SMR - Study sees big potential waste problems for small nuclear power projects

A planned new generation of small nuclear reactors could create more waste than conventional reactors, while treatments to make some types of waste safe could be exploited by militants trying to obtain fissile materials, according to a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, as reported by Reuters on Tuesday. Proponents of small modular reactors say they are designed to be simpler and safer than conventional plants, but the report said the reactors would create more radioactive waste per unit of electricity they generate than conventional reactors by a factor of up to 30. "Even if [the U.S.] had a robust waste management program, we think there would be a lot of challenges to deal with some of the SMR waste," said Lindsay Krall, the study's lead author, according to Reuters. NuScale Power (NYSE:SMR) reactors would produce ~1.7x more waste per energy equivalent than traditional

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Study sees big potential waste problems for small nuclear power projects