Nuclear spill in Tennessee: a state secret

The U.S. government and a private corporation colluded to keep secret a March 2006 toxic spill of enriched uranium.

The potentially deadly incident was kept under wraps for over a year.

Nuclear Fuel Services, Inc., the privately-owned company that runs the facility where the accident occurred has been protected from public scrutiny by Nuclear Regulatory Commission policy.

The accident prompted the NRC to issue a change in the company’s Special Nuclear Materials License, giving the public 20 days to demand a hearing. The order detailing the license change, however, was marked “official use only.” The public never had a chance to learn about the change, much less demand a hearing.

Since August 2004, the NRC has used the “official use only” designation to restrict public access to documents that are not classified. Even the memo that established this policy has been kept secret from the public.