By Kristen Poland

BARNWELL -- Operators of a nuclear waste landfill in Barnwell County announced yesterday they will not appeal to legislators to allow them to continue to accept low-level radioactive waste from all 50 states after their permit runs out in July 2008.

Citing lack of political support, Tim Dangerfield, spokesperson for Energy Solutions Inc., a Utah-based nuclear services company that operates the Chem-Nuclear site, said the decision was to discontinue fighting for legislation that would allow the site to accept waste.

In March, a House committee voted 16-0 against a bill that would have kept the site open to all states for another 15 years. Until recently, Energy Solutions considered lobbying for more support in the hopes that a new bill would pass, but has now concluded that their pleas would fall on deaf ears.

“We’ve been discussing this for months,” Dangerfield said. “We understand the political climate in South Carolina right now and based on that reason we’ve decided we’re not coming back to this issue.”

The site will remain open to accept waste from three states only: South Carolina, New Jersey and Connecticut, which signed an agreement that allows them to use the site after July of 2008. The site has been in operation in Barnwell County for 36 years.

Losing business from the other states could devastate the company, but Dangerfield said there are no plans as of yet to shut down completely, nor are there any numbers on how many of the 53 jobs at the facility may be in jeopardy.

“Right now we’re looking at all different ways to cut costs and save money,” Dangerfield said. “Our No. 1 priority is maintaining the safety levels at our facility. It’s just too early to tell about layoffs or other cuts. I would say that in this situation, as everybody would expect, you probably will lose something.”

The downsizing of the plant could have a significant economic impact on the county and the school district since it would lose the $3 million in revenue it sees each year from the facility. Despite concerns raised by environmental groups about potential dangers of the site, county officials continue to emphasize the importance of the facility to its communities.

“From a community standpoint, the people who work out there are very, very important to the lifeblood of the economy in this area—just like at any industry and business,” said Marty Martin, executive director of the Barnwell County Economic Development Commission. “This company has a wonderful safety record and a wonderful reputation in our community. We’ll do everything we can to see that they remain viable for years to come.”