(Texas Scorecard) – Attorney General Ken Paxton argued before the U.S. Supreme Court that federal officials are violating the law in their efforts to store nuclear waste in Texas.
In 1982, Congress passed a law establishing procedures for evaluating and selecting sites for geologic repositories for nuclear waste, later designating a permanent site in Nevada.
According to Paxton, the federal government’s attempts to authorize private “interim storage projects” to store nuclear waste in the Texas Permian Basin violates that law.
Paxton’s office has highlighted the risk of accidents and terrorist attacks posed by moving radioactive materials to the basin through highly populated areas of the state.
“The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has no lawful authority to irresponsibly dump thousands of metric tons of radioactive nuclear waste on top of the vital oil fields in Texas,” stated Paxton.
Whether or not the NRC has the authority to license temporary storage facilities is what is currently being debated in the Supreme Court.
Paxton has called for the federal government to “follow the law instead of jeopardizing national security, threatening environmental catastrophe, and inviting untold disaster.”
In 2017, Paxton filed a motion asking the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to declare that the federal government is not in compliance with the Nuclear Waste Policy Act.
In 2021, Paxton sued to stop the creation of a new interim storage facility in West Texas, calling it “unlawful.”
Gov. Greg Abbott has fiercely opposed federal efforts to store nuclear waste in Texas, citing significant environmental and safety risks, as well as potential economic damage to the state’s vital oil industry.
“I will not let Texas become America’s dumping ground for deadly radioactive waste,” Abbott said in 2022 as he joined the legal action to vacate a federal license to store nuclear waste in Texas.
Abbott signed a law in 2021 banning the storage of nuclear waste in Texas outside of limited cases in nuclear facilities.
The Permian Basin, a vast region spanning West Texas, is a global powerhouse for oil production, making it a critical economic asset. Yet, federal officials for years have attempted to store nuclear waste in the area.
Critics warn of potentially catastrophic consequences from storing waste in the geologically sensitive area, while supporters insist the facilities meet rigorous safety standards.
The Nuclear Waste Policy Act designated Yucca Mountain in Nevada as the sole site for a permanent underground repository for high-level nuclear waste.
The project stalled due to political opposition and environmental concerns, and no permanent facility has been built.