Stop Fukushima Freeways National Campaign Kickoff via NEIS

WHAT: Stop Fukushima Freeways National Campaign Kick-Off

WHEN: Tuesday, October 27, 2015

LOCATION AND DETAILS:
· Press Release 12 noon: release of maps of potential road and rail transport corridors for high-level radioactive waste (HLRW) through Illinois, and its implications for public safety and the environment
· Tele-Briefing Tuesday, 10/27/15, 2–3 pm Eastern time; (1-2 p.m. Central time zone)
Call: 605-562-3140 and enter code: 723281#
· http://www.nirs.org/fukushimafreeways/stopfukushimafreeways.htm
WHO:
David Kraft, director of Nuclear Energy Information Service in Illinois, available for interview by phone, Skype or in office; scores of organizations nationally
· Tele-briefing on HLRW transportation issues:
Dr. Fred Dilger of Black Mountain Research, author of the nuclear transport maps, and Dr. Marvin Resnikoff of Radioactive Waste Management Associates who has done extensive work on nuclear waste containers, shipments and accident risks.

BACKGROUND:
New information shows that Illinois is in the path of thousands of nuclear waste shipments if the controversial and currently defunct HLRW disposal site proposed for Yucca Mountain, NV, were to open. Transporting the nation’s nuclear waste stockpile to Yucca Mountain would involve tens of thousands of shipments nationally on roads and railways, making accidents a statistical certainty. Members of the current Congress, especially Republic Representative John Shimkus (15th, IL), have been pushing for a re-opening of the now defunct Yucca Mt., NV site as a HLRW disposal facility.

Illinois’ extensive road and rail network, and its proximity to Lake Michigan make it a major corridor state for such shipments. Exelon’s 14 reactors (11 operating) have produced the largest amount of HLRW of any state. IL also has the nation’s only commercial HLRW storage facility near Morris, IL. A 2012 DOE study targets IL as an optimal location for the nation’s first “away from reactor” storage facility. Exelon’s threat to close up to 5 of its Illinois reactors moves up the timeline for dealing with HLRW storage, transportation and disposal considerably. Finally, a cash-strapped, nearly bankrupt state without a budget could result in the dangerously inadequate ability to provide for the safe transportation of HLRW in the immediate future, as department closures and staff reductions impede on the State’s ability to safeguard the shipments or respond to transportation emergencies and accidents.