U.S. Looks to Export Nuclear Waste; Uranium 'Leasing'
Arriving in Mongolia on Monday for the first visit by a U.S. vice president since 1944, Joe Biden stoked already intense speculations about the U.S. government’s plans to deal with the nation’s massive nuclear waste problem.
One of the most persistent, albeit unconfirmed, of those rumors has the U.S. Department of Energy concocting a scheme to export America’s vast supplies of nuclear waste to some remote corner of Mongolia.
While this rumor is only a rumor, the Obama administration has publicly endorsed plans to “lease” uranium from foreign entities. When the lease expires, the U.S. would return the “uranium” in the form of spent nuclear fuel to the originating entity.
In early August, a senior Obama administration official told Greenwire earlier this month that the U.S. has begun preliminary negotiations for commercial nuclear fuel leasing arrangements with several countries, including Mongolia, Japan and the United Arab Emirates. Mongolia has become a critical battleground for mining companies competing to secure access to the nation’s vast mineral deposits. For example, Rio Tinto’s Oyu Tolgoi project in the South Gobi Desert is expected to yield 1.2 billion metric tons of copper and 650,000 ounces of gold a year in its first 10 years.
One of the most persistent, albeit unconfirmed, of those rumors has the U.S. Department of Energy concocting a scheme to export America’s vast supplies of nuclear waste to some remote corner of Mongolia.
While this rumor is only a rumor, the Obama administration has publicly endorsed plans to “lease” uranium from foreign entities. When the lease expires, the U.S. would return the “uranium” in the form of spent nuclear fuel to the originating entity.
In early August, a senior Obama administration official told Greenwire earlier this month that the U.S. has begun preliminary negotiations for commercial nuclear fuel leasing arrangements with several countries, including Mongolia, Japan and the United Arab Emirates. Mongolia has become a critical battleground for mining companies competing to secure access to the nation’s vast mineral deposits. For example, Rio Tinto’s Oyu Tolgoi project in the South Gobi Desert is expected to yield 1.2 billion metric tons of copper and 650,000 ounces of gold a year in its first 10 years.
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