Nuclear fuels in France are regularly reprocessed, though not without security and safety issues. Several incidents regarding safety have been recorded in Reprocessing history. Even so, the biggest barrier to the realization of such a process in the United States is simply cost. To put it plainly, it is cheaper to mine uranium and process it than it is to reprocess old uranium.

Another factor is that reprocessing uranium, though it turns approximately ninety-six percent of uranium back into fuel, the other three to four percent is near weapons-grade Plutonium. This makes it a

proliferation concern. Additional reprocessing would be required to extract other isotopes used commercially. All things considered, reprocessing is cost prohibitive and dangerous and there is still the need for storage of radioactive waste.

In 1974 the United States decided to execute a suspension on new nuclear plants. Both nuclear safety concerns and the need for answers surrounding radioactive waste storage guided them in their decision. Plant safety and design have advanced tremendously in the past three decades as countries all over the world have continued to build new plants. The management of spent fuel is an issue that remains unresolved. For most politicians it remains the foremost issue to work out before nuclear power can be considered as a major electricity generator in the United States.

The question about what to do with Spent Fuel was put on hold in 1974 when the US decided to implement a moratorium on new nuclear power plants. At the time, both nuclear operations safety and nuclear waste concerns drove the government to their decision. However, in the intervening 30+ years, plant design and operational safety have advanced leaps and bounds as countries around the world have continued to implement new plants. The, spent fuel issue, remains unresolved, and for most politicians today, remains the biggest issue to resolve before returning to the vision of nuclear power as a primary electricity producer in the US.