CITY of ALBUQUERQUE
TWENTY THIRD COUNCIL
COUNCIL BILL NO. M-18-1 ENACTMENT NO. ________________________
SPONSORED BY: Patrick Davis
MEMORIAL
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Opposing Transportation Of High-Level Radioactive Waste Via Railway Through The City Of Albuquerque For The Purpose Of Temporary Consolidated Storage Of Radioactive Waste In New Mexico (Davis)
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OPPOSING TRANSPORTATION OF HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE VIA RAILWAY THROUGH THE CITY OF ALBUQUERQUE FOR THE PURPOSE OF TEMPORARY CONSOLIDATED STORAGE OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE IN NEW MEXICO.
WHEREAS, the City owns and operates a number of Community Centers, Health and Social Services Centers, Senior/Fitness Centers, and Multi-Generational Centers throughout the City; and
WHEREAS, the City of Albuquerque is committed to protecting the health, welfare, safety, and security of its residents; and
WHEREAS, Holtec Inc. has applied to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a license to store up to 100,000 tons of 'spent' nuclear reactor fuel, which is all of the nation’s most dangerous nuclear waste, in temporary in-ground storage in Lea County, SE New Mexico; and
WHEREAS, some of the waste could be shipped by rail through the City of Albuquerque; and
WHEREAS, if the nuclear waste is brought to New Mexico for temporary storage it would then need to be transported a second time, increasing two fold the dangers of transportation. Therefore, this 'spent' nuclear reactor fuel should remain secured at or near the site of generation and be transported only once, when a scientifically viable permanent disposal site becomes available; and
WHEREAS, if during transport an accident occurred resulting in a release of a small amount of radioactivity from the 'spent' nuclear reactor fuel, it could contaminate a 42-square mile area. A Department of Energy study found that the cleanup could cost $620 million in a rural area and $9.5 billion in the most heavily contaminated square mile of an urban area; and
WHEREAS, exposure to dangerous levels of radioactivity is known to lead to birth defects, genetic damage, and cancers. And unshielded exposure to high-level radioactive waste could be lethal; and
WHEREAS, our lives, land, and aquifers must be protected from radioactive contamination that could result from accidents, radiation releases, leaks, or terrorist actions during the thousands of 'spent' nuclear reactor fuel waste shipments spanning over at least 20 years if temporary consolidated storage is licensed.
BE IT MEMORIALIZED BY THE COUNCIL, THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE CITY OF ALBUQUERQUE:
The City Council of Albuquerque opposes the transportation of high-level radioactive waste, including Holtec’s 'spent' nuclear reactor fuel, on our railways through the City of Albuquerque for the purpose of temporary consolidated storage of high-level radioactive waste in New Mexico.
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