Nuclear Waste Disposal Program - Facts
Nuclear Waste Fund
- Since 1983, nuclear electric consumers from 41 states have paid more than $37 billion, including interest, into the Nuclear Waste Fund (NWF).
- In its FY 2011 budget, the Administration terminated the disposal program and did not request any
funds from the NWF, while it plans to continue collecting funds from the rate payers from 40 states*.
*The rate payers from the State of Colorado no longer pay fees into the NWF due to the shutdown of
Fort St. Vrain nuclear power plant.
- In the FY 2011 Continuing Resolution, Congress did not appropriate any funds from the NWF for the disposal program.
- Annual appropriations to the disposal program represented approximately 13% to 20% of annual NWF
receipts from FY 2000–2010.
Facilities
- Spent nuclear fuel is stored in dry cask storage containers when spent fuel pools reach capacity or
when reactor sites are shut down.
- Over 800 dry casks are currently being stored at 43 independent spent fuel storage sites licensed by
the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
- 64 sites are expected to have dry cask storage by 2017. Repository opening date is uncertain.
- Six additional sites with shut down reactors already have dry storage facilities.
- Utility customers pay the costs of dry cask storage despite having already contributed billions of
dollars into the federally mandated NWF.
- Taxpayers may also bear the costs of DOE’s liability for an estimated $500 million per year in
additional costs for each year the repository’s opening is delayed beyond 2017.
The DOE is Experienced at Moving and Storing Spent Nuclear Fuel
- Has made approximately 68 shipments each year for more than 30 years without a single incident of
release of radiation to the environment.
- Safely moves and stores spent nuclear fuel (SNF) from the U.S. Navy, research reactors, and from
41foreign governments.
- Plans 6,795 shipments of high-level radioactive waste during the next 34 years, NOT including SNF
from commercial nuclear power plants.
- DOE has safely and successfully received 8,364 transuranic waste shipments at the Waste Isolation
Pilot Plant in New Mexico effective March 2010, without a single incident of release of radiation to
the environment.