Midland Reporter-Telegram
May 22, 1999

Andrews 'Wins' in Rewritten Nuclear Waste Bill

By Richard Acosta
Staff Writer

Andrews County will be the sole site considered for the low-level radioactive waste facility in Texas, if the House approves a rewritten bill from the Senate this legislative session.

The Texas Senate approved the new bill Friday, written by Sen. J.E. "Buster" Brown, R-Lake Jackson, entitled House Bill 1171. The bill maps out the state’s plan to store radioactive waste in Texas according to the compact between Texas, Maine and Vermont.

The new amendment has raised concerns in Monahans (Ward County), which was one of the counties in contention to host the site.

In addition to the amendment cutting Ward County out of the race, it was presented to the Senate by Ward County’s senator, Robert Duncan, R-Lubbock.

Monahans Mayor David Cutbirth said that he talked to Duncan before and after the amendment passed, while Duncan was on the House floor. Cutbirth expressed his deep disappointment about Duncan’s amendment.

"We would just like the opportunity to be the host city," Cutbirth said. "If this is safe, then it is about economical development. We do not dig oil and gas wells for the good of the environment; we do it for the economy. If this is proven to be safe then it is about jobs and I cannot understand why he would put this in Andrews County only, when he represents us."

Duncan said that although he respects Cutbirth’s opinion, he sees this issue as environmental, not economical.

"Many communities in hard times could be attracted to these types of proposals," Duncan said. "We don’t want West Texas to be known for radioactive waste. Andrews is a safe site, they have community support. We don’t want there to be prospecting for sites around Texas. We want it to be in one place only, not all over Texas."

Sen. Teel Bivins, R-Amarillo, voted for the bill and each of the nine amendments that attached to it.

"I think Sen. Brown did a good job balancing and providing protection for the state," Bivins said. "I want to work with (Warren) Chisum (writer of the first bill that was killed in Brown’s committee) to work out any problems and get this bill signed into law."

The bill will go back to the House for a concurrence vote. If the House votes favorably, then the bill will go to the governor’s office. If it is voted down, it will go into committee until the differences can be worked out.

Chisum said that he is confident that the House will vote no on the bill and he will have a chance to go to work on it.

"Right now we are looking over the amendments to see what they do," Chisum said. "The Senate did exactly what Waste Control Specialists wanted them to do. I know some other counties are upset about what happened today, but they shouldn’t lose any sleep over it. I have the bill now."

Amendments to the new radioactive waste bill are as follows:

- A private entity will be chosen to run the radioactive waste facility only after competitive bidding.

- A section was removed from the new house bill that would do away with the Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Authority.

- A public company shall contract with a private entity to perform the overall operation of the facility.

- The facility cannot be built in a county that is 62 miles or less from Mexico, in a county where the annual rainfall is greater than 26 inches or in a county in which the commissioners court has not passed a resolution in support of the facilities.

- The radioactivity of the Department of Energy waste taken into the facility has to be 20 percent less then the total radioactivity of the Texas-Maine- Vermont compact waste and can be lowered if necessary to meet safety specifications.

- Items that can’t be stored in the facility: discarded radioactive atomic weapon components, radioactive waste resulting from the testing of any atomic weapons or waste from the production of atomic weapons.

- State would not be liable for the facility. The company that gets the license has to show that it can take care of the financial obligations of the facility if the company shuts down.

Tony Proffitt with WCS, which is located in Andrews County, released a statement expressing WCS’ pleasure with the passing of the new bill.

"Senate passage of the bill is a big step forward for Texas in solving the growing low-level radioactive waste problem," Proffitt said. "We are hopeful the House and Senate can agree on a final version so it can be signed into law."

Lawrence R. Jacobi, vice president Envirocare of Texas — which also owns land in Andrews County, but was exploring other sites in West Texas, including Ward County — said they are not out of the hunt.

"We have 888 acres in Andrews County," Jacobi said. "I don’t think the amendment was intended to give the site to WCS."

This legislative session ends on May 31. If the bill is not decided by then, it will have to wait until the next session. The state has already spent 18 years and more than $50 million on the low-level radioactive waste.

The bill will be making its way back to the House floor after being approved by the Texas Senate Friday by a margin of 23 to 6 with one abstention.