Reply #8: I disagree

[jpak]

You cannot completely fission all the plutonium present in MOX fuel - there will always be a substantial amount left in it.

High burn-up MOX fuel is highly radioactive and has a high thermal output - it is much more difficult and expensive to handle and dispose.

The US MOX fuel program (the one that was supposed use weapons-grade Pu) is in complete disarray. One utility that initially agreed to be *paid* to use MOX fuel has pulled out of the program and Congress recently killed funding for the multi-billion dollar MOX fuel fabrication facility in SC.

The easiest-cheapest-safest-most-secure method for disposal of weapons-grade Pu is blend it down, incorporate it into a ceramic matrix and bury it in a secure repository.

This was the Clinton administration's initial plans for US and RU Pu and the best policy on this issue...