SAN ONOFRE, Calif. — As the decommissioning of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station continues, officials say there is new momentum behind efforts to eventually remove millions of pounds of spent nuclear fuel from the site.
About 3.6 million pounds of spent nuclear fuel remains in dry storage at San Onofre.
“There is now bipartisan momentum around practical solutions,” Southern California Edison CEO Steven Powell said during a news conference.
Rep. Mike Levin said a significant change is taking place in the long-running search for somewhere to send the fuel.
“States are volunteering to be part of the solution, and we are going to build on that,” Levin said.
The San Onofre plant has been shut down for more than a decade. In 2012, what was described as a minor radiation leak revealed premature tube wear in the plant's replacement steam generators. Southern California Edison announced the plant's permanent shutdown the following year.
The dismantling of the facility is now about 80% complete, with its iconic containment domes expected to be taken down by the end of 2027.
The spent fuel, however, remains.
Levin said the federal government still has not fulfilled its obligation to remove the waste.
“The government still hasn’t done what it pledged to do all the way back in 1998, and so communities like ours have been left holding the fuel,” Levin said.
Levin said the cost to taxpayers associated with storing spent nuclear fuel at nuclear sites is about $3 million a day.
Powell emphasized that the fuel is currently being stored safely.
“Our dry storage system that holds the spent fuel was designed and built to withstand extreme coastal conditions, including earthquakes and tsunamis,” Powell said. “The fuel is safe today, but leaving it here is not a solution.”
One potential step toward removing the waste involves a specialized railcar designed to transport spent nuclear fuel using existing commercial railways.
The Atlas railcar is expected to undergo testing in April for a test trip from Virginia to Idaho. Levin said that if the testing is successful, an actual canister of spent fuel would then be transported from Virginia to Idaho in the fall.
But transportation is only one part of the challenge. One of the biggest obstacles has been determining where the spent fuel would ultimately go.
After years of opposition surrounding proposed nuclear-waste storage locations, including in Nevada, Levin said some states are now expressing greater interest in becoming part of a long-term solution.
The Department of Energy is developing the concept of Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campuses, which could bring together elements of the nuclear industry ranging from research and fuel processing to power generation and waste disposal.
Levin said five states have signed agreements to explore the concept: Utah, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Idaho.
“This is a big deal,” Levin said.
Still, he cautioned that substantial work remains between those agreements and the day nuclear waste begins leaving San Onofre.
If the process moves forward as hoped, Levin said a train carrying spent nuclear fuel could leave San Onofre by the end of the next decade.
This article was generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed and edited for accuracy, clarity and journalistic standards.
