NRC Finalizes Waste Rule, Lets Licensing Decisions Resume

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission Tuesday finalized a lengthy and high-profile waste rule and ended a two-year suspension on final licensing decisions, a move with direct implications for projects in Pennsylvania and Maryland.

NRC Chairwoman Allison Macfarlane and three of her colleagues in votes cast during the past two months and released Tuesday approved agency’s new "continued storage" rule dealing with the environmental effects of storing hot, radioactive waste at reactors.

Essentially, the rule accepts the premise that radioactive waste generated from reactors producing electricity can be stored safely for up to 60 years after a plant is closed -- or indefinitely if a permanent repository isn't built.  That finding will be used in licensing decisions going forward.

NRC Finalizes Waste Rule, Lets Licensing Decisions Resume