear power plants in the United States with 99 operating nuclear reactors. Those nuclear plants provide nearly 20 percent of the country's energy production capability. This is significant because these plants have continued to provide reliable flows of energy for decades, giving Americans a carbon-free source of energy to fuel their consumption.

But one thing hasn't been addressed: what to do with that spent fuel. We began a process in the 1980s to seek and construct a permanent repository for the Nation's spent fuel, eventually coming to Yucca Mountain in Nevada. This site was decided upon, due to its geological features, and extensively studied to ensure it could be done in a safe and effective manner.

Millions of dollars were spent studying and doing initial project development of the site, but it was eventually halted, and that progress was stalled. While this was going on, ratepayers in 39 States continued to pay towards the cleanup fund for a total of nearly $40 billion. However, that money hasn't been able to be put towards a permanent repository due to resistance.

In Georgia, at Plant Vogtle, we are currently undergoing the only nuclear energy construction project in the country, in large part because of issues that have deterred companies from wanting to expand. That means that people are losing out on energy production, and it actually creates clean energy.

My good friend's legislation authorizes the disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste to find a safe, permanent place in contrast to the temporary locations at each nuclear plant. It also authorizes a consolidated interim storage site to ensure there is an option available for the eventual transition.

This is something that needs to get done, and soon. Right now, spent fuel is sitting on site in either dry casks or spent fuel pools without an alternative. Now is the time for us to pass this bipartisan legislation and recognize that we have carbon-neutral energy sources in place, and have for decades, but we need to get this across the finish line to support our communities and our country.

I urge my colleagues to support the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act because it will give the United States the chance to, once again, be a global leader on our nuclear energy and to secure our communities. I thank the gentleman for his leadership on this issue.

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