State public service officials are gathered in Washington, D.C., this week for the winter meeting of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners. One of shining stars involved in NARUC is a Georgian named Tim Echols, who hopes to transform America’s system of nuclear waste management. Echols won a statewide election in November 2010 to serve on the Georgia Public Service Commission. Today he leads the commission as its chairman. With nuclear energy making a strong resurgence in Georgia — two new plants are under construction — Echols has taken …
The President’s Blue Ribbon Commission (BRC) on America’s Nuclear Future released its final report late last week. It provides a thoughtful overview of how America’s nuclear waste policy has evolved since the mid-20th century, but the report’s final recommendations largely fall short. Essentially, the commission accepted the underlying structure of America’s current system of nuclear waste management. Given this assumption, the report’s recommendations are reasonable. Unfortunately, the quagmire that has become America’s system of nuclear waste management needs more than a nip here or a tuck there. The entire system …
Last week, Representative Ed Markey (D–CA) sent a letter to Secretary of Energy Stephen Chu questioning whether exporting natural gas would benefit American businesses and consumers. He wrote, “I am worried that exporting America’s natural gas would raise energy costs for American consumers, reduce the global competitiveness of U.S. businesses, make us more dependent on foreign sources of energy, and slow our transition away from fossil fuels.” Natural gas prices have been consistently low in the United States for the past two years but much higher abroad. If the price …
Buried deep within the President’s tax plan is a proposal to “reauthorize the special assessment from domestic nuclear utilities.” Translation: The President wants to place an additional tax on nuclear utilities that will result in higher energy prices for consumers. The United States gets 20 percent of its electricity from nuclear power. So what the President characterizes as a $2 billion “savings” over 10 years is really a $200 million annual price increase for the millions of American consumers who rely on nuclear energy. The money would be placed into …
House Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) said there is bipartisan support in Congress to move forward with the nuclear-waste repository at Yucca Mountain, noting that lawmakers could reaffirm that decision in a vote this summer. Upton, speaking at The Bloggers Briefing this afternoon, criticized the actions of Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory Jaczko, whose opposition to the Yucca Mountain project was the subject of a harsh inspector general report earlier this month. “I’m convinced there is bipartisan support for Yucca and I suspect we’ll have a vote on …
The Department of Energy (DOE) holds approximately the equivalent of 59,000 tons of natural uranium. This includes low-enriched uranium, highly enriched uranium, depleted uranium left over from past enrichment, and natural uranium. With additional processing, much of it could be used to fuel America’s nuclear reactors. Depending on the spot price of uranium and the process required to get it to usable form, the DOE’s excess uranium is worth approximately $7 billion. Leaving the uranium under government control makes no sense. It not only denies taxpayers the value of the …
The impact of the Japanese earthquake on its nuclear reactors continues to capture the world’s attention. Reports of radioactive releases, elevated radiation levels, and malfunctioning power systems all strike fear into the public as memories of Three Mile Island and Chernobyl quickly enter the national and global conscious. It is important, however, to understand what these terms mean and how different actions taken by Japanese nuclear officials actually impact human health and safety. One area where this is particularly important is regarding the potential release of radioactive steam. According to …
Since the Gulf oil spill nearly a year ago, the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement has issued just one deepwater drilling permit — but oil rig owners aren’t alone when it comes to permitting problems. Renewable, coal, natural gas, nuclear and transmission energy projects across the country also face delays and cancellations. What’s worse: These stalled energy projects cost the American economy both GDP and jobs, according to an economic study released Thursday by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The study, conducted by American Consumer Institute President …
Faced with increasing electricity prices (as well as brownouts in some areas) and higher prices at the pump, Americans are calling for solutions that would result in affordable electricity and gas prices. The easiest way to do that is to increase supply to offset rising demand. The federal government’s role should be not to pick winners and losers among energy technologies but set the rules in place to allow companies to produce energy if it’s in their interest to do so. Rep. Devin Nunes (R–CA) released new legislation that provides …
One of the more talked about highlights of the President’s energy budget is his growing support for small modular reactors (SMRs). This includes $30 million for research and development and $67 million for licensing activities. While the President should be commended for recognizing the potential of SMRs, his approach unfortunately misses the mark. Research and Development, Yes; Commercialization, No The federal government does have a legitimate role to play in providing some basic research and development money to fund projects that may hold potential but are too risky for the …
