While the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station is no longer operating and its decommissioning is nearly complete, roughly 3.6 million pounds of spent nuclear fuel remain stored along the coastline.
On Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Mike Levin, D-Oceanside, released a report on the ongoing push to relocate the nuclear waste to a permanent site as rising sea levels and coastal erosion raise concerns about its current location.
Yucca Mountain in Nevada was originally slated to serve as the nation's permanent repository, but opposition from state officials and local residents halted the project. President Donald Trump officially withdrew support for the Yucca Mountain site in his first term, before the 2020 presidential election.
Because nuclear waste disposal falls under federal jurisdiction, Levin is pursuing several legislative strategies, including establishing Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campuses. These proposed regional hubs would handle various stages of the nuclear fuel cycle, including fabrication, enrichment and reprocessing spent nuclear fuel.
"What we're doing is inviting states to consider hosting facilities across the nuclear fuel cycle," Levin said. “They have to be willing to store the waste in order to qualify as one of these campuses.”
Levin said he plans to reintroduce the bill supporting the campus concept when Congress reconvenes.
Transporting the radioactive material remains an issue as several communities object to trains moving nuclear waste through their towns. Levin said the Atlas Railcar System, a specialized, heavy-duty train car certified in 2024 to specifically to transport commercial spent nuclear fuel safely over existing rail lines, should address those concerns.
"The biggest difference is, until now, there has not been a dedicated, purpose-built, safe mechanism to transport commercial spent fuel using existing rail," Levin said. "And that's what the Atlas Rail Systems has been designed and tested and certified to do."
Southern California Edison, which owns the San Onofre plant, said the current storage facilities were built to withstand extreme environmental threats, including earthquakes and tsunamis.
"We continue to analyze to make sure that, as we look out over the decades, that we're still in a situation (where) what's here will withstand whatever is going to be coming at it," said Steven Powell, Southern California Edison’s president and CEO.
SoCal Edison experts estimate the fuel can be safely contained at the site for more than 50 years, but they acknowledge that isn't a long-term answer. Levin said permanent solutions will take time to implement.
