DOE Official: Yucca Opening Could Be Delayed

From Platts Nucleonics Week (subscription required):

It could be 2012 to 2017 before the DOE waste program has a repository ready to begin disposing of utility spent fuel, according to a projection by a high-ranking program official this week, and that has industry talking about new approaches.

The waste office's deputy director, John Arthur, told a nuclear waste management conference in Tucson, Ariz. Feb. 28, that it could be roughly 30 to 35 years from the start of the DOE waste program before the U.S. has an operating repository. He made the comment while highlighting a similar pace at which several other countries were moving with their disposal programs.

Industry officials were not alarmed by the projections, according to one industry source, who said the dates were expected.

UPDATE: One note from our friends here inside the office: Arthur was actually referring to 30-35 years from the first borehole on the site, which was 1978. That means 30-35 translates to 2008-2012.

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