Hundreds of people, including many state, federal and industry leaders, filled the Grand Hyatt Deer Valley Friday, May 22, to talk about the future of nuclear energy.
The summit’s name, Operation Gigawatt, was a nod to Utah Gov. Spencer Cox’s plan to double the state’s energy production within 10 years and lead the nation in energy development.
Speakers emphasized approving projects faster is key to realizing that vision.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chair Ho K. Nieh told the crowd public opinion toward nuclear energy is shifting.
“I still remember Three Mile Island, and I still remember Chernobyl, and I think as the generation is shifting, they don’t carry that baggage,” he said.
He said his commission will not be “an impediment” to deploying nuclear power in the U.S.
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is one area Nieh sees room for “working smarter, not harder.”
“We’ve been overachieving with NEPA for a very long time,” he said. “It’s like we’re assigning ourselves more homework that nobody’s ever going to grade.”
Cox applauded the federal government’s current approach to permitting.
“When we have to deal with the federal government, it usually means incredible delays, and it – you know, I had so much hair before I started – and here we are, and so this is refreshing,” he said.
Under President Donald Trump’s leadership, energy projects are receiving accelerated environmental reviews because of what the administration calls a “national energy emergency.”
The Velvet-Wood uranium mine in southeastern Utah received its permits within 11 days last May; the Associated Press reports the process would ordinarily take months or years. Nearby residents have protested the mining plans.
In the background of Friday’s conference was the Military Installation Development Authority, the state entity whose presence in Utah has grown in recent years, including with the Utah National Guard and Stratos project areas.
The Grand Hyatt Deer Valley is itself a MIDA project, created to replace a seven-room military lodge at Snowbasin.
Salt Lake City resident Jackie Baker sat outside the hotel beginning at 7:30 a.m. with a mountain bike and a sign protesting MIDA’s growing influence.
“My sign says ‘Men Intentionally Defrauding Americans, no Stratos,’” she said.
She’s opposed to MIDA’s role in the state’s push toward nuclear energy and artificial intelligence data centers.
MIDA is partnering with nuclear power startup General Matter to bring an energy project to Camp Williams in Bluffdale, including potentially enriching uranium. It’s also involved in plans to create a nuclear hub in Brigham City.
MIDA’s Stratos project, which will construct a hyperscale data center in Box Elder County, has drawn significant backlash.
“It feels like the wrong thing to do at this point in time, especially considering that yesterday Gov. Cox declared a drought emergency,” Baker said. “I think that we could be smarter about how we are working technology into not only our lives but our environment, and so I think that it’s worth being a body to tell people to slow down a little bit, think a little bit more.”
Joel Ferry leads Utah’s Department of Natural Resources. He told KPCW although state permitting might happen faster, the process will still be safe and thorough.
“I can tell you, we as the state of Utah are not cutting corners,” he said. “We’re not trying to just cram something through. We want to do things the right way, and we’ll take the time necessary to do things in the right way.”
In the case of the Stratos data center project, Ferry said that process will include many opportunities for public input.
At Friday’s conference, Cox signed an agreement to sync Utah’s permitting timelines with federal environmental reviews, a move intended to advance energy projects more quickly.
