The nuclear industry’s social license will be earned in waste. In Savannah (10–12 June), RadWaste Summit convened utilities, DOE contractors, and technology vendors to hash out decommissioning timelines, interim storage logistics, PFAS co-remediation, and supply chain bottlenecks for containers and robotics. (Organizer agenda lists dates, venue: The DeSoto Hotel.) Note: a separate “save-the-date” page still listed location TBD—defer to the detailed agenda.
What moved the needle
- Schedule certainty as currency
Procurement managers signaled they value contractors who show predictability over lowest bid. Expect more framework agreements bundling waste characterization, remote handling, and transport under unified SLAs. - Robotics & sensing
Portable spectrometry, wall-climbing remote systems, and container telemetry came up repeatedly—less flashy than fusion, but directly tied to safety and cost. - Community optics
Attendees stressed transparent dashboards on decon milestones and groundwater monitoring. Without it, timelines slip—along with public support.
Why it matters
If nuclear is to scale (SMRs or not), closing the credibility gap on waste is non-optional. The vibe in Savannah: fewer press releases, more purchase orders for tools that cut risk days and paperwork hours.
