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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION 763

 
2    WHEREAS, The Stranded Act of 2021, currently in the United
3States Senate, provides resources to communities that are
4challenged by stranded nuclear waste; and
 
5    WHEREAS, This act would require the Department of Energy
6(DOE) to establish competitive prize competitions for affected
7communities to carry out alternatives to nuclear facilities,
8generating sites, and waste sites; and
 
9    WHEREAS, The DOE must also establish the Stranded Nuclear
10Waste Task Force to study existing public and private
11resources and funding for affected communities and establish a
12grant program to assist localities near nuclear power plants
13to offset the impacts of stranded nuclear waste in affected
14communities; and
 
15    WHEREAS, The passage of this act would impact communities
16in Illinois that are dealing with the health and environmental
17risks caused by stranded nuclear material and would provide
18relief and compensation to communities such as Zion that are
19struggling to handle the stranded nuclear waste; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Highly radioactive waste, often called high-level
21waste, comes mainly in two forms, leftover fuels that were

 

 

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1used in nuclear power plants to generate electricity and the
2waste made by facilities involved in nuclear weapons
3production or by facilities that reprocess and recycle used
4power plant fuel; and
 
5    WHEREAS, While these waste materials, which can be harmful
6to human health and the environment, wait for a more permanent
7home, their containers age; all of these wastes can remain
8dangerously radioactive for many thousands of years; for that
9reason, they must be disposed of permanently; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Approximately a dozen countries, including
11Finland, Switzerland, and other European nations, are planning
12deep geological repositories for their nuclear waste; in the
13U.S., government officials have proposed storing the country's
14waste in a repository beneath Yucca Mountain in Nevada; and
 
15    WHEREAS, The products of nuclear fission have long half
16lives, which means that they will continue to be radioactive
17and therefore hazardous for many thousands of years; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Many different storage methods have been
19discussed throughout history, with very few being implemented
20because of the problematic nature of storing such hazardous
21material that will remain radioactive for thousands of years;
22and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Nuclear waste can have drastic effects on life,
2causing cancerous growths, for instance, or causing genetic
3problems for many generations of animal and plants; therefore,
4be it
 
5    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
6HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
7we urge the passage of the Stranded Act of 2021, currently in
8the United States Senate, which provides resources to
9communities that are challenged by stranded nuclear waste; and
10be it further
 
11    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
12delivered to the President of the United States, the U.S.
13Senate Majority Leader, the U.S. Senate Minority Leader, the
14U.S. Speaker of the House, the U.S. House of Representatives
15Minority Leader, and all members of the Illinois Congressional
16Delegation.