On Wednesday, June 18, the US Supreme Court (SCOTUS) ruled that high-level nuclear waste can be stored in Andrews County, Texas, alongside the Waste Control Specialists’ long-running low-level radioactive waste repository. Expectations now are that a license may be approved for a similar repository managed by Holtec International in Lea County, New Mexico. Both counties are in the Permian Basin. Reactions in Texas and New Mexico to the SCOTUS’ ruling have been quite negative. State Representative Brooks Landgraf from Odessa, who represented Andrews County until 2021, said the SCOTUS’ decision is “incorrect” and fails to appreciate Texas’ efforts to keep high-level radioactive waste from being stored in the Permian Basin. However, Landgraf noted that the ruling did not invalidate Texas law and did not directly authorize the disposal of high-level radioactive waste in the state. Therefore, Texas law continues to prohibit the storage or disposal of imported high-level radioactive waste in the state territory. Landgraf added that he will work with Governor Greg Abbott to protect the Permian Basin and ensure that Texas does not become the “nation’s radioactive dumping ground.”
New Mexico Governo Michelle Lujan Grisham also said that she was deeply disappointed by SCOTUS’ decision. She reiterated that Holtec’s project is not welcome in the state and that she will do anything in her power to prevent storing radioactive waste in Lea County. Finally, she complained about the failure of Congress to establish a permanent location for the disposal of nuclear waste, leaving that to the arbitrary action of the federal government.
