Future appears murkier for Vermont Yankee fuel

BRATTLEBORO — It’s never been clear exactly when Vermont Yankee’s radioactive spent fuel might leave Vernon or where it might go.

And the situation may have gotten even murkier over the past year, mostly due to leadership changes in Washington.

State nuclear engineer Tony Leshinskie said he’s been deeply involved in planning for the day when rail cars full of spent fuel depart from Vermont Yankee. But he said a tangle of political and regulatory shifts at the federal level has made it “anyone’s guess” when that day might come.

“At this point, it’s really tough to say,” Leshinskie said.

Entergy stopped producing power at Vermont Yankee at the end of 2014. Crews are moving the remainder of the plant’s spent fuel from a cooling pool into sealed casks stored on concrete pads at the site.

Read more: https://vtdigger.org/2017/11/20/future-appears-murkier-vermont-yankee-fuel/#.WhP8bnlryuA