Expanded waste capability needed

Despite the jokes about glowing in the dark and people turning green, the issue of nuclear waste is no laughing matter. It is something that this technological nation has to deal with.

And it just so happens that part of the solution resides here in West Texas. And that shouldn't be cause for alarm.

After all, one person's problem is another's chance to practice a little free enterprise.

That brings us to a venture known as Waste Control Specialists. This company is making a buck by stashing various kinds of hazardous waste in a secure site in far west Andrews County, near the New Mexico state line.

The site, which has operated for 10 years, is now licensed for processing, storage and disposal of various hazardous and toxic industrial waste.

Considerable money and time has been invested in developing processes to safely store waste that, let's face it, has to be discarded somewhere.

Thanks to detailed research and careful educational programs, WCS has become a good neighbor for West Texans and Eastern New Mexicans. The company adds to the economy, is a good corporate citizen and is open and aboveboard in explaining what it does and what measures it takes to ensure the waste is safe for the long term.

That open attitude is being employed as WCS seeks to expand its operations and store other kinds of waste.

The Dallas company has been running radio and television commercials dealing with two license applications it has in front of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

A draft license on the storage of low-level radioactive waste has been issued. If granted final approval, the license would allow mined uranium to be transported from South Texas.

A second license would allow the site, located 30 miles west of Andrews, to become a storage facility for low-level radioactive waste from 1,600 facilities in Texas, including hospitals and power plants.  It would also allow the Waste Control site to take in waste from the U.S. Department of Energy. WCS officials said that's needed because the only facility in the United States currently allowed to take in this type of waste is scheduled to close June 30.

If these applications are approved (the first will be reviewed later this month and the second could take a couple of years), the number of WCS employees could double to about 200.

Yes, there always will be some environmental opposition to what Waste Control Specialists does. But the fact remains that this nation has a lot of hazardous waste that must be sequestered in a safe and secure location. WCS offers that service - and is among the few businesses that has a track record.

We believe Waste Control Specialists has earned the right to step up its operations and become a repository for other kinds of materials - thus adding to its potential impact on this area.