Charles Jones holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Masters in Public Administration from Havard University. He served as an alternate member of the Central Interstate Low-Level Radioactive Waste Commission and as the primary staff on LLRW at the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. He is a certified hazardous materials manager.

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I want to direct most of my comments to the folks from Boyd County. All I can offer this morning is my perspective of where things are at, where they probably will go, but where they might go. Certainly, the opponents of this facility seem to have position and momentum. The governor and political body have a growing skepticism about the Boyd County project. There’s a national wave of rethinking about the need for so many disposal facilities. And the Department of Environmental Quality has a lot of room in which to question and criticize the application.

But while opponents may have position and momentum, the battle is a long way from over. I would guess that the utility strategy is to simply wait out Governor Nelson, to monitor and perhaps try to influence the upcoming gubernatorial election. If they are lucky and Nebraska elects a governor who supports this facility, the utilities will run over the citizens of Boyd County with impunity. If Nebraska elects an anti-dump governor, the utilities will look at the court system, they’ll look at the unicameral, and they’ll probably look at Congress to see if any options are available. If, after looking at those options, they find no reason to be optimistic and are looking down the barrel of eight more years resistance from the governor’s office and administration, perhaps there will be some serious rethinking of this project.

So we’re in a great time for negotiations. The next couple of years could see a dramatic win or loss in this project. The utilities and Boyd County residents both stand to win or lose big time. And with rising stakes come new opportunities. It’s like climbing the steps to a courthouse in a civil suit. The closer you get to the courtroom and the possibility of a total loss, the greater the incentive to negotiate, to create new visions, and maybe to search out new directions.

I want to talk just a little bit about the utilities. There’s not a lot of quit in those guys. I recently read the corporate history of Wolf Creek by Craig Miner, a writer out of Wichita. He tells of tremendous problems incurred in constructing and completing that nuclear plant. There were enormous cost overruns, labor problems, and political battles. Electricity demand projections were widely questioned. The bond rating of Kansas Gas & Electric, the lead Wolf Creek utility, dropped from investment to speculative grade. Once on line, there were battles with ratesetting agencies over proper unit costs, and customers served by KG&E ended up paying a much higher electric rate than the statewide average. Ultimately, according to Miner, the Wolf Creek venture fatally weakened Kansas Gas & Electric. The company was finally lost, taken over by Kansas Power and Light which is now known as Western Resources. In spite of these facts, if we had a significant hearing about low-level radioactive waste today at the Topeka State House, you would find Wilson Cadman, past-CEO of Kansas Gas & Electric and godfather of Wolf Creek , sitting in the front row, his face bright red with indignation that anyone would dare question the wisdom and integrity of that plant and its builders. It’s the craziest damn thing I’ve ever seen.

But it’s not the craziest damn thing my wife has ever seen. That, of course, would be me, jumping up and down and screaming at the television one night last summer when a storm came through and knocked out our power during the NBA playoffs. And that, of course, would be me on a day like this when the ragweed is in bloom and I have to get my allergies out of the great outdoors and into air conditioning.

Do you get the picture? Those who criticize the willfulness of utilities must understand that determination and a big ego is what it takes to be a power provider. Building generating plants and reliably delivering electricity is not a job for the faint of heart. By the same standard, those who criticize Boyd County for their willfulness ought to go up to the northern part of the state and try to maintain a toe-hold in that wind-blown plain. It’s tough, and so are the people of that place. The utilities and their Boyd County opponents are much more alike than different. You are all intelligent, capable, stubborn and profoundly protective of that which you value.

So where do we go from here? How do we move this project off of high center? As we come upon Yom Kippur, the Jewish holiday of atonement, I have to throw out a few words about forgiveness, about giving forgiveness and seeking the same. I know that forgiveness may sound like a funny thing to talk about here today, but I think it fits very well. The ability to deal with anger and sorrow and frustration is critical to maintaining a community’s health. If you can’t quiet your anger, you can’t think straight. And if you can’t think straight, it’s hard to be effective. So what would I suggest to the people of Boyd County? I would urge you to search your hearts to find ways to forgive and find the humility to seek forgiveness. I can’t think of anything more critical to being effective and achieving your goals.

I recommend that you focus your efforts on the utilities. They call the shots. The compact staff, US Ecology, and even the commissioners are little more than middlemen. It’s different in Nebraska, because there is a public power system. But that may change. Deregulation of generation raises questions as to whether Nebraska’s power production will become a private sector operation. If that happens, in-state advocacy for the Boyd County facility will likely increase.

Focus on the utilities and change. Don’t waste your energy answering editorials, being mad about this or that, and countering every provocative word that somebody utters. You don’t have to fight every single battle that comes along. Focus on the utilities and what will change their course.

What will it take to reroute the utilities? The industry needs confidence that there will be disposal capacity for the waste generated at their facilities. I’ve heard a lot of talk today about potential disposal options. But as of yet, I have heard no one say there is a place for Wolf Creek to take its waste, a disposal option which is guaranteed, safe and affordable. Until that certain option exists, the utilities involved in this compact are not likely to stop the Boyd County effort.

The utilities want to be confident about disposal options, but there is also a human side of the equation that needs to be addressed. The utilities are represented by individuals, people who were supposed to ride herd on this project, to safeguard company interests during this process. Those individuals have insecurities and fears just like anyone else who draws a paycheck. Those people need a way to go back to their bosses with their heads held high. Now maybe you’re angry. Maybe you want to beat them and send them home with their tails between their legs. You surely have a right to feel that way. But there’s a difference between being angry and being effective. If you don’t understand, go back and review what I said earlier about forgiveness. The best way to get the utilities out of Boyd County is to give them a dignified alternative path. Try to ride these people out of town on a rail and you’ll only strengthen their resolve to stand and fight.

Just a few final thoughts. You are no longer victims. You are no longer innocents. When I look at this community, I see an immense amount of hard-won knowledge about low-level radioactive waste and its disposal. Because nobody is paying you, you are best positioned to give an honest, objective opinion not only on the Boyd County site but on the larger question of managing low-level radioactive waste. You are a resource of great and ongoing value and I hope that your interest and involvement does not stop at the county or state line. Your knowledge, common sense, responsibility and compassion are very much needed as this compact and nation try to resolve a difficult, growing problem.