By Tony McVeigh
Frankfort, KY – Paducah Senator Bob Leeper's bill lifting the moratorium on construction of nuclear power facilities in Kentucky has cleared another legislative hurdle in Frankfort. The bill, which already has Senate approval, passed the House Energy committee 12-6. Prior to the vote, Tom Fitzgerald of the Kentucky Resources Council, urged its defeat.
"What this says to the nuclear industry is, counties may have to deal with their garbage, but we will relieve you of any obligation to find a strategy for permanent disposal of waste that will remain a potential public health risk far beyond a hundred years and into the thousands of years."
Current Kentucky law prohibits construction of nuclear power plants until there is an available, licensed location for the disposal of nuclear waste. The bill moving through the General Assembly lifts the moratorium, if companies can prove they have a plan for storing used nuclear fuel. The bill now awaits a House floor vote.