By Angela Hatton
Washington, D. C. – The U. S. House Energy and Commerce Committee is holding the first hearing on a bill that would allow the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant to re-enrich depleted uranium. The meeting began a half hour ago in Washington, and includes testimony from Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and United Steelworkers local president Jim Key, who represents the union at PGDP. The bill funds a two-year pilot program to enrich uranium tails, which are leftovers that contain some usable material. There are 40,000 canisters on site in Paducah. Supporters say enriching the tails would retain jobs, and help with environmental cleanup at the plant site.