Campaign Promises
Departments -> Energy -> Nuclear Waste | ||
| Item | Energy | |
| Nuclear Waste | Grade | |
| EN-38 | The Promise: "...will make safeguarding nuclear material both abroad and in the U.S. a top anti-terrorism priority. In terms of waste storage...do not believe that Yucca Mountain is a suitable site...will lead federal efforts to look for safe, long-term disposal solutions based on objective, scientific analysis...will develop requirements to ensure that the waste stored at current reactor sites is contained using the most advanced dry-cask storage technology available." When/Where: Obama-Biden Plan: "New Energy for America" dated 09/06/08. Source: http://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/edg/media/Obama_New_Energy_0804.pdf Status:As of end-CY2016, the national inventory of commercial spent nuclear fuel amounted to nearly 70K metric tons stored at 75 site-specific and general license sites in 34 states. GLOBAL SAFEGUARDING: Under President Obama's leadership, the first international Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) to prevent nuclear terrorism worldwide was held in Washington, D.C., on 04/12-13/10. The second summit was held at Seoul, South Korea on 03/26-27/12; the third at The Hague, Netherlands, on 03/24-25/14; and the fourth in Washington, D.C. on 03/31-04/01/16. YUCCA MOUNTAIN: President Obama's FY2010 budget submission included $197M to shutter the Yucca Mountain, NV nuclear waste storage program while the Administration devised "a new strategy toward nuclear waste disposal." The U.S. Government had already invested nearly $12B for the development of the Yucca Mountain waste disposal site. As of end-CY2016, the Yucca Mountain site had been abandoned since 04/11 and nothing existed but a boarded up, five-mile exploratory tunnel developed at a cost of $8B by the Department of Energy (DOE). DRY-CASK STORAGE: Dry-cask storage is meant to be an interim storage solution. Dry casks are designed to hold nuclear waste for a few decades while permanent geological storage capabilities are developed. To that end and at an estimated cost of $19B, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, New Mexico, in operation since CY1999, is now the nation's first deep geological repository for nuclear waste. This promise was fulfilled. | 1.00 |