Nuclear Waste Project Rejected by Spink County Considered in Haakon County

A proposed federal effort to assess whether nuclear waste can be stored in 3-mile-deep holes is raising the eyebrows of Haakon County.

 South Dakota’s Spink County already turned away the effort when local opposition turned the project away. South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds says this issue has got to be up to the local residents

  Rapid City-based engineering consulting firm RESPEC and the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology have held at least one public meeting in Phillip to explain the project and gauge public support.

The second in the series of public meetings will be held next week. On March 7th from 5:00 to 8:00pm, the meeting will be held at the Milesville Hall in Milesville. Supper will be provided

 The dilemma facing Haakon County residents is that there are no zoning districts in place in the county. Rounds says that since there is no zoning in the county, the county commission has some skin in the game

Representative Lana Greenfield of Doland did just that. A bill this session that would require the approval of the state Legislature before any high level nuclear waste may be processed or deposited within state boundaries has made its way through all chambers easily. The bill awaits Daugaard’s signature.

 The engineering consulting firm would attempt to drill an 8-inch borehole 3.2 miles into solid granite. The site of the proposal is just east of Milesville on private property.

(KCCR)