US nuclear repository marks 200+ shipments of waste in 2021

CARLSBAD, N.M. (AP) — The U.S. government’s underground nuclear waste repository received more than 200 shipments from sites around the country in 2021. Officials with the U.S. Energy Department announced the number Thursday. Over more than 20 years, tons of waste have been stashed deep in the salt caverns that make up the southern New Mexico site. The shipments have included special boxes and barrels packed with lab coats, rubber gloves, tools and debris contaminated with plutonium and other radioactive elements. WIPP officials also said they made progress on a new ventilation system and a utility shaft that will provide more air to the underground space.