By Rose Krzton-Presson
Washington DC – Vice-President of the United Steel Workers Local 550 Jim Key says not passing the proposed Energy and Revenue Enrichment Act would negatively affect the region beyond the loss of 1,200 plant workers at Paducah's Gaseous Diffusion Plant. Key spoke at a Monday on the proposed legislation which calls for the re-enrichment of 700-thousand metric tons of depleted uranium hexafluoride, or "tails," at sites in Paducah and Portsmouth, Ohio. Key claims that if the tails were exported to other sites, it could affect Tennessee Valley Authority plants, as well as deny revenue to Paducah.
"For nearly sixty years, this community has been home to millions of tons of DOE's waste tails; and now that the tails are recognized to have value, Paducah, the region, and the plant employees should be the ones to benefit. To even consider shipping these tails away from Paducah to another facility is simply wrong."
The bill, if approved, would lift a ban on re-enriching the tails and allow for a 24 month pilot program at the Paducah Plant. Without any further action from the government and private sector, the plant is set to end operation in May of 2012. The house bill, sponsored by Representative Ed Whitfield remains in the Energy and Commerce Committee.