US DOE announces USD26 million to support consent-based siting process

The DOE is ultimately responsible for the management of the USA's nuclear waste, including finding sites to store and dispose of used fuel (which it calls spent fuel). The department has been working on a phased, consent-based approach since 2017, issuing a request for information (RFI) on using consent-based siting to identify sites for interim storage of used fuel December 2021. It released an updated version of the 2017 process earlier this year, incorporating stakeholder input from the RFI.

US Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm said it was vital that communities were involved in the siting process and included in decision-making from the outset. "This funding will help DOE learn from and involve communities across the country in the consent-based siting process, answer questions and concerns, and develop an understanding so that we are good neighbours even before moving in," she said.

The consent-based process focuses on the needs and concerns of people and communities and "centers equity and environmental justice", the DOE said. Communities participate by working through a series of phases and steps which help them determine whether and how hosting a facility to manage spent nuclear fuel is aligned to their goals.

The DOE is currently in the first stage of the three-stage process and said it is "not currently soliciting volunteer communities as part of this funding opportunity".

The 13 awardees announced by DOE each represent a consent-based siting consortium. They will help the DOE to facilitate engagement activities and dialogue by leading inclusive community and stakeholder engagement efforts, eliciting public feedback to refine the consent-based siting process, and developing strategies that support mutual learning. "Throughout this process, DOE and the consent-based siting consortia will work together to build equity and environmental justice principles into the engagement processes and will engage with additional partners and communities, expanding the impact of these awards and furthering the conversation around consolidated interim storage of spent nuclear fuel," the DOE said.

The "geographically and institutionally diverse" project teams selected to receive the funding  include members from across twelve US states, plus the District of Columbia. They are:

• American Nuclear Society
• Arizona State University
• Boise State University
• Clemson University
• Energy Communities Alliance
• Good Energy Collective
• Holtec International
• Keystone Policy Center
• Missouri University of Science & Technology
• North Carolina State University
• Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
• Southwest Research Institute
• Vanderbilt University

Previous plans to build a permanent repository for used fuel at Yucca Mountain in Nevada were dropped in 2009.

The DOE's consent-based process consists of three stages: planning and capacity building, site screening and assessment, and negotiation and implementation (Image: US DOE)