The End of the Yucca Mountain Approach

Sources: Obama cuts funds for Nevada nuclear dump

President Barack Obama is taking the first step toward blocking a nuclear waste dump at Nevada's Yucca Mountain by slashing money for the program in his first budget, according to congressional sources.

Obama's budget to be announced Thursday will eliminate virtually all funding for the Yucca project with the exception of money needed for license applications submitted last year to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

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Is plan B really the following:

...temporary storage sites at government facilities, an option that Obama has suggested...

Yikes.

[edit on 26-2-2009 by loam]

From what I have read it will cost more money to not use it then use it. We should also just refine our own nuclear waste and save money.

There is no use for yucca mountain.

With the proper nuclear fuel cycle there will be little waste left.
and it will be short lived waste that can be buried in a conventional low level pit type nuclear waste dump like is used for medical and industrial radioactive waste.

With the proper nuclear fuel cycle we will also have fuel for our reactors for 2000 to 10,000 years depending on if we convert the massive amounts of depleted uranium we have into fuel in special reactors.


Advanced Nuclear fuel cycle

www.ne.anl.gov...
afci.sandia.gov...
en.wikipedia.org...
mit.edu...
74.125.95.132...:6xzFtuhfoDIJ:www.lanl.gov/news/factsheets/pdf/AdvancedNuclear.pdf+advanced+nuclear+fuel+cycle&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=42& gl=us&client=firefox-a

Originally posted by ANNED
There is no use for yucca mountain.

With the proper nuclear fuel cycle there will be little waste left.
and it will be short lived waste that can be buried in a conventional low level pit type nuclear waste dump like is used for medical and industrial radioactive waste.

With the proper nuclear fuel cycle we will also have fuel for our reactors for 2000 to 10,000 years depending on if we convert the massive amounts of depleted uranium we have into fuel in special reactors.


Advanced Nuclear fuel cycle

www.ne.anl.gov...
afci.sandia.gov...
en.wikipedia.org...
mit.edu...
74.125.95.132...:6xzFtuhfoDIJ:www.lanl.gov/news/factsheets/pdf/AdvancedNuclear.pdf+advanced+nuclear+fuel+cycle&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=42& gl=us&client=firefox-a

I agree we need to use more advanced cycles - but the problem is that he isn't slashing the Yucca Mtn project to do that; instead we will be placing MORE waste at basic facilities.

I just don't understand his energy policy. Oh wait, WHAT policy.

Nuclear waste has always been the main issue that has prevented widespread adoption of nuclear energy in the US. Plant safety will always be a concern but it is managable. Having deadly nuclear waste around for thousands of years is very undesireable given the ebb and flow of civilization and national stability. If in reaping the benefits of nuclear power we reduce the stock of nuclear waste then I say that's a win win situation. We would get the energy, reduce existing nuclear waste (and weapons?) and reduce current pollution from conventional power generation.

I have a friend that works at Yucca Mountain, been there nearly 20 years. The work at Yucca had been on going for about 20 years before he started. That is a few years at over a billion+ dollars per year.

Seems to be a huge waste of money to shut it down now. Not to mention the jobs that will be lost.

Oh well, that's progress for you.

We will see other such projects canceled, in order to pull us out of the hole that was started by previous administrations.

The purpose was meant for a central waste depository, for all nuclear waste material, medical, industrial... to keep from having many waste storage sites and keep it out of the environment in which we live.

The source article indicates:

The government has estimated the Yucca Mountain project's total costs at $96.2 billion. About $13.5 billion already has been spent.

Incidentally, for those interested in some background, here is the wiki entry: Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository