Require that the U.S. Department of Energy Focus on the Safe Treatment and Storage of Radioactive Waste On-Site, Where Appropriate, to Mitigate Health and Environmental Risks of Transporting Low, High and Mixed Level Waste to Offsite Disposal Facilities
Adopted at the 90th Annual Meeting in 2022
WHEREAS, transporting low, high, and mixed-level radioactive materials across the nation on major interstates, highways and railways can potentially expose countless communities across the country to hazardous radiation; and
WHEREAS, a truck or railway accident or terrorist attack involving transported low, high and mixed-level nuclear waste could require billions of dollars in clean-up costs or render entire cities and surrounding areas uninhabitable; and
WHEREAS, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers, our nation's crumbling infrastructure and system of highways, roads, and bridges is rated a C-; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of Energy has shipped and continues to ship low-level and mixed low-level radioactive waste through the Las Vegas metropolitan area for burial at the Nevada National Security Site from several states across the nation, including California, Idaho, Maryland, New Mexico, Ohio, Tennessee, Washington, Florida, and Texas; and
WHEREAS, in the event of a radiological emergency in or near a city, significant impacts could create a financial burden of millions of dollars to the emergency management agencies charged with protecting the health, safety and welfare of its citizens and visitors; and
WHEREAS, developments in nuclear reactor designs and nuclear fuel technologies, many supported by U.S. Department of Energy research and demonstration projects, have created new opportunities for completely reevaluating the Federal Government's current approach to nuclear waste management.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that The United States Conference of Mayors calls on the U.S. Department of Energy to prioritize the treatment and storage of radioactive waste on-site to reduce health and environmental impacts from transportation of waste produced from decommissioned nuclear facilities, and move towards a consent-based approach to selection of sites for disposal of nuclear waste; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that The United States Conference of Mayors calls upon its membership to be knowledgeable about the U.S. Department of Energy's planned routes, quantities, and timing for shipments of radioactive waste to Nevada.