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WIPP Leak Could Cost over $2 Billion
The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant [wikipedia.org] in the southwestern U.S. state of New Mexico stores transuranic [wikipedia.org] wastes. In February 2014, a 55-gallon (208 L) barrel there leaked, probably because cat litter made from wheat reacted chemically with nitrate salts. The facility is closed, pending clean-up.
The Los Angeles Times [latimes.com] revisited the situation and its possible financial costs:
The direct cost of the cleanup is now $640 million, based on a contract modification made last month with Nuclear Waste Partnership that increased the cost from $1.3 billion to nearly $2 billion. The cost-plus contract leaves open the possibility of even higher costs as repairs continue. And it does not include the complete replacement of the contaminated ventilation system or any future costs of operating the mine longer than originally planned.
[...]
It costs about $200 million a year to operate the dump, so keeping it open an additional seven years could cost $1.4 billion.
previously:
Only U.S. Underground Nuclear Waste Dump-Site Needs More Down Time [soylentnews.org] Kitty Litter to Blame for Nuclear Waste Leak [soylentnews.org]
