South Texas Goes Nuclear
By Julia Strong and Beatz Alvarado
Highlights:
- Goliad landowners overruled by TCEQ, uranium mining likely to occur despite widespread opposition.
- State report names Port of Corpus Christi as prime location for an “Advanced Nuclear Reactor.”
- State of Texas exploring nuclear energy production to power crypo-currency, artificial intelligence, desalination and hydrogen projects.
A battle between Goliad landowners and the uranium mining industry has been revived by efforts to make Texas the “nuclear capital of the world.”
A shared concern amongst Goliad landowners is groundwater contamination around the mining areas.
“The landowners … their only water source is groundwater,” said Kenneth Klanika during his public comment as an affected landowner who is part of the contested case. “So, we have to protect that, and we’re going to look after that as best we can.”
More than 160 people attended the Aug. 5, 2024, public meeting for the permit renewal of the uranium mining operation in Goliad. Sixty-six others submitted oral and written public comments to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).
None of the 18 oral comments given during the public meeting were in favor of Uranium Energy Corp’s permit renewal.
The TCEQ has issued multiple permits for uranium mining in Goliad despite contested case hearings initiated – and technically won – by landowners that exposed significant risks to groundwater contamination.
Other tactics being used to stop uranium mining in Goliad include:
- Resolution against uranium mining by Goliad County Commissioners Court
- Challenging of TCEQ permit in administrative court by the Goliad Groundwater Conservation District
- Lawsuit against TCEQ by the Goliad Groundwater Conservation District seeking to reverse the agency’s permit approvals
The current expectation is that mining will occur whether the majority of Goliad wants it or not. What is playing out in Goliad is part of a statewide strategy to meet increasing energy demands due to ongoing industrial expansion.
High-tech industries with energy-intensive operations, like crypto-currency mines and artificial intelligence, are creating energy demands that can only be met by a “nuclear renaissance” in South Texas – at least that’s what the president of the Texas Nuclear Alliance Reed Clay told Inside Climate News. Clay, a lobbyist whose clients include the Texas Blockchain Council, SpaceX and Dow Chemical, is also the former chief operating officer for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office.
Uranium is the key component for fuel at nuclear power plants and there’s a lot of it in Goliad and across the South Texas plains.
We regret to inform you that on top of cancer-causing pollution from refineries and plastics plants, now we may “get nuked” on top of everything else.
Uranium mining is a messy business that’s led to multi-generational problems across the country. Mining uranium has created cancer clusters and forced entire towns to be evacuated.
Uranium Mining in Goliad
Seven in situ uranium mining operations are scattered throughout South Texas, according to the Texas Comptroller website. None of them are in operation, for different reasons, and they’re owned by either Uranium Energy Corp, enCore Energy Corp or the Rio Grande Resources Corporation.
In situ uranium mining by Chisme CollectiveEnCore Energy started uranium production at two South Texas sites in 2023 and 2024, and hopes to bring four more online by 2027, according to Inside Climate News.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality approved the first permit for Uranium Energy Corp’s mine in 2010. The Goliad mine is UEC’s smallest project.
The TCEQ issued the first set of permits despite an administrative law judge ruling against Uranium Energy Corp., and in favor of landowners who exposed the risks of contamination to nearby aquifers.
The mine was never built because of a collapse in uranium prices; but permits came up for renewal in 2021. The latest ruling issued in September was the second time the TCEQ sided with Uranium Energy Corp. over a judge’s ruling.
Uranium Energy Corp. is only a set of final permit renewals away from beginning its mining operation in Goliad, and this time, uranium prices are on the rise.
Read more about the uranium mining process here.
The Rise of Nuclear
The war in Ukraine and high-tech industries with energy-intensive operations are to blame for the resurgence of nuclear power desirability in Texas.
In the past, Russia supplied the U.S. with enriched uranium but the war with Ukraine interrupted that supply in 2022.
Gov. Greg Abbott is now exploring ways Texas can become the national leader in “using advanced nuclear energy,” according to a report published in November by the Public Utility Commission of Texas.
The report titled “Developing a World-Renowned Advanced Nuclear Industry in Texas,” states new Advanced Nuclear Reactors (ANRs) would most likely be built in Texas ports, and their purpose would be to power large industrial operations and enable further industrial expansion.
Several Texas ports are named as prime locations for ANRs:
- Galveston will need additional resilient electricity to the island to serve future large-load customers, like upcoming LNG facilities and cruise terminals.
- Port of Corpus Christi Authority is designated by the Department of Defense as a strategic military port, providing surface deployment and distribution for strategic military cargo worldwide, bolstering their need for resilient power to support the strategic military establishments and growing seaport trade that accounted for 11.3% of the seaport trade, or about $29.5 billion, in 2018.
- Beaumont is home to a petrochemical industrial complex. Chemical and other large users are interested in the behind-the-meter applicability.
- Houston Ship Channel is a critical line to goods’ transport and commerce with at least 200 countries.
- Port of Brownsville is experiencing growth in power-intensive industries including LNG, hydrogen and oil and gas, as well as Space X.
- Port of Victoria site was assessed for nuclear (energy), and could be revisited.
“Texas is well-positioned to lead the country in the development of Advanced Nuclear Reactors (ANRs) to provide safe, reliable energy for generations to come,” the report concludes. “While nuclear development will take years to come to fruition, Texas can act now to be the leader in the United States and set a path forward that welcomes industry participation, research and development.”
Nuclear, Clean?
“Clean energy,” as it’s defined by the federal government and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), is energy that – unlike fossil fuels – does not directly emit carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is what’s warming the planet.
The group of technologies widely considered to produce “clean energy” include:
- Hydropower (plus renewable)
- Geothermal (plus renewable)
- Solar (plus renewable)
- Wind (plus renewable)
- Nuclear
- Bioenergy (+ Renewable)
Nuclear energy is the only energy type on this list that isn’t renewable because it’s fueled by uranium, which is a finite resource.
“Clean” energy is also known as low-carbon or carbon-free; but being carbon-free does not make it clean energy.
Nuclear energy is extremely environmentally-unfriendly, and it requires enormous amounts of water to produce. Nuclear plants create toxic waste that is often buried underground, and mining spurs deforestation and water pollution.
Although generating nuclear power doesn’t directly emit carbon dioxide, nuclear power isn’t even close to being “zero-carbon” or “zero-emissions.” It’s actually comparable to liquified natural gas, or LNG.
“Natural gas” is mostly made up of methane gas, and it currently provides over 40% of the electric-generating capacity in Texas. LNG is composed of 70-90% methane, which is a potent greenhouse gas and major contributor to global warming.
Some nuclear plants have the same carbon footprint as natural gas plants.
At this time, uranium Energy Corp. states on its website that it produces “zero-carbon emissions electricity,” which is not true.
Many companies now set corporate goals around being low-carbon, no-carbon or zero-carbon to qualify for government subsidies.
Read more about the uranium mining process here.
Nuclear & Desal
According to reporting by Inside Climate News, powerful interests in Texas are pushing to power new, experimental technologies with next-generation nuclear reactors.
Texas is host to an array of high-tech industries like crypto-currency mines, artificial intelligence, hydrogen production and seawater desalination. Compared to other industries, these are more energy intensive.
Don’t be surprised if industrial officials try to build an “Advanced Nuclear Reactor” in Corpus Christi to power the desalination plants they want to build.
According to the state report “Developing a World-Renowned Advanced Nuclear Industry in Texas, “the synergy between micro- and small modular nuclear reactors and desalination processes is well-documented. Integrating these processes with hydrogen production could provide significant economic benefits, positioning Texas as a global leader in low-carbon hydrogen production.”