Why the nation’s nuclear waste may eventually be headed to northwest Colorado

Nuclear waste is piling up at power plants around the country, and we have no idea where to put it. Many states are aggressively fighting plans for new storage facilities.

But northwest Colorado is quietly opening the door.

By In The NoCo, Scott Franz, Erin O’Toole, Brad Turner | February 22, 2025 kunc.org

KUNC’s investigative reporter Scott Franz recently traveled around rural Colorado talking with people about what nuclear waste storage could do for the local economy – and also interviewing folks who are dead set against that idea.

On this special edition of In The NoCo, we’ve combined all of Scott’s reporting from the past few months into a single episode. You can also see photos and check out more on this investigation.

 

Workers pose with a new train car designed to carry highly-radioactive nuclear waste from power plants around the country. An economic development group in northwest Colorado is entertaining the idea of pursuing a storage facility for the waste.
Courtesy U.S. Department of Energy
Workers pose with a new train car designed to carry highly-radioactive nuclear waste from power plants around the country. An economic development group in northwest Colorado is entertaining the idea of pursuing a storage facility for the waste.
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