NRC OKs plan for nuclear waste site in Utah

Recently, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved a plan to build a nuclear waste storage site in the Skull Valley Goshute Indian Reservation in Utah. This storage would hold 44,000 tons of nuclear fuel approximately 50 miles southwest of Salt Lake City. Utah Gov. Joh Huntsman was strongly opposed to the decision for obvious safety reasons. The commissioners in favor of building the storage claimed that the waste containers could not possibly release any radiation. The nuclear waste will be stored above ground in 4,000 steel casks that can hold up to 10 tons of fuel each. The casks will have two steel shells encasing a concrete wall that is 2 feet thick. Depending on the appeals done by the state of Utah, the earliest the site would be in operation is 2008. Putting a nuclear waste site 50 miles from such a big population does not sound like one of the best ideas to me. There cannot be a gauruntee on how safe the waste is in these containers. There is always a chance that some if it could come out over time.