U.S. panel proposes interim nuclear waste sites

The commission, set up by the Obama administration after it shelved the planned Yucca Mountain nuclear dump, said the interim sites would provide flexibility as the government figures out how to manage its radioactive waste.

The administration canceled the Yucca project after years of intense opposition from Nevada residents, including powerful Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Tasked with recommending a national strategy for disposing of nuclear waste, the panel stressed these facilities would not be the ultimate solution to the waste problem.

"Interim does mean that its not permanent," said Phil Sharp, a member of the panel and president of environmental think tank Resources for the Future.

Under the proposal the United States could develop one or more temporary sites that would be able to safely store nuclear waste for around 100 years.

U.S. nuclear waste is currently stored on-site at the nation's 104 nuclear reactors, but safety concerns have been raised about keeping the waste strewn throughout the country for decades with no permanent solution in sight.

Worries about nuclear waste storage have been heightened by the ongoing Japanese nuclear crisis, where the Japanese have struggled to keep damaged spent fuel pools from overheating.

(Reporting by Roberta Rampton and Ayesha Rascoe; editing by Sofina Mirza-Reid)