By Brock Vergakis@ - THE ASSOCIATED PRESS@ - Associated Press
Friday, September 4, 2009
The Utah attorney general's office on Friday denied reports that it is negotiating with a company to drop the state's objections to importing foreign nuclear waste for disposal here.
EnergySolutions Inc. wants to import as much as 20,000 tons of low-level radioactive waste from Italy through the ports of Charleston, South Carolina, or New Orleans. After processing in Tennessee, about 1,600 tons would be disposed of in the desert about 70 miles (115 kilometres) west of Salt Lake City.
If approved by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, it would be the largest amount of radioactive waste ever imported into the U.S.
The western state is currently appealing a federal judge's ruling that the state can't use a regional compact to keep foreign nuclear waste out.
EnergySolutions said in a statement earlier in the day it was in settlement discussions with Utah.
After previously declining to comment, Paul Murphy, a spokesman for Attorney General Mark Shurtleff sent an email to The Associated Press saying his office was not in any settlement talks with the company.
EnergySolutions clarified its earlier statement.
"We have let the new administration know that our offer is still on the table. There are no new settlement terms being proposed or negotiated," the statement said. "Because this issue is still before the court it would be inappropriate to comment further."
In February, the company said it would offer Utah 50 per cent of its net revenues from the disposal of foreign nuclear waste if it agreed to let it in Utah.
Former Gov. Jon Huntsman scoffed at that proposal, saying the long-term impact wouldn't be worth a temporary financial windfall.
Huntsman resigned last month to become U.S. ambassador to China. In May, Huntsman's replacement, former Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert, said he wouldn't do anything differently from Huntsman in regard to foreign waste.
EnergySolutions has said it has plenty of capacity at its site for the Italian waste and has pledged to cap the amount accepted at the site to 5 per cent of all capacity.
It also says the Italian waste would represent less than 1 per cent of the waste it accepts annually.
