Action for Spent Fuel Solutions Now is a new group of local governments, elected offi cials, utilities, environmental groups, labor leaders, Native American leaders, business organizations and other community members who support the relocation of spent nuclear fuel to a federally licensed facility away from our coastline. This is the fi rst step forward to take action. Our founding members include representatives from the County of Orange, County of San Diego, Southern California Edison (SCE), San Diego Gas & Electric and the City of Riverside.
WHAT WE DO
Our goal is to encourage the federal government to
provide off -site storage and/or permanent disposal
solutions for the spent nuclear fuel at the San Onofre
Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) and other
nuclear sites across the state and nation,
with input from stakeholders and engaged
communities. SCE retired SONGS in 2013, but
spent nuclear fuel continues to be stored on site with
nowhere to send it.
WHY ACTION IS NEEDED
Under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act, the federal
government was required by law and executed
contracts with nuclear power providers to begin
taking possession of and disposing spent nuclear
fuel back in 1998. Today – more than two decades
later – it has not yet fulfi lled its legal and contractual obligations. Spent nuclear fuel can be safely stored
on site at SONGS for decades, but SCE cannot
complete decommissioning of the plant and restore
the land until the federal government takes action to
facilitate an off -site solution.
19 on-site dry storage facilities
at retired U.S. nuclear power plants
102 of 123
spent fuel canisters at SONGS
ready for transport now
4 spent nuclear fuel dry
storage sites in California
35 states with at least some
spent fuel stored at plant sites
Take action today! Join the coalition at spentfuelsolutionsnow.com. 100%
of SONGS spent fuel in canisters
designed for storage and transportation
Executive Board
Our Executive Board sets the coalition’s goals, directs eff orts and oversees activities to support the removal of spent fuel from SONGS and other sites to a federally licensed off site facility. Executive Board members include local governments and the SONGS plant owners.
Advisory Council
Action for Spent Fuel Solutions Now’s Advisory Council provides the Executive Board with recommendations and advice related to coalition strategy and activities. Membership includes stakeholders representing diverse interests such as environmental organizations, labor unions, industry experts, community leaders, Native American leaders, and business groups.
Supervisor Lisa Bartlett, County of Orange (Co-Chair)
Supervisor Jim Desmond, County of San Diego (Co-Chair)
Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson, City of Riverside
Caroline Choi, Senior Vice President of Corporate Aff airs, Southern California Edison
Estela de Llanos, Vice President of Energy Procurement & Sustainability, San Diego Gas & Electric
Garry Brown, Orange County Coastkeeper
Valentine “Val” Macedo, LiUNA Local 89
Aaron McCall, California Environmental Voters
Rachel Norton, California State Parks Foundation
Jerry Sanders, San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce
Captain Mel Vernon, San Luis Rey Band of Mission
Indians
Dr. David Victor, SONGS Community Engagement Panel/
UC San Diego/ Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Tom Isaacs, Independent Strategic Advisor to SCE for Nuclear Waste Management/Former Director, Offi ce of Nuclear Waste Policy within the U.S. Department of Energy
COALITION LEADERSHIP
Members
Advisor
[email protected]
(858) 290-1373
CONTACT US
Our Supporting Members include organizations and individuals committed to the relocation of spent nuclear fuel at SONGS to a federally licensed off site consolidated interim storage facility or permanent geologic repository.
Elected officials and local governments
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
Supervisor Doug Chaff ee, Chair, Orange County
Supervisor Donald P. Wagner, Vice Chair, Orange County
Supervisor Andrew Do, Orange County
Supervisor Katrina Foley, Orange County
Supervisor Lisa Bartlett, Orange County
SAN DIEGO COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
Supervisor Nathan Fletcher, Chair, County of San Diego
Supervisor Nora Vargas, Vice Chair, County of San Diego Supervisor Joel Anderson, County of San Diego
Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer, County of San Diego
Supervisor Jim Desmond, County of San Diego
RIVERSIDE COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
Supervisor Karen Spiegel, Chair, County of Riverside
Supervisor Jeff Hewitt, Vice Chair, County of Riverside Supervisor Kevin Jeff ries, County of Riverside
Supervisor Chuck Washington, County of Riverside
Supervisor V. Manuel Perez, County of Riverside
CALIFORNIA STATE LEGISLATURE
Senator Pat Bates, California State Senate, 36th District Senator Brian Jones, California State Senate, 38th District Assemblymember Randy Voepel, California State Assembly, 71st District
CITY OF BUENA PARK
Councilmember Connor Traut
CITY OF BREA
Councilmember Steve Vargas
CITY OF CARLSBAD
Mayor Matt Hall
CITY OF CHULA VISTA
Mayor Mary Salas
Councilmember Andrea Cardenas
SUPPORTING MEMBERS
CITY OF DANA POINT
Mayor Joe Muller
Mayor Pro Tem Mike Frost
Councilmember Richard Viczorek
Councilmember Jamey Federico
Councilmember Michael Villar
CITY OF EL CAJON
Councilmember Phil Ortiz
CITY OF ESCONDIDO
Councilmember Michael Morasco
CITY OF HUNTINGTON BEACH
Mayor Barbara Delgleize
Mayor Pro Tem Mike Posey
CITY OF LA MESA
Mayor Mark Arapostathis
Vice Mayor Jack Shu
Councilmember Bill Baber
Councilmember Laura Lothian
Councilmember Colin Parent
CITY OF NATIONAL CITY
Councilmember Jose Rodriguez
CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH
Mayor Kevin Muldoon
Mayor Pro Tem Noah Blom
Councilmember Brad Avery
Councilmember Joy Brenner
Councilmember Diane B. Dixon
Councilmember Duff y Duffi eld
Councilmember Will O’Neill
CITY OF OCEANSIDE
Mayor Esther C. Sanchez
Deputy Mayor Ryan Keim
Councilmember Kori Jensen
Councilmember Christopher Rodriguez
Councilmember Peter Weiss
CITY OF SAN CLEMENTE
Mayor Gene James
Mayor Pro Tem Chris Duncan
Councilmember Laura Ferguson
Councilmember Steve Knoblock
Councilmember Kathleen Ward
CITY OF SAN DIEGO
Mayor Todd Gloria
CITY OF SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO
Councilmember John Taylor
CITY OF SAN MARCOS
Mayor Rebecca Jones
CITY OF STANTON
Mayor David Shawver
CITY OF VISTA
Mayor Judy Ritter
Deputy Mayor John Franklin
FORMER ELECTED OFFICIALS
Shirley Dettloff, Former Mayor, City of Huntington Beach Diane Harkey, Former California State Board of Equalization Member Environmental groups and advocates
Marni Magda, CEP Member
President Gayle Waite, Laguna Canyon Conservancy
Bolsa Chica Conservancy
California Environmental Voters
California State Parks Foundation
Friends of Harbors, Beaches and Parks
Industrial Environmental Association
Orange County Coastkeeper
Labor unions
LiUNA Local 89
Orange County Professional Firefighters Association, Local 3631 School districts
Capistrano Unified School District
Emergency responders
Sheriff Don Barnes, Orange County
Former Sheriff Bill Gore, County of San Diego
Orange County Fire Authority
Business and industry groups
Anaheim/Orange County Hotel and Lodging Association
Apartment Association of Orange County
California Apartment Association – Orange County
Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce
Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce
Dana Point Chamber of Commerce
East County Chamber of Commerce
Greater Irvine Chamber of Commerce
La Mesa Chamber of Commerce
Laguna Beach Chamber of Commerce
Laguna Niguel Chamber of Commerce
National City Chamber of Commerce
Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce
North Orange County Chamber of Commerce
North San Diego Business Chamber
Oceanside Chamber of Commerce
Orange County Association of REALTORS
Orange County Business Council
Orange County Taxpayers Association
Otay Chamber of Commerce
Poway Chamber of Commerce
San Clemente Chamber of Commerce
San Diego County Taxpayers Association
San Diego Military Advisory Council
San Diego North Economic Development Council
San Diego Port Tenants Association
San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce
San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation
San Diego Restaurant Association
San Juan Capistrano Chamber of Commerce
San Ysidro Chamber of Commerce
South Orange County Economic Coalition
Vista Chamber of Commerce
Government agencies and organizations
Association of California Cities - Orange County
Orange County Council of Governments
[email protected]
(858) 290-1373
CONTACT US
January 13, 2017
Honorable Dianne Feinstein
United States Senator
331 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Honorable Michael Conaway
United States House of Representatives
2430 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Honorable Mick Mulvaney
United States House of Representatives
2419 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Senator Feinstein, Congressman Conaway and Congressman Mulvaney ,
The Concerned Coastal Communities Coalition writes to express its strong support for your continuing efforts to pass legislation to authorize interim storage strategies to address the evergrowing stockpile of spent nuclear fuel around the nation. While your respective legislation, the Nuclear Waste Administration Act of 2015 (S. 854), the Interim C onsolidated Storage Act of 2015 (H.R. 3643), and the Interim Consolidated Storage Act of 2016 (H.R. 4745) , may differ in strategy, the share the common goal of removing nuclear waste from facilities that pose hazards adjacent communities. As the 114 th Congress draws to a close, we urge you work with one another to jointly develop legislation for the 115th Congress to authorize interim storage facilities.
As California coastal cities in close proximity to the now closed San Onofre Nuclear Power Generating Station (SONGS) located in northern San Diego County, we have a longstanding interest in the proper operation of nuclear power plants . Today, given the closure of the SONGS facility, we have an even greater interest in the decommissioning of such plants and the removal of high-level radioactive waste.
Nuclear power was first generated by the SONGS facility nearly fifty years ago, when the Unit 1 reactor began operating in 1968. Two additional units came on line in 1983 and 1984, generating up to 2,200 megawatts of electricity. The first reactor unit ceased operating in 1992, while the second and third reactors were shut down in 2013 due to premature wear found on over 3,000 tubes in replacemen t steam generators. SONGS is currently in the initial stages of decommissioning.
More than 7 million Californians live within 50 miles of SONGS. Communities in our coalition represent the front line and are the most likely to be impacted if radioactive material were to leak. City leaders and residents alike continue to monitor and participate in the decommissioning process. We remain hopeful that the decades of work necessary to protect our environment and
ensure public safety proceeds expeditiously. Howev er, we remain deeply concerned that the accumulated high -level radioactive waste will remain on the site —either in liquid pools or dry casks—for an indefinite period of time due to the lack of a national or regional repositories. Given the seismic and rela ted tsunami threats that exists in the region, long -term storage of this radioactive material at the SONGS site is simply unacceptable.
The communities participating in our coalition are hardly alone in their concern for the potential threat posed by spent nuclear fuel languishing at nuclear faci lities in their backyard. Currently, the nation’s inventory of spent nuclear fuel is being stored at the sites where it was generated, including at the 61 still -operating nuclear power plants and 14 shut -down reactor sites. Just as with SONGS, we strongly believe that the hazardous material at these facilities should be removed as quickly and safely as possible.
Your legislation offers a much needed path forward for the removal of spent fuel and high -level waste from nuclear power plants. While the ultimate goal is to find safe, permanent facilities to store this waste, we applaud your respective efforts to provide option s for removing this hazardous material from urban communities like ours, rather than waiting for resolution to the endless debates over the penultimate site to deposit our nations’ nuclear waste.
Thank you for your diligent work to advan ce this important legislation. Our Coalition is eager to assist you in this endeavor and would be happy to offer testimony or any other manner of support to help ensure its passage in the 11 5th Congress.
Sincerely,
Mayor Jim Wood Mayor Toni Iseman
City of Oceanside City of Laguna Beach
Mayor Barbara Delgleize Mayor Kathleen Ward
City of Huntington Beach City of San Clemente
Mayor Sandra Massa-Lavitt Mayor Catherine Blakespear City of Seal Beach City of Encinitas
Mayor Kerry K. Ferguson
City of San Juan Capistrano
Cc: California Congressional Delegation
1401 Dove Street, Suite 330, Newport Beach, California 92660 RESOLUTION NO. 2022-XX
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
HUNTINGTON BEACH IN SUPPORT OF THE ACTION FOR SPENT
FUEL NOW COALITION
WHEREAS, the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (" SONGS") is a retired commercial nuclear power plant located approximately 30 miles from the City of Newport Beach (" City");
WHEREAS, SONGS has been in the decommissioning process since 2013 and as of August 2020, all spent nuclear fuel has been packaged in stainless steel canisters that are designed for both storage and transportation; however, the spent nuclear fuel remains onsite;
WHEREAS, the federal government has not assumed title to, liability for, or transported the spent fuel at SONGS, as it was required to do beginning in 1998 under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, Pub. L. No. 97- 425 ( Jan. 7, 1983), 96 Stat. 2201 codified as amended at 42 U. S. C. ch. 108 § 10101 et seq.) and by contract;
WHEREAS, nearly $41 billion ( including interest income) has been paid into the Nuclear Waste Fund managed by the U. S. Department of Energy, including almost $1 billion from SONGS customers;
WHEREAS, the lack of a national policy prevents removal of the spent fuel from SONGS, impeding the full decommissioning of the plant and restoration of the site;
WHEREAS, the SONGS Strategic Plan, developed by a team of independent national experts, recommends the formation of a coalition of stakeholders to spur federal action aimed at removing spent fuel from SONGS;
WHEREAS, interim and long-term offsite storage options are important to enhance the health, safety and security, of residents and businesses located in Orange County; and
WHEREAS, "Action for Spent Fuel Solutions Now" is a coalition of local governments, utilities, business organizations, labor leaders, Native American leaders, environmental groups, and other community members with the goal of encouraging the federal government to provide offsite storage and/ or permanent disposal solutions for spent nuclear fuel.
NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of Huntington Beach does hereby resolve as follows:
The City Council does hereby support the efforts of Action for Spent Fuel Solutions Now to relocate spent nuclear fuel away from SONGS and the California coastline.
PASSED AND ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Huntington Beach at a regular meeting thereof held on the ____ day of _____________, 2022.
ATTEST:
______________________________________
City Clerk
(SEAL)
_______________________________
Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
__________________________________
City Attorney
INITIATED, REVIEWED AND APPROVED:
__________________________________
City Manager