skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Tribes Protest N-Reactor Project on Hanford Site

play audio
Play

Thursday, October 28, 2021   

RICHLAND, Wash. -- An advanced nuclear reactor proposal at the Hanford site is spurring opposition from local tribes.

The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Energy saying they do not support the company X-energy's small modular reactor proposal.

Mason Murphy, energy and environmental science program manager for the tribes, said the Hanford nuclear reservation near the Columbia River is partially within tribally ceded territory under the Treaty of 1855.

"Because of that, we anticipate that the small modular nuclear reactors may have impacts on all of the following resources: Specifically, state and federally listed plants and wildlife; big game habitat; [and] historic properties of religious and cultural significance as defined in the National Historic Preservation Act," Murphy outlined.

X-energy's proposal involves advanced nuclear reactor technology, which could produce more than 300 megawatts of power. The Department of Energy awarded the company $80 million in initial funding in 2020. The company said the reactors are based on safe, clean and affordable technology.

The Hanford Nuclear Site was chosen during World War II to produce much of the country's plutonium for 40 years. That also meant a lot of waste, which is a concern for the tribes.

Murphy argued there is no solution for long-term storage of nuclear waste, some of which has half-lives of 15 million years. He worries what will happen if nuclear projects continue to be built there.

"To me, that would indicate they are likely to continue developing that nuclear mission, and those resources may never become available, if that were the case," Murphy contended.

Murphy noted the Department of Energy has committed itself to pursuing environmental justice and should consider what that means in this situation.

"Some of these larger cleanup sites like the Hanford site represent some of the largest environmental injustice sites," Murphy pointed out. "I think that we need to really ensure that that's being taken into consideration when starting to site some of these technologies."

In 2007, the tribes' board of trustees adopted a policy there should be no new nuclear-energy production at the Hanford site without government-to-government consultation. Murphy added the Department of Energy has agreed to meet but has not yet set a date.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021