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Transition & Resilience

A newsletter from the Nuclear Communities TA program

Friday, April 1, 2022

This virtual event will place the issue of nuclear decommissioning in a national context and bring together communities from across the country for a series of engaging discussions around the various impacts that host communities and regions experience when a local nuclear facility shuts down. Speakers will share insights from the field on a wide range of socioeconomic impacts of closure; the nuts and bolts of the decommissioning process; prioritizing meaningful, consistent community engagement in planning; and the importance of early planning for a successful economic transition.

More Upcoming Opportunities

• [Request for information] DOE releases RFI for consent-based siting: The Office of Nuclear Energy (NE), U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), is requesting input on a consent-based siting process meant to identify sites to store spent nuclear fuel across the country, and “to further develop DOE’s waste management strategy in an equitable way.” 

• [Resource] Funding opportunities for nuclear host communities: The Interagency Working Group on Coal & Power Plant Communities & Economic Revitalization identified up to $38 billion in existing federal funding that can be accessed by energy communities -including nuclear host communities- for infrastructure, environmental remediation, union job creation, and community revitalization efforts. 

• [Event registration] SGA 2022 Equity Summit: Smart Growth America’s 2022 Equity Summit will be held (virtually) from January 11-13, 2022. Over three days, you’ll hear keynotes on equitable development and panels curated by our economic development, transportation, and land use teams.

Have you heard about our Community of Practice?

The Nuclear Communities TA team initiated and held three  community of practice (CoP) events specifically designed for local leaders and stakeholders from nuclear host communities. The CoP is meant to connect nuclear host communities around ideas, experiences, and resources that contribute to the long-term resilience of their communities and regions. 

If you serve as a local leader, stakeholder or economic development practitioner for a nuclear host community or region and would like to be invited to join the conversation, reach out to Martina Guglielmone at mguglielmone@smartgrowthamerica

Reads and Resources

• [Webinar recording] What does the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law mean for energy communities? Last month, three senior White House and agency officials detailed new funding opportunities for energy communities available as part of historic infrastructure bill in a webinar hosted by Energy Communities. 

• [Webinar recording] Strengthening connections between States and EDDs: The NADO Research Foundation and Center for Regional Economic Competitiveness (CREC) hosted a webinar highlighting how state economic development offices and regionally-based Economic Development Districts (EDDs) can better align their efforts to meet regional and statewide economic development goals. 

• [Podcast] Nuclear Waste: The Whole Story: This podcast by Deep Isolation seeks to assemble the complex puzzle of nuclear waste. “A core value of the company is to seek and listen to different perspectives on the matter of nuclear waste, nuclear energy, and disposal solutions. We have created this series to interview experts and stakeholders that represent different aspects of these issues.”

• [Read] Maine’s nuclear waste could find a home if communities volunteer to take it. 

• [Press release] U.S. Department of Commerce announces finalists for $1 billion “Build Back Better Regional Challenge”

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This effort utilizes Federal funds under award ED20HDQ3030068 from the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), U.S. Department of Commerce. The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the project team and do not necessarily reflect the views of EDA or the U.S. Department of Commerce.