After the Woods County commissioners handled routine items on the agenda, they heard from an unexpected visitor as new business. Randall Krause introduced himself as a former environmental consultant who is now living in Alva.

He said the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is looking for places to store used nuclear fuel. This consists of ceramic rods containing spent nuclear material that are bundled together and put in concrete cylinders.

Krause believes western Woods County is a good location for one of these federal storage facilities. The Avard Rail facility would provide transport, and he's...