GIBBONS CALLS FOR SUMMIT TO ORGANIZE YUCCA FIGHT - News

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Jun. 07, 2008
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

GIBBONS CALLS FOR SUMMIT TO ORGANIZE YUCCA FIGHT

By SEAN WHALEY

REVIEW-JOURNAL CAPITAL BUREAU

Yucca Mountain: Nuclear Waste in Nevada

Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman makes remarks Tuesday at the National Press Club. On Tuesday, the Department of Energy delivered the Yucca Mountain licensing application, at right, to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Photo by The Associated Press

CARSON CITY -- Gov. Jim Gibbons on Friday called for a meeting of Nevada's congressional delegation and state officials in the coming weeks to ensure coordination in the fight against the Yucca Mountain Project.

"Now that the Department of Energy has submitted its application for Yucca Mountain to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, it's essential that we are all on the same page in fighting this project," Gibbons said.

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"There are too many problems with this project to list, whether it's the potential for groundwater contamination, the fed's inability to safely transport high-level nuclear waste or the federal government's profound encroachment on states' rights," he said.

A preliminary list of state officials Gibbons wants to participate include Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto, Agency for Nuclear Projects Executive Director Bob Loux and Public Safety Director Jerry Hafen, among others.

The DOE on Tuesday filed an application for construction authorization for the nuclear waste repository with the NRC. The site is about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

Nevada, through the attorney general's office, has already filed a petition to reject the application, saying it is unauthorized and substantially incomplete.

In Washington, the idea of a Yucca Mountain summit was backed by several Nevada lawmakers but they said Gibbons had yet to detail what he had in mind. None committed to show up without more information.

Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., will decide on attending "once Gov. Gibbons contacts our office with details like what this event would actually be and when it would occur," spokesman Jon Summers said in an e-mail.

Reid "supports any substantive action that would help kill the dump," Summers said.

Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., believes it would be helpful "to bring key stakeholders to the table as Nevada enters into a new phase in this battle," aide Matt Leffingwell said.

"Bringing everyone together on such an important issue to Nevada is worthy and will show a continued front against a flawed project," Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., said through his spokesman.

Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., was traveling and could not be reached for comment. Her office said Berkley "welcomes the governor's recognition that the Bush-McCain Yucca Mountain plan is a threat to Nevada families," referring to President Bush and Republican presidential candidate John McCain, who both support the project.

A spokesman for Rep. Dean Heller said he could not comment until more details become available.

Contact Capital Bureau reporter Sean Whaley at swhaley@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3900. Stephens Washington Bureau Chief Steve Tetreault contributed to this report.

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Please enter your name Name: Please enter your email Email: Please enter a comment COMMENTS : (word count limit is 300) You have reached the maximum number of words allowed Current Word Count: Note: Comments made by reporters and editors of the Las Vegas Review-Journal are presented with a yellow background. Report abuse Actual Nevadan wrote on June 11, 2008 08:28 AM: Greedy, Short-Sighted Nevadans... Nevada’s shameful standing in the nation’s foreclosure crisis is enough to demonstrate that we, as Nevadans, are not exactly paragons of economic good sense. Many of us rushed to get what we could, no matter what the consequences, simply out of greed and a desire to live dangerously beyond our means, in keeping with the values that typify Las Vegas. If the word “economy” comes from the Greek term for “home” (oikos) and shares its root with “ecology,” then the way Nevadans have managed their individual homes is reflective of the way we’ve managed our collective home, the environment. We’ve watched the water level in Lake Mead fall precipitously, even while our local government approved massive water-wasting projects such as Lake Las Vegas; we probably have more gas-guzzling SUVs and unnecessary “glamour” vehicles (Hummers, etc.) per capita than any other state; and we’ve never opposed expansion of any kind into our natural surroundings, including our encroachment on Red Rock, as long as someone was going to profit from it personally. But when it comes to Yucca Mountain, suddenly everyone’s an environmentalist, a “concerned citizen.” Even as gasoline passes $4.00 per gallon on its inevitable way to $5.00 per gallon; even as virtually every study points to a fossil fuel crisis and serious environmental consequences in the near future; even as we strain our immediate environment to the breaking point with reckless expansion and consumption -- even in the midst of all this, Nevadans continue to anguish over the boogeyman of nuclear waste disposal, knowing that the absence of a national repository is the main thing keeping us from taking advantage of the clean, relatively cheap nuclear power that represents our best chance to mitigate the environmental and economic damage we’ve done through our dependence on fossil fuel. Report abuse Art Caprario wrote on June 07, 2008 05:13 PM: Fighting Yucca Mt. is helping to distroy our country. We need an energy policy and an Apollo type project to reduce energy cost and make us less dependant on foriegn oil. The Democrats have come up with nothing and now we have the equally gutless Republicians helping to defeat the compeletion of a nuclear waste storage facility, when we should be premoting nuclear power. Our economic and national security are at stake. Wake up America, These pieces of human waste should be ashamed! Art Caprario Benton, TN Report abuse Judy wrote on June 07, 2008 02:52 PM: Hard to fight a Bush/Cheney Administration that lies about just about everything. They are lying about the science being safe at Yucca Mountain and Bush/Cheney are trying to get this F**k Nevada dump in place before they ride off into the sunset. This administration will go down in history as the worst and most corrupt. That Jim Gibbons is putting a panel together to 'fight' the dump is a JOKE. This ass-clown is 1/2 way up the ass of this administration and will enable Bush/Cheney to get whatever they want in Nevada. Something really stinks in Nevada. Report abuse tom wrote on June 07, 2008 10:04 AM: Why would all these Nevada politicians take so much time to fight something they al believe is DEAD. If the science is not sound, and the LA is flawed and incomplete....what is there for them to worry about? Common sense tells you that you don't fight something that you know you don't have to. They know better but don't want to admit it. All they can do is name call. They know their comments are nothing but politics. They want everyone to think they are so confident but they are not so they throw out all these stupid stataments. Nevada has some of the worst politicians in the country. Reid, Berkley, and Porter top the list. And Berkley with her scare tactic statements. Why doesn't the LVRJ just get a statement from each of them and every time there is something on Yucca just re-state it. They all say the same bunch of nonsense over and over. Report abuse tim wrote on June 07, 2008 09:48 AM: if harry cant stop the dump,with all his buddies leading congress,it is over.but lets blame republicans,it sounds better.