THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, May 3, 1995 TAG: 9505030456
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B2 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY JAY REEVES, ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: BIRMINGHAM, ALA. LENGTH: Medium: 64 lines
Low-level nuclear waste could be scattered around the Southeast at dozens of sites because of a decision Tuesday against extending the life of a South Carolina dump.
The Southeast Compact Commission rejected a bid by South Carolina to maintain the landfill at Barnwell, S.C., and open it to every state except North Carolina.
Now, only the eight compact states use the site, which is set to close at the end of the year.
South Carolina officials said their proposal was an attempt to make North Carolina speed up work on a planned regional landfill that is meant to replace Barnwell.
North Carolina already is more than two years late in opening a dump, and construction has yet to begin. The compact commission picked North Carolina to play host to the landfill nine years ago.
Commission analyst Ted Buckner said more than 200 nuclear waste generators in eight states apparently will have to rely on on-site storage after 1995 because of the commission's decision. Many companies already have such storage facilities, he said.
``Unless something changes between now and then, that is the alternative,'' he said. ``No one really knows what will happen.''
Virginia state Sen. Charles Hawkins warned fellow commissioners that rejecting South Carolina's proposal could lead to the demise of the compact, formed in the early 1980s to provide a regional site for disposing of low-level radioactive wastes.
Radioactive materials from nuclear power plants, hospitals, and research universities are among the items buried at Barnwell.
``If this compact comes apart, the safety and welfare of our constituents may be in jeopardy,'' Hawkins said.
But North Carolina Rep. George Miller argued that the commission was violating its own procedures in attempting to keep his state from using Barnwell.
``The decision of whether to keep Barnwell open is South Carolina's to make,'' Miller said. ``But by making that decision they should not place impediments on any other state.''
North Carolina Gov. James B. Hunt Jr. praised the commission's decision.
``North Carolina is committed to siting and licensing a facility,'' Hunt said in a statement issued Tuesday. ``The kind of fingerpointing that has been going on during the past weeks does nothing to further our ultimate goal of fulfilling our part in the compact.''
The speaker pro tem of the South Carolina House, Terry Haskins, said the commission's rejection of sanctions against North Carolina meant lawmakers would be unlikely to prolong the life of Barnwell.
``As it stands now, everybody is shut out as of December 31st,'' he said.
The states of Mississippi, Tennessee and Virginia backed South Carolina, while Georgia and North Carolina rejected the proposal. Each state has two commissioners, and members from Alabama and Florida split their votes.
``We have gone beyond our commitment to provide a regional facility for this compact commission,'' Haskins said.
KEYWORDS: NUCLEAR CARGO NUCLEAR WASTE by CNB