New Nuclear Initiative

Defining Local Governments’ Role in Support of New Nuclear Development

Energy Communities Alliance (ECA) Board of Directors created a unique self-funded initiative to define the role of local governments in supporting the development of the new nuclear technologies.   

To date, ECA has focused on small modular reactors, micro and advanced reactors, a skilled nuclear workforce and new nuclear missions around the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) federal facilities. With bipartisan support for nuclear energy in Congress, new demonstration projects led by DOE and the Department of Defense, and notable investment from the private sector, local governments want  to be meaningfully engaged - and prepared - to match the strengths and needs of our communities with new nuclear opportunities. 

Why Local Governments Support New Nuclear Energy Development

ECA member communities host and support the critical nuclear research and development that is underway across the DOE complex – such as advanced nuclear reactors at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, the production of high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) in Piketon, Ohio; starting the Versatile Test Reactor and the newly Nuclear Regulatory Commission-approved NuScale small modular reactor at Idaho National Laboratory - alongside other first-of-a-kind initiatives like Bill Gates’ TerraPower, Deep Isolation’s solution for nuclear waste storage and disposal, or NDB’s battery powered by nuclear waste.

ECA communities are knowledgeable about and, in many ways, driven by the nuclear missions they already host. These local governments are eager to fill vital roles, from establishing new U.S.-based manufacturing and supply chains to promoting creation of training programs at local community colleges around existing nuclear sites. Local leaders want to highlight not only what they have done but what they can and want to do to ensure the U.S. is a leader in new nuclear development around the world.

Core Questions for New projects

ECA’s New Nuclear Subcommittee, initiated by Rebecca Casper, Mayor of the City of Idaho Falls, ID, identified the three core questions to address:

  • What do communities need to know to attract and support new nuclear development/missions?

  • What and how should communities communicate to industry, national laboratories, state and federal governments about local resources and development opportunities?

  • What hurdles and challenges will communities face and who can we work with to overcome them?

ECA builds on former successful efforts working cooperatively with the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy, industry, contractors, educators and labor unions to address these issues, ensure information sharing, and identify how best to take action on common goals.