As part of the recently signed 2003 Defense Authorization Act, U.S. President George W. Bush established deadlines to process plutonium at the Savannah River Site, ensuring that South Carolina will not serve as a long term depository for the nation’s material, supporters of the legislation said (see GSN, Nov. 5).

“The legislation provides unprecedented protections for the state,” said Representative Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).  “I’m grateful that President Bush is committed to helping protect our state,” he added.

The bill — signed yesterday — imposes fines against the federal government if there is not an operation in place by 2017 to make mixed oxide fuel from the plutonium.  If the operation is not established in time, the United States must pay $1 million a day — up to $100 million — until the plutonium is removed.

If levied, the fines would be paid by the U.S. Defense Department and would go to the South Carolina state government, according to Graham spokesman Kevin Bishop.

The legislation installs other deadlines that the United States must meet before 2017, and $1 million daily fines could be levied after any of the deadlines are not met.

There are no guarantees that the government will remove the plutonium, said Morton Brilliant, spokesman for outgoing Georgia Governor Jim Hodges.

“For $100 million, they can solve all their long-term nuclear storage problems,” Brilliant said.  “This pretty much leaves us where we are today:  without any ironclad guarantees,” he said.

Future legislation could also reverse this action, Brilliant said (Sammy Fretwell, The State, Dec. 3).

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