Idaho National Laboratory

How The Idaho National Lab Prepares For Wildfire Season

Frankie Barnhill — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:04:09 +0000

Fire fighters at the Idaho National Laboratory are preparing for an intense wildfire season. Under the U.S. Department of Energy, the INL has its own fire department.

Eric Gosswiller is the site’s fire chief. He says a lack of snowpack in eastern Idaho means his department needs to be ready for fires. But he says that’s something his department has gotten used to.

“Down here at the high desert at the INL – we kind of have the potential for significant fires every year,” says Gosswiller.

Nuclear Watchdog Group Skeptical About Commerical Waste Benefits

Aaron Kunz — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 00:18:08 +0000

A nuclear watchdog group says it’s skeptical about a new set of recommendations that could result in more nuclear waste coming into Idaho.

On Tuesday Liz Woodruff, a spokeswoman with the Snake River Alliance, issued the group’s first reaction to Monday’s draft proposal from a task force on nuclear energy. It calls for the reconsideration of a 1995 agreement with the federal government that caps the amount of nuclear waste that can enter Idaho.

Gov. Otter: No Secret Nuclear Waste Scheme

Thu, 24 May 2012 21:55:13 +0000

An alleged “secret scheme” to allow more nuclear waste into Idaho is at the center of a squabble between current and past governors.

Former Idaho Governor Cecil Andrus (D) wrote in an op-ed Sunday he believes state and Idaho National Laboratory officials want to “revise” a 1995 agreement. That agreement requires the federal government to remove all nuclear waste from INL by 2035. Andrus said revisions would extend the deadline by fifteen years, and open Idaho’s borders to 3,000 metric tons of commercial spent nuclear fuel.

Ongoing INL Accidents Lead To Work Stoppage

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 16:33:39 +0000

Updated Monday, April 23, 2012: Idaho National Laboratory susp

INL Roof Fire Quenched

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 00:03:40 +0000

A small fire at the Idaho National Laboratory flared up Monday afternoon on the roof of a building at the lab’s Materials and Fuels Complex. The fire was put out with no injuries. INL spokesman Ethan Huffman believes welding work sparked the blaze. "The particular building that had the fire involved in it did not house radioactive materials. It housed standard offices, conference rooms, the cafeteria." Huffman says there is no danger or risk to the public. He characterizes it as a minor fire.