Story perspectives

DOE Chooses Five States for Nuclear Campus, Promises $50 B Investment

7/29/2026

Summary

DOE Announces Hosts

Department named Utah, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Idaho as hosts and signed MOUs with them on July 24.
The Department of Energy (DOE) estimates campuses will create 25,000 jobs, attract $50 billion investment and generate $10 billion tax revenue.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee praised Oak Ridge as site and called the selection an honor.
Idaho’s proposal relies on its laboratory’s reactors while Utah’s bid cites Operation Gigawatt and a Tooele County site.

Summary

NRC Reviews Limits

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is considering replacing the “as low as reasonably achievable” radiation limit with a fixed maximum exposure rule.
Nevada officials, residents, tribal groups and the attorney general oppose Yucca Mountain, warning waste-transport routes to campuses would cross populated areas and threaten groundwater and seismic safety.
California’s nuclear-plant moratorium stays until a waste solution is approved, while the U.S. lacks a reprocessing plant since the 1977 Carter moratorium.

History

Historical Context

The 1979 Three Mile Island partial melt, which cost about $1 billion to clean up, spurred the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to tighten safety standards, including stricter worker-radiation limits. Decades of incidents—from the 1975 Browns Ferry fire to the 2011 NRC safety orders—have kept radiation protection central. Today the NRC is reviewing its ALARA guidance as the Department of Energy advances new nuclear campus plans.

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DOE Announces Hosts

Department named Utah, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Idaho as hosts and signed MOUs with them on July 24.
The Department of Energy (DOE) estimates campuses will create 25,000 jobs, attract $50 billion investment and generate $10 billion tax revenue.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee praised Oak Ridge as site and called the selection an honor.
Idaho’s proposal relies on its laboratory’s reactors while Utah’s bid cites Operation Gigawatt and a Tooele County site.

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