W21 Virginia Uranium v. Warren: What the Supreme Court's Decision Means for Interim Storage, Yucca Mountain, and Reactors
Sponsored by the Office of Atomic Safety Licensing Board Panel
On June 17, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in Virginia Uranium v. Warren. The case involved a landowner’s challenge to the State of Virginia’s ban on uranium mining on private land. The United States, including the NRC, submitted an amicus brief asserting that, if Virginia Uranium’s allegations concerning the motivation for the ban were true, the ban constituted an improper attempt to regulate activities that are preempted by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended—namely, uranium milling and tailings management—that are either within the sole province of the NRC or can only be regulated pursuant to Agreement State authority.
In two separate opinions each signed by three members of the Supreme Court, six justices concluded the Virginia ban was not preempted by the Atomic Energy Act. Each of the three panelists participated in the argument/briefing before the Court. The panelists will discuss the impact of the Court’s recent decision and what it means to potential conflicts between State sovereignty in the regulation of public safety and the NRC’s exclusive authority to protect the public from radiological hazards. All areas of Atomic Energy Act preemption including high-level waste, interim storage, permanent disposal, and reactors could be affected.
SESSION CHAIR(S):
SPEAKER(S):
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Introductory Remarks
William Froehlich, Administrative Judge, ASLBP/NRC and Ronald Spritzer, Administrative Judge, ASLBP/NRC
- Andrew Averbach, Solicitor, OGC/NRC
- Jay Silberg, Partner, Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP
- Cale Jaffe, Associate Professor, General Faculty, and Director, Environmental Law and Community Engagement Clinic, University of Virginia School of Law
SESSION COORDINATOR(S):
- Twana Ellis, Program Analyst, Adjudicatory Support and Technology Staff, ASLBP/NRC tel: 301-415-6904, e-mail: Twana.Ellis@nrc.gov
Page Last Reviewed/Updated Friday, January 07, 2022