FEDERAL JUDGE REJECTS ENERGYSOLUTIONS’ BID TO BUY ITS ONLY RIVAL
ENVIRO GROUP REACTS TO MAJOR LEGAL DEFEAT FOR SALT LAKE CITY COMPANY
HEAL Utah Executive Director Matt Pacenza reacted today to the news that a federal court and the Department of Justice have blocked the EnergySolutions’ bid to purchase its main rival, Texas-based Waste Control Specialists. (See stories from Reuters and the Dallas Morning News for more detail.)
“A federal judge saw the obvious: It’s not good when a big company buys its only rival. If Uber were to take over Lyft, consumers would pay the price. Thankfully, the Department of Justice saw fit to check EnergySolutions’ thirst for power and profit.”
“However, today’s ruling likely means that EnergySolutions will again push Gov. Herbert and state officials to approve its troubled bid to dump up to 700,000 tons of dangerous, long-lived Depleted Uranium in Utah’s West Desert. The other potential site for that material was the Texas facility that EnergySolutions was looking to buy.”
“We are confident that Gov. Herbert, who blocked EnergySolutions’ bid to sneak Depleted Uranium into Utah back in 2009, will again stand up to the company. The science is clear: A shallow ditch in the desert surrounded by chain-link fences is the wrong location for waste that remains dangerous for millions of years.”
Matt Pacenza can be reached for comment at matt@healutah.org or 801-864-0264.