Image: Fentress County Courthouse in Jamestown & Valley of the Three Forks near Pall Mall. Image Credit: Brian Stansberry / CC.
Article by Paula Gomes, Tennessee Conservative News –
Fentress County is no longer in the running to host a nuclear waste site according to County Executive Jacob Rosenbaum who made the announcement early this week.
The county was one of four on Tennessee’s Cumberland Plateau being evaluated as a potential site for a nuclear waste repository but county residents have opposed the proposal for months with thousands signing a petition against it and support coming from local state lawmakers.
The Fentress County Commission also voted unanimously against hosting a site.
In a statement, Rosenbaum said that state officials had respected the pushback from residents of the county and that a “positive and constructive relationship with our state government” would continue, especially pertaining to economic and infrastructure projects in Fentress County in the future.
Members of the commission rejected the idea back in September, while Pickett County considered its own similar resolution, following Morgan County’s rejection to host a long-term underground nuclear waste storage site.
Republican State Representative Kelly Keisling, whose district includes Pickett, Scott, and part of Fentress Counties, joined with fellow Republican Representative Ed Butler and Democrat Senator Heidi Campbell in writing to Governor Bill Lee with concerns about nuclear waste storage under the state’s proposed Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus (NILC).
The lawmakers asked for clarification and consideration about the storage of the waste with Campbell pushing for public input and legislative oversight of the deal alongside geographical concerns while Butler opposed nuclear waste storage within the state as a whole but also expressing support for nuclear investment.
Lee signed a nonbinding intent agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to host nuclear waste at a NILC which could also host advanced reactor deployment, power generation, and data centers.
The state was one of five that volunteered to accept nuclear waste from around the country in exchange for federal partnership, potentially worth billions of dollars, to help develop nuclear power production.
Ultimately, it will be Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee’s next governor, who will be responsible for overseeing the fulfillment of the project or for backing out of it altogether.
Lee had originally mentioned the Oak Ridge Laboratory as a potential site before also identifying Fentress, Morgan, Pickett, and Scott counties as possible locations.
Campbell questioned the wisdom of the partnership as Tennessee is dominated by karst geology. The state sits atop limestone riddled with sinkholes, caves, underground streams, and fast-moving groundwater. Water travels up through fractures and cracks with the potential to carry contamination along with it for long distances.
Sources:
WVLT.
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
