The U.S. Energy Department has halted its plan to conduct an Environmental Assessment involving the proposed lease of 2,700 acres at Savannah River Site for an energy park.
The assessment was to be the first step in the process of determining the suitability of allowing the SRS Community Reuse Organization to use the land for economic development purposes that critics fear could bring additional nuclear waste to South Carolina.
Jim Giusti, a DOE spokesman at the site, said halting the assessment will allow time for more dialogue and discussion before any binding decisions are made.
"We're going to reset the clock, and first start it with public discussions about what an energy park is, and what it would look like, and what the stakeholders have to say about something like this," he said.
The department has scheduled a workshop from 1 to 5 p.m. today at the North Augusta Municipal Center to discuss the concepts and objectives of such a project.
With so many unanswered questions, the planned environmental assessment would be better conducted later, Mr. Giusti said. "It makes no sense to proceed with a document when we don't have enough information to do an environmental study at this point."
The assessment is part of the process required under the National Environmental Policy Act and would help determine whether a full environmental impact statement is needed.
Tom Clements, the Southeast campaign director for Friends of the Earth, complained in a June 21 letter to Energy Secretary Steven Chu that more public involvement and transparency were needed in discussions about the project.
The community reuse organization's proposal lists a host of potential uses, including nuclear waste processing. Mr. Clements said much more needs to be known about the plans for the property before the Energy Department could relinquish it for other purposes.
Mr. Giusti said such questions are likely topics for today's workshop.
"Part of the idea of the workshop is to let everyone know what our concept of an energy park is, to take questions and answers and to take stakeholder input. From there we will move forward to the next phase and come up with a document people can comment on," Mr. Giusti said.
Reach Rob Pavey at 868-1222, ext. 119, or rob.pavey@augustachronicle.com.
PARK IDEAS
Potential uses for energy park property:
- Alternative energy
- Hydrogen generation and infrastructure
- Nuclear reactors
- Nuclear waste processing and stabilization
- Nuclear medicine and isotope generation
- Nuclear fuel fabrication facilities
- Uranium enrichment facilities
- Electric bulk power transmission and control
- Transportation and distribution support activities
- Utilities and infrastructure support activities
Source: SRS Community Reuse Organization energy park proposal
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Now's the time for everyone to speak up for clean projects in the future at SRS. If some special interests get their way, there will be a huge quantity of nuclear waste coming our way and more threat of environmental contamination and squandered tax payer money. Folks around here are tired of the nuclear threat at SRS; it's time to go for clean, green jobs.
There is no such thing as clean energy. Green jobs are a joke, something cooked up by the current and former administration. I'm an environmental engineer, I know, in our circle we laugh everytime we hear this. Be glad SRS is there and has been there many years, without it what would those people who work there be doing, drawing a check from the govt? and you complain about nuclear waste. I can assure you having worked in the waste business, there are currently materials on your roads far more dangerous than any nuclear waste that may be brought to SRS. Get a grip, nuclear threat, you talk as if it's 1960 again. The great thing about all this is if you hate SRS you can always move, cause rest assured it's not going anywhere
Funny that that folks associated with SRS think the rest of us should pay and pay for them to have jobs. Where in the heck did this big-government dependency attitude come from? Part of the erosion of values in this country. Fiscal conservatives need to regroup and oppose this nuclear socialism.