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Environment secretary urges tougher WIPP permit conditions and warns LANL cleanup needs more funding
Summary
Environment Secretary Jim Kenny told legislators that while a modified consent order has improved oversight at Los Alamos, legacy waste, a spreading chromium plume, and constrained Department of Energy budgets mean New Mexico must press for stronger WIPP permit conditions and increased cleanup funding.
Environment Secretary Jim Kenny told the interim committee that New Mexico’s Environment Department is pressing federal partners to accelerate cleanup at Los Alamos National Laboratory and to make the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) permit more objective and protective of state interests.
“Kenny said LANL has both a hazardous-waste permit and a consent order; the consent order addresses the Cold War legacy work,” the secretary said in his prepared remarks. He highlighted three enforcement actions the department issued to the Department of Energy in February and described continued concerns about surface waste storage (MDAC landfill) and drums that the department says are not yet remediated.
On the chromium groundwater plume near Los Alamos, Kenny warned that his technical staff estimates it could take decades to fully characterize and treat the contamination absent a significant technical and budget commitment from DOE. “We are decades away from characterizing that chromium plume, let alone treating it fully,” he told lawmakers, adding the work requires more field characterization and possibly several injection/monitoring wells.
A recurring theme in the hearing was WIPP’s permit priorities. Kenny cited a 2019 agreement that directs 55% of shipments to Idaho National Laboratory for a period and said New Mexico is seeking permit conditions that clearly define the success metrics for prioritizing cleanup of in‑state legacy waste. He said proposed WIPP permit modifications aim to add objective, quantitative conditions so shipments from LANL are prioritized and New Mexico’s legacy waste does not remain stalled.
Committee members pressed for specifics. Representative Jim Townsend and others warned that overly restrictive conditions that require LANL to finish characterization before WIPP accepts other shipments could unintentionally undercut WIPP’s operational mission and jobs there. Kenny acknowledged the tension and urged the delegation to press DOE and appropriators for additional cleanup funding, pointing to congressional requests and internal figures: LANL environmental management funding has been around $295 million in recent years and committee members said congressional champions are requesting about $325 million annually to accelerate cleanup.
Kenny said the department has offered DOE mediation and permit modifications as a path to reduce litigation risk, but he also said the state must be prepared to litigate if negotiated permit conditions are not implemented.
The committee agreed to continue oversight and invited additional briefings and technical follow-ups.
