Waste Control Specialists' Texas facility could significantly expand its storage and begin accepting depleted uranium under license changes approved by the state's Commission on Environmental Quality last week.
The Dallas Morning News reported that the unanimously approved measure also reduces the company's bond because it was based on plans for a larger site. WCS stores low-level and mixed-low-level radioactive waste in remote west Texas. It's also served as a temporary storage point for waste containers destined for the Department of Energy's Waste Isolation Pilot Plant during its recent shutdown. Since opening in 2011, WCS has expanded its operation to accept waste from hospitals, research centers and nuclear plants in 35 states.
The license amendment will allow WCS to triple its potential LLRW storage to 9 million cubic feet, Texas Public Radio reported. The state board concluded that doing so would not pose a significant threat to human health or the environment.