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January
January 31, 2002 -- -- Yucca stigma will hit economy -- Las Vegas' economy  will be hobbled almost immediately if the federal government designates Yucca Mountain as the nation's nuclear waste repository, according to a study released Wednesday -- Las Vegas Sun (Another Story - NWTRB)
January 30, 2002 -- YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Scientists hear state's objections -- Site's geology is unsuitable, consultant says -- PAHRUMP -- Speaking before a panel that last week criticized some of the science used in the Yucca Mountain Project, a state consultant said Tuesday that Nevada disapproves of burying nuclear waste in the mountain because the site alone will not isolate it - Las Vegas Review Journal (Related Story) January 29, 2002 -- Letter to Congress RE: A Report by the Department of Energy’s Inspector General, which exposes apparent conflicts of interest within the Yucca Mountain Project -- Public Citizen January 29, 2002 -- Nevada lawmakers weigh in on Yucca Mountain nuclear dump -- CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) - A legislative panel studying a proposed federal dump for nuclear waste voted 7-1 Tuesday to back Gov. Kenny Guinn's plan to veto the Nevada site. Panel members also said federal Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham used scare tactics by raising the specter of terrorism in recommending Yucca Mountain, about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, as the dump site. January 29, 2002 -- Mayor reports mixed success on anti-Yucca efforts Goodman says he did raise interest when he talked about real estate values along routes -- Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said Monday he had mixed success in convincing his fellow mayors to oppose the shipment of nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain, but vowed to continue his high-decibel attacks on the project - Las Vegas Review Journal January 28, 2002 -- Four-year experiment on Yucca Mountain rock temperatures concludes Government scientists this month switched off the electric rods they had used for more than four years to heat up rock deep inside Yucca Mountain to temperatures hot enough to cook a pizza -- Las Vegas Review Journal January 27, 2002 -- Letter: State will exhaust all legal avenues -- including constitutional ones -- I must take serious exception to your Jan. 13 editorial, "The dog that hasn't barked," which suggests Nevada politicians are not pursuing every legal avenue available to defeat the proposed high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. The editorial asks why Nevada's leadership has not, as yet, initiated a 10th Amendment lawsuit against the proposed dump - By FRANKIE SUE DEL PAPA, Attorney General, State of Nevada (The Letter was published in the Las Vegas Review Journal) January 24, 2001 -- Letter to Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham from Governor Guinn re: Intent to recommend to President Bush approval of Yucca Mountain -- State of Nevada January 24, 2002 -- Goodman files Yucca petition in Washington -- WASHINGTON -- Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham's recommendation to build a high-level nuclear waste site at Yucca Mountain will cause "immediate and irreparable harm" to Las Vegas, the city charged in a court documents filed in federal court today. (Related Story) (Another Related Story) (And Another Related Story) January 22, 2002 -- Yucca tops lawmakers' agenda WASHINGTON - Perhaps no single issue has dominated the attention of Nevada lawmakers in Congress in the past 20 years more than Yucca Mountain -- By Benjamin Grove (Las Vegas Sun) January 22, 2002 -- Alaska GOP rep wary of nuclear traffic Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, said Monday that he is concerned about using the rails and roads to bring the waste to the proposed high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas -- By Launce Rake (Las Vegas Sun) January 22, 2002 -- GOP congressman to rethink Yucca stance The chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure told state officials Monday he will reconsider his support of the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository -- By Michael Squires (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 19, 2002 -- Yucca Mountain: Ex-parliamentarian hired Robert Dove to provide advice on nuclear issues -- By Tony Batt (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 19, 2002 -- Report critical of groundwater monitoring plan Environmental group says public won't get adequate warning of pollution from test site -- By Keith Rogers (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 18, 2002 -- Abraham: Bush yet to decide on dump Energy secretary says he will continue to work with Nevada's elected officials -- By Tony Batt (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 18, 2002 -- Analysis: Partisan politics could hurt efforts to halt Yucca Democratic and Republican elected leaders may stand united on the surface in their opposition to Yucca Mountain, but a growing partisan undercurrent in the fight threatens to disrupt that harmony and cause embarrassment to some of those leading the charge -- By Jeff German (Las Vegas Sun) January 18, 2002 -- Study attacks DOE monitoring of radioactive water The Department of Energy is failing to monitor ground water contaminated with radiation as a result of underground nuclear experiments, according to a study released Thursday -- By Mary Manning (Las Vegas Sun) January 18, 2002 -- Abraham asked to recuse himself Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy group, is urging Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham to recuse himself from a decision on a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain because the secretary has taken campaign contributions from the nuclear industry -- Las Vegas Sun January 17, 2002 -- Berkley urges anti-Yucca campaign Berkley on Wednesday posted on her Web site a sample letter to President Bush and urged Nevadans to make use of it in a letter-writing campaign opposing the proposed nuclear waste repository -- Las Vegas Review-Journal January 17, 2002 -- Councilman says Nevadans have paid their nuclear dues Las Vegas Councilman Gary Reese offered a unique perspective to Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham's decision to recommend Yucca Mountain as the burial ground for 77,000 tons of the nation's nuclear waste -- By Diana Sahagun (Las Vegas Sun) January 16, 2002 -- Reid pushes nuke waste option Technology may offer alternative to Yucca project -- By Mary Manning (Las Vegas Sun) January 15, 2002 -- What Nevadans Think: Poll: Press Yucca fight Nevada's opposition to a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain is as strong in 2002 as it was in 1990, three years after Congress singled out the state as the only site to study placement of the nation's highest-level nuclear waste, a new poll shows -- By Jane Ann Morrison (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 15, 2002 -- State is geared for years of opposition Nevada leaders plan delaying tactics, suits over the long haul -- By Mary Manning (Las Vegas Sun) January 15, 2002 -- Local officials clash with Sununu on Yucca Top local officials and a leading nuclear industry lobbyist are clashing over the effect of Yucca Mountain on national security -- By Jeff German (Las Vegas Sun) January 15, 2002 -- Reid, Ensign reiterate bipartisan opposition Sununu reacts to criticism from senators -- By Keith Rogers (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 15, 2002 -- Herrera backs Guinn, raps Porter on dump issue Clark County Commission Chairman Dario Herrera on Monday rejected suggestions by Nevada Democratic officials that Gov. Kenny Guinn has been ineffective in the fight against storing nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, and said he doesn't think the issue should become a partisan one -- By Jan Moller (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 15, 2002 -- Berkley: Terrorism used to justify dump WASHINGTON - Terrorism is being used as an excuse by the Bush administration to justify placing a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Rep. Shelley Berkley said Monday -- By Tony Batt (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 15, 2002 -- Federal study OKs nuclear waste dump in Utah SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued a final environmental study that sanctions a plan to store highly radioactive nuclear waste in Utah's Skull Valley -- Associated Press (Las Vegas Sun) January 14, 2002 -- Nevada lacks clout to stop dump WASHINGTON - If President Bush endorses the plan to bury nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain and Gov. Kenny Guinn files an official objection as expected, both the House and Senate likely would have the votes to override the Nevada objection -- By Benjamin Grove (Las Vegas Sun) January 14, 2002 -- Sununu says he is not calling for boycott Yucca Mountain lobbyist warns Nevada that tourism might suffer -- By Benjamin Grove and Jeff German (Las Vegas Sun) January 14, 2002 -- Letter urges Bush to bounce Yucca Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman and County Commission Chairman Dario Herrera were sending a letter today to President Bush urging him to reject Yucca Mountain as the site of the nation's high-level nuclear waste dump -- By Jeff German (Las Vegas Sun) January 13, 2002 -- Yucca decision attracts attention In Illinois, Idaho and South Carolina, news that the nation was one step closer to placing its nuclear waste in Nevada was received with a sense of salvation -- By Jane Ann Morrison (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 12, 2002 -- Inside Yucca Mountain: Time is necessary tool for researchers, but a precious commodity for the state YUCCA MOUNTAIN — Scientists working in Alcove Five deep inside this sagebrush covered ridge in the southern Nevada desert will finish on Monday the first half of an eight-year experiment to see how rocks and water react to temperature changes -- By Don Cox (Reno Gazette-Journal) January 12, 2002 -- Dump opposition spurs diverse groups to join forces An unprecedented coalition of Indian tribes, business groups, environmental activists and consumer advocates is preparing to fight the Yucca Mountain nuclear dump plan with lobbyists, lawsuits, demonstrations, and public education -- By Frank X. Mullen Jr. (Reno Gazette-Journal) January 12, 2002 -- Yucca opposition to focus on legal challenges, education State spending millions to fight repository -- By Sean Whaley (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 12, 2001 -- North-South battle looms Debate over whether to send tons of radioactive waste to Yucca Mountain through Reno or Las Vegas could divide and weaken Nevada in its battle against becoming the nation’s nuclear dumpsite, a state consultant said Friday -- By Lenita Powers (Reno Gazette-Journal) January 12, 2002 -- Yucca Debate: Sununu: Nation is watching Nevada would be wise to remember that other states have a major stake in the Yucca Mountain debate, a pro-repository lobbyist warned Friday -- By Dave Berns (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 11, 2002 -- NUCLEAR WASTE: ABRAHAM BACKS DUMP Guinn says fight to stop repository will proceed -- By Keith Rogers (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 11, 2002 -- It's Yuck-a: Nevadans upset, plan fight against Abraham decision Nevada political, business, labor and community leaders expressed dismay Thursday at Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham's recommendation to make Yucca Mountain the site of the nation's high-level nuclear waste dump, and are mobilizing to fight the decision -- By Jeff German (Las Vegas Sun) January 11, 2002 -- Nuke companies have a lot to gain WASHINGTON - Nuclear power companies may see noticeable long-term stock gains after Thursday's announcement by Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham that Yucca Mountain is "scientifically sound and suitable" for a national nuclear waste dump, analysts said -- By Benjamin Grove (Las Vegas Sun) January 11, 2002 -- Environmentalists are ready to battle Environmental groups say they will launch attacks on a number of fronts in their fight against a proposed nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain -- By Mary Manning (Las Vegas Sun) January 11, 2002 -- A Community Divided Amargosa Valley residents split on Yucca decision -- By J.M. Kalil (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 11, 2002 -- Yucca neighbors say lawsuits coming over nuclear dump decision LAS VEGAS — The farmers and ranchers who can see Yucca Mountain from their fields in Amargosa Valley said Thursday they will keep fighting plans to store nuclear waste there -- Don Cox (Reno Gazette-Journal) January 11, 2002 -- Nevada Site Urged for Nuclear Dump WASHINGTON — After spending 14 years and $4.5 billion on studies, the Energy Department said today that it would recommend that Yucca Mountain, a barren volcanic structure about 90 miles from Las Vegas, be used to bury thousands of tons of highly radioactive nuclear waste from power plants and nuclear weapons factories -- By Matthew L. Wald (New York Times) January 11, 2002 -- Battle looms over Nevada N-dump Yucca Mountain was singled out in 1987 The US Energy Department has given the go-ahead for a controversial nuclear waste dump in the Nevada desert -- BBC News January 10, 2002 -- Yucca Mountain Chronology A chronology on development of a national nuclear waste repository -- Las Vegas Sun January 10, 2002 -- Energy Secretary recommends Nevada for nuclear waste dump Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham recommended Yucca Mountain today as "scientifically sound and suitable" as a place to bury 77,000 tons of nuclear waste, the first official step toward a national repository -- By Mary Manning and Benjamin Grove (Las Vegas Sun) January 10, 2002 -- Nevadans brace for Yucca decision Nevada officials are bracing for Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham to tell them that he will recommend to President Bush that Yucca Mountain is a suitable place to bury nuclear waste -- By Benjamin Grove and Mary Manning (Las Vegas Sun) January 10, 2002 -- Nevada Picked for Nuclear Waste Site WASHINGTON - Addressing the most troubling issue facing the nuclear industry, Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham on Thursday chose Yucca Mountain in Nevada to be the nation's burial site for thousands of tons of nuclear waste -- Las Vegas Sun January 10, 2002 -- Yucca Mountain: Decision on dump imminent Nevada officials were preparing Wednesday for the possibility Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham would reveal today that he favors turning Yucca Mountain into the nation's nuclear waste repository, but acknowledged they had no first-hand information he would do so -- By Keith Rogers (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 10, 2002 -- Web site announces nuke dump decision A pro-nuclear dump Web site reported Wednesday that Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham was ready to recommend Nevada's Yucca Mountain as the site for a high-level nuclear waste repository -- by staff and wire reports (Nevada Appeal) January 10, 2002 -- Yucca to Get Green Light After two decades of study and years of political infighting, the federal government appears ready, as soon as Thursday, to give the green light to opening the Yucca Mountain nuclear storage facility in Nevada, sources tell Tech Central Station -- By Duane D. Freese (Tech Central Station) January 10, 2002 -- Yucca managers getting ready for next phase WASHINGTON - Yucca Mountain Project managers are forming a new strategy to guide finances, schedules and research in the event the Bush administration recommends the Nevada site for a nuclear waste repository, an executive said Wednesday at a nuclear industry conference -- By Steve Tetreault (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 09, 2002 -- Las Vegas prepared to sue if waste set for Yucca The city of Las Vegas stands ready to file a racketeering lawsuit against the federal government if Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham recommends Yucca Mountain as the nation's nuclear waste repository -- By Diana Sahagun (Las Vegas Sun) January 09, 2002 -- Yucca Mountain questions won't affect site decision Unanswered scientific questions about plans to entomb nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain won't affect a decision by Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham on recommending the site for a repository, a Department of Energy official said Tuesday -- By Keith Rogers (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 09, 2002 -- Yucca seen as a key to avert terror Task force proposes plans in preparing for future attacks -- By Laura Meckler, Associated Press (Las Vegas Sun) January 08, 2002 -- Guinn told decision on Yucca near Gov. Kenny Guinn said Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham told him Monday that a decision was "imminent" on whether to recommend Yucca Mountain as a nuclear waste repository, but Abraham said he had not set a deadline -- By Mary Manning (Las Vegas Sun) 
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, center, climbs to the peak of Yucca Mountain along with Lake Barrett, left, director of DOE's OCRWM, Monday in Mercury, Nev. (AP photo) January 08, 2002 -- Nuclear Issues: Abraham completes promised tour Energy secretary set to decide on Yucca Mountain waste repository -- By Keith Rogers and Jane Ann Morrison (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 07, 2002 -- ,Energy secretary says he’s ready to decide on nuclear dump Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham emerged from the tunnel at a proposed national nuclear waste dump Monday, declaring himself ready to make a decision about whether radioactive waste can be stored there safely -- Associated Press (Reno Gazette-Journal) January 07, 2002 -- Nevada officials brace for Abraham visit Energy secretary making his first trip to Yucca Mountain -- By Mary Manning (Las Vegas Sun) January 07, 2002 -- Reports dispute test site safety Two newly released views call DOE's plan for monitoring of groundwater inadequate -- By Keith Rogers (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 05, 2002 -- Abraham to witness mock attack, experiments WASHINGTON - Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham will witness a mock terrorist attack at the Nevada Test Site and examine experiments being conducted at Yucca Mountain during a visit Monday to the two energy facilities in Nevada -- By Steve Tetreault (Las Vegas Review-Journal) January 04, 2002 -- Ridge, Abraham won't get similar treatment in visits WASHINGTON - Nevada officials plan to warmly welcome Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge next week for a tour of the Nevada Test Site, but they will turn a cold shoulder to Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham -- By Benjamin Grove (Las Vegas Sun) January 04, 2002 -- Nevada senators steer clear of Abraham visit WASHINGTON - Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham plans to inspect Yucca Mountain on Monday as part of a visit to Nevada that is shaping up differently from when it was announced last month -- Las Vegas Review-Journal January 03, 2002 -- Neveda Focus: No consensus in town near proposed nuclear dump AMARGOSA VALLEY, Nev. (AP) - They've argued for almost two decades on the farms, at the post office and at the VFW-American Legion post about the federal government's proposal to bury radioactive waste 15 miles up the road -- Associated Press (Las Vegas Sun) February February 28, 2002 -- DOE official tainted by bias, Berkley says -- WASHINGTON -- Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., is joining critics who say a top Energy Department official has a conflict of interest with two corporations where he used to work. DOE Undersecretary Robert Card's former firms, CH2M Hill Corp. and Kaiser-Hill Corp., both have contracts with the department for radioactive waste cleanup projects in Colorado and Washington -- Las Vegas Sun. February 28, 2002 -- Hydrologist says Nevada needs more water in exchange for dump -- LAS VEGAS (AP) - A hydrologist who has studied water issues at the Nevada Test Site and Yucca Mountain for more than two decades says the federal government owes the state more of what some consider the most valuable commodity in the West: water. February 28, 2002 -- Yucca water rights at issue Sides expected to battle over permits -- "Whiskey is for drinking and water is for fighting over," or so goes the quote widely attributed to 19th century author Mark Twain. Nevada officials would agree. They expect the Department of Energy to file a lawsuit when the state tries to shut off the wells that would allow the construction of the proposed Yucca Mountain repository -- Las Vegas Review Jouranl  -- The Department of Energy constructed this water tank 20 miles from Yucca Mountain in anticipation that the state will try and cut off water to the site when a permit expires on April 9.
February 27, 2002 -- Utah ready to officially join fight against nuke dump -- The eyes of the world just left Utah, but Nevada officials are hoping Congress takes notice of an anti-Yucca Mountain resolution moving through that state's Legislature. A resolution -- which could pass the state Senate today -- urges the U.S. Congress to reject the Bush administration's recommendation to store the nation's nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas - Las Vegas Sun February 25, 2002 -- Guinn predicts more governors will oppose Yucca -- WASHINGTON -- Gov. Kenny Guinn is alone among the nation's governors in his opposition to Yucca Mountain, Guinn said today at the National Governors Association's winter meeting - Las Vegas Sun February 25, 2002 -- Governor sees little chance of stopping dump in Congress --  WASHINGTON -- Gov. Kenny Guinn on Sunday said Nevada's best chance of stopping nuclear waste from coming to Yucca Mountain might rest in the courts instead of Congress. Guinn, who is in the nation's capital to attend the annual conference of the National Governors Association, said he would veto "probably within the next 45 days" President Bush's Feb. 15 approval of Yucca Mountain as a repository for 77,000 tons of high-level nuclear waste -- By Tony Batt - Stephens Washington Bureau
February 24, 2002 -- Nevada undertakes effort to kill Yucca project in Congress -- Reid, Ensign analyze law, Senate rules for any advantage they can find in uphill battle -- WASHINGTON -- Nevada officials are scouring federal law and House and Senate rules, looking for cards to play in their efforts to kill the Yucca Mountain program when it reaches Congress later this year -- By Steve Tetreault Stephens Washington Bureau February 24, 2002 -- Nuclear waste dump foes try to gather support from California cities -- SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Opponents of a proposed nuclear waste dump are trying to gather support from communities in California and 44 other states in the path of trucks and trains hauling radioactive materials to the site - AP February 22, 2002 -- Poll cites nuclear waste as top concern -- Voters rate economy second most crucial issue -- Clark County voters cite nuclear waste as the most critical issue facing them, according to a new poll tied to the launch of a subscription news service. The poll of 550 registered voters was conducted by Downey Research for political strategist Terry Murphy's new endeavor, The Insighter. The Insighter is a twice-a-month newsletter and website aimed at the business community. When asked to rank the top issue, 26.8 percent selected nuclear waste. The economy was picked by 16 percent, growth by 14 percent and education by 10 percent -- Las Vegas Sun February 22, 2002 -- Utah to consider resolution on Yucca -- The Utah Legislature will consider a joint resolution Monday opposing a high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. The resolution was introduced Feb. 4, before Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham and President Bush approved the site 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas for the burial of 77,000 tons of commercial spent fuel and defense wastes. The resolution makes it clear that Congress should reject the president's recommendation -- Las Vegas Sun February 20, 2002 -- 'Dump the Dump' campaign considered enlisting Clinton -- Former President Bill Clinton was one of several high-profile political figures recently considered by Nevada gaming bosses to serve as a well-paid lobbyist in the fight against a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain -- Las Vegas Review Journal (Related Story -- Casinos to launch Yucca blitz -- Las Vegas Sun February 19, 2002 -- Resort association to escalate anti-Yucca effort -- The casino industry's Carson City lobbying arm is set today to announce plans to significantly escalate its anti-Yucca Mountain political effort, four days after President Bush approved the opening of a nuclear waste repository at the isolated Southern Nevada site - Las Vegas Review Journal February 18, 2002 -- Yucca strategy: Sue, stall -- State hopes legal battles will slow or kill project --Now that President Bush has approved a nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain, Nevada officials plan to stuff the courts with lawsuits, tying up the issue for as long as possible. Although the state's ultimate goal is to block the repository, attorneys and officials admit that with the federal government's deeppockets and their own questionable legal grounds, Nevada's real court strategy is delay -- Las Vegas Sun (Related Story - Legislature has few options in 2003) February 16, 2002  Sen. Harry Reid slams Bush for Yucca decision -- Nevada Appeal (Carson City)
 Bush OKs Yucca for nuke waste dump
Gov. Guinn will veto Bush's Yucca Mountain decision
Statement from Senator Ensign
February 16, 2002 -- Bury the Nation's Nuclear Waste in Nevada, Bush Says -- New York Times February 16, 2002 --Nuclear Waste Repository: Bush backs Yucca plan -- Las Vegas Review Journal February 15, 2002 -- Bush OKs Yucca for nuke waste dump --  President Bush approved Friday Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham's strongly worded recommendation that a national nuclear waste dump be constructed at Yucca Mountain. Gov. Kenny Guinn vowed to veto the president's order and continue fighting the proposed repository 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. "We are in the fight for our life," Guinn said. -- Las Vegas Sun
Presidential Letter to Congress
Statement by the Press Secretary
DOE Issues Final Yucca Mountain EIS
Transportation Plan -- Graphic
February 15, 2002 -- YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Decision on waste goes to Bush -- Energy secretary tells president location 'technically suitable --  WASHINGTON -- Nevada's prospects to become the nation's burial ground for nuclear waste were placed in the hands of President Bush on Thursday when Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham transmitted a packet to the White House recommending that Bush approve a Yucca Mountain repository. . . . I've called him a blockhead before, I've called him a fathead before. It's too good for him. That's it. Any questions?" -- [Oscar] Goodman [Mayor of Las Vegas] said a decision to move nuclear waste to Nevada might lead to civil disobedience -- Las Vegas Review Journal (Related Story - AP)
February 15, 2002 -- Pro-dump lobbyists tour Yucca Mountain -- On the day Nevada lawmakers joined environmental groups in Washington, D.C., to urge President Bush and Congress to turn back the Yucca Mountain Project, two backers of the nuclear waste repository, John Sununu and Geraldine Ferraro, toured the site Thursday -- Las Vegas Review Journal February 2002 -- A Mountain of Trouble: A Nation at Risk -- The State's Yucca Mountain Impact Report is now availble on the Agency For Nuclear Projects website. It's a very large pdf file (3.7 MB). Hard copies are being printed and should be available soon. The body of the report is 192 pages, not including the executive summary. With appendices, the entire report totals about 1,500 pages in 3 volumes. Request a hard copy of the report February 14, 2002 -- Nuclear industry counters state effort -- Mayors get video on safety of waste transport -- WASHINGTON -- At the same time Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman was lobbying fellow mayors last month against Yucca Mountain at a Washington conference, the nuclear energy industry was giving to every mayor a videotape touting the safety of nuclear waste transport. Besides being given to city leaders, the video was sent to 1,500 local chambers of commerce and 222 television stations, several of which have run footage, a strategist for the Nuclear Energy Institute said this week -- Las Vegas Review Journal February 13, 2002 -- YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Dump recommendation delayed Backers still seeking action within week -- WASHINGTON -- Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham met with President Bush on Tuesday to discuss nuclear waste but held off on making his recommendation that Yucca Mountain be authorized as the nation's permanent site for storage of the nation's most lethal radioactive materials -- Las Vegas Review Journal February 13, 2002 -- Who lied about Yucca Mountain? -- Jon Ralston, Reno Gazette-Journal February 12, 2002 -- Bush hears from energy secretary on why dump should proceed -- WASHINGTON (AP) - Energy Secretary Spence Abraham briefed President Bush on Tuesday about why a nuclear waste dump should be built at Yucca Mountain despite widespread opposition within Nevada. February 12, 2002 -- Nuke cask strength decried -- Nevada leaders say tape shows high risk of transporting waste -- WASHINGTON -- Nuclear industry and federal tests show that a missile could blow a hole in a nuclear-waste transportation cask, potentially sending radiation into the environment, industry experts told the Sun - Las Vegas Sun February 12, 2002 -- Dump proponents targeting senators -- WASHINGTON -- Proponents of storing nuclear waste in Nevada estimate 46 senators are ready to vote for a repository at Yucca Mountain, meaning only a handful more need to be persuaded before Congress sets to vote on the issue later this year, state utility officials were told at a conference on Monday - Las Vegas Review Journal February 11, 2002 -- Court battle looms on Yucca water shutdown -- CARSON CITY -- State Engineer Hugh Ricci says he will probably have to go to court to shut down the wells being used by the federal government at the proposed nuclear dump at Yucca Mountain -- Las Vegas Sun February 11, 2002 -- Abraham's recommendation expected today -- Bush may decide on Yucca Mountain by Wednesday -- Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham was expected today to recommend Yucca Mountain as the nation's nuclear repository, setting the White House on course for a political collision with Nevada's leadership - Las Vegas Sun February 11, 2002 -- Nuke casks can be damaged In Army test, missile explosion blew hole in high-level waste transport container -- WASHINGTON -- As Nevada officials mull their next strike in an intensifying battle against the Yucca Mountain project, a videotape may be their new weapon - Las Vegas Sun February 11, 2002 -- Perkins: Yucca a homeland security issue -- Ridge appears receptive to speaker's opinion -- Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins has urged Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge to consider the transportation of nuclear waste as a homeland security issue - Las Vegas Review Journal February 10, 2002 -- Ex-governor says waste dump would be good business -- Nevada’s nuclear shopping list is long and growing -- If Yucca Mountain, a ridge of volcanic rock rising from the desert northwest of Las Vegas, becomes the country’s dump for high-level radioactive waste, there are those who want the state to make the best economic deal possible - By Don Cox, Reno Gazette-Journal (Related Story -- Ex-mining town wants jobs, training from dump project) February 10, 2002 -- Nevada dump would mean decades of radioactive shipments across U.S. -- WASHINGTON — If the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository opens in Nevada in 2010 as planned, tens of thousands of highly radioactive shipments will roll through communities large and small for the next 38 years - Forrest Hartman & Faith Bremner, Gannett News Service February 09, 2002 -- Nevadans urged to weigh in with Bush -- Anticipating a quick verdict from President Bush on the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository, three local officials on Friday urged Nevadans to voice their opposition to the project with faxes, e-mails and phone calls to the White House - Las Vegas Review Journal February 09, 2002 -- NUCLEAR WASTE SHIPMENTS: Report: Department not fully prepared -- WASHINGTON -- The Department of Transportation is preparing to designate an administrator as a focal point for nuclear waste after auditors warned the department is not prepared for forecasted shipments to a planned repository in Nevada -- Las Vegas Review Journal February 09, 2002 -- Yucca Mountain: Opposing camps remain sharply dividedA volatile mix of science, politics, anger and fear makes a plan to entomb the nation’s high-level nuclear waste inside Yucca Mountain perhaps the most explosive public policy issue in Nevada history -- By Don Cox, Reno Gazette-Journal February 09, 2002 -- DOE, state scientists reach opposing conclusions -- Richard Craun, an engineer, and Steve Frishman, a geologist, are the yin and yang of Yucca Mountain issue, representing opposite sides of the heated debate about the site’s suitability as a storage facility for nuclear waste. -- Craun, who lives in Las Vegas, is a senior policy advisor for the U.S. Department of Energy. He gives the DOE’s position that scientific evidence shows Yucca Mountain will work safely. Frishman, who lives in Mason Valley near Yerington, is technical policy coordinator for Nevada. He gives the state’s position that Yucca Mountain is flawed and science hasn’t been able to prove otherswise - Reno Gazette-Journal February 08, 2002 -- Tape shows flaws in casks -- Nevada lawmakers rebut nuke industry's 'secret' safety video -- WASHINGTON -- As Nevada officials mull their otions in an intensifying battle against the Yucca Mountain project, could a secret videotape be their next weapon? -- Las Vegas Sun 
February 08, 2002 -- State moves on Yucca fight -- Las Vegas Sun February 08, 2002 -- Nevada moves to shut off water to proposed federal nuclear dump -- LAS VEGAS (AP) - Nevada again wants to shut off water to the site where the federal government wants to bury the nation's radioactive waste. State Engineer Hugh Ricci has notified the Energy Department that he will not extend for five years a permit letting the federal agency draw water for the Yucca Mountain nuclear repository site. The current permit expires April 9. February 08, 2002 -- YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Guinn makes case against dump --  WASHINGTON -- Nevada's top leaders took their campaign against the Yucca Mountain Project directly to the White House on Thursday, but they said their face-to-face appeal to President Bush yielded no clues on his plans - Las Vegas Review Journal (Related Story - Las Vegas Sun)
February 07, 2002 -- Nevada officials ask Bush to withhold OK on Yucca Mountain site -- WASHINGTON (AP) - Gov. Kenny Guinn and Nevada's two senators made a last-minute plea Thursday trying to dissuade President Bush from moving forward with a nuclear waste site in the state until all safety issues are resolved. February 07, 2002 -- Scientists enter cooling phase of hot test at Yucca Mountain -- Government scientists have switched off an experiment that for four years turned tunnels inside a proposed Nevada nuclear waste repository as hot as a pizza oven - AP February 06, 2002 -- Guinn will press Bush on dump -- Gov. Kenny Guinn will fly to Washington on Thursday to personally ask President Bush not to support plans to place a nuclear waste repository in Nevada - Las Vegas Review Journal -- (More Coverage, Las Vegas Sun) February 06, 2002 -- Test Site cleanup efforts lose funds in Bush budget -- The budget President Bush presented to Congress reduces proposed funding for environmental cleanup at the Nevada Test Site by about $26 million - Las Vegas Sun February 05, 2002 -- DOE plans 'temporary' nuke dump at Yucca -- WASHINGTON -- The Energy Department wants to construct an above-ground nuclear waste storage area near Yucca Mountain as part of its effort to start shipping 77,000 tons of waste to Nevada by 2010 -- By Benjamin Grove, Las Vegas Sun February 06, 2002 -- Report lists Yucca impact -- Commission reviews study warning of nuclear dump's negative effects -- Clark County commissioners Tuesday forwarded to the state a report that outlines the negative effects the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository would have on tourism, property values and public services - Las Vegas Review Journal February 04, 2002 -- More money sought to meet Yucca deadline -- WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration is asking Congress for a $152 million increase for Yucca Mountain to push the site forward as the nation's nuclear waste dump - Las Vegas Sun (More on this story - Las Vegas Review Journal) February 04, 2002 -- Fluoride could lead to corrosion at Yucca, report says -- The Energy Department has discovered levels of fluoride in water and rock at the proposed Yucca Mountain repository that could cause early corrosion of containers and titanium shields designed to protect buried nuclear waste - Las Vegas Sun March March 30, 2002 -- Safety of shipping nuclear waste debated -- Nev. officials cite catastrophic accidents WASHINGTON — The Energy Department estimates the worst accident in transporting nuclear waste across the country would result in five deaths from radiation leaks. Officials in Nevada, where the waste would come to a proposed national nuclear waste dump, say the agency is low-balling the number and not taking into account real-world rail and truck wrecks - By Doug Abrahms - Reno Gazette-Journal 
March 29, 2002 -- Governor faces Yucca battle --  Political, legal hurdles stand in way of more money In his effort to boost Nevada's efforts to fight Yucca Mountain, Gov. Kenny Guinn faces major political and legal hurdles to find money the state's senators say they will need to stop the nuclear waste dump - Las Vegas Sun
March 29, 2002 -- AG files motion on Yucca water -- CARSON CITY -- The state Attorney General's Office today moved on two fronts to stop the U.S. Department of Energy from using water at Yucca Mountain for a proposed nuclear waste repository - By Cy Ryan, Las Vegas sun March 29, 2002 -- Wing' plot to feature nuke waste road wreck -- WASHINGTON -- The nation's awareness of the potential dangers of transporting nuclear waste is about to take a huge jump. On next Wednesday's episode of "The West Wing," President Josiah "Jed" Bartlet and his staff will confront another crisis: a report that a truck carrying uranium fuel rods has crashed in a tunnel in Idaho. Nevada leaders, who are battling the federal government's effort to store the nation's nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, welcomed the free publicity - Las Vegas Review Journal (More Coverage) March 28, 2002 -- Guinn seeks alternative to session -- Gov. Kenny Guinn said he is looking for an "off-budget" alternative to convening a special session to find $10 million for the state's campaign against the planned Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump. In a press conference Wednesday with U.S. Sens. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and John Ensign, R-Nev., and local leaders, Guinn said he is committed to trying to find the money to boost Nevada's fight -- Las Vegas Sun March 28, 2002 -- Nuclear industry pays for Las Vegas junkets --  WASHINGTON -- For a few hours trudging through the Nevada mountain where the government wants to store nuclear waste, dozens of congressional aides and a few of their bosses got two or three days in Las Vegas, at the nuclear industry's expense - Las Vegas Review-Journal
March 28, 2002 -- Poll: Little known about Yucca Mountain -- CARSON CITY -- Yucca Mountain may be big news in Nevada, but most folks around the country don't know much about the place. Fifty-three percent of 1,000 Americans polled by Ipsos Public Affairs said they know so little about Yucca Mountain that they cannot give an opinion - Las Vegas Review Journal March 27, 2002 -- Nevada officials say $10 million needed to block nuclear waste -- LAS VEGAS — When even the president wants nuclear waste stored in Nevada, the odds don’t look good for the state to stop it. But this is the gambling capital, and Nevada is doing what gamblers do when they’re down — upping the ante - Reno Gazette Journal March 27, 2002 -- 68% support special session -- Most locals favor increased funding in Yucca campaign -- Southern Nevada residents overwhelmingly support funding last-ditch efforts to block Yucca Mountain from becoming the nation's nuclear waste repository, according to a poll commissioned by the Las Vegas Sun. A telephone survey of 435 Clark County residents found 68 percent in support of a special session of the Legislature to appropriate $10 million to aid in the state's anti-Yucca Mountain lobbying efforts. The survey found 26 percent against a special session and 6 percent uncommitted -- Las Vegas Sun (Related Story) March 27, 2002 -- NRC plans hearings on Yucca -- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold three public meetings next month in Nevada to discuss safety and licensing issues with the Department of Energy's plans to build and operate a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. The meetings are April 8 at the Beatty Senior Center in Beatty; April 9 at the Tonopah Convention Center in Tonopah; and April 10 at the Prospector Inn in Ely. Each meeting will be from 6:30 p.m. until 9 p.m. The meetings will focus on the NRC's responsibilities in evaluating a potential license application for the proposed Yucca Mountain repository, 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas - Las Vegas Review Journal March 27, 2002 -- Acid will speed corrosion of nuke waste casks -- Acidic residue left on metal tubes that will hold more than half the spent nuclear fuel destined for the planned Yucca Mountain repository could accelerate corrosion of waste packages, causing them to fail long before the 10,000 years they're supposed to hold up, a Nevada official said Tuesday - Las Vegas Review Journal March 27, 2002 -- Yucca foes accused of using 'scare tactics -- WASHINGTON -- Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham on Tuesday accused critics of the Yucca Mountain Project of using "scare tactics" to raise alarms about nuclear waste transportation (Related Story) -- Las Vegas Review Journal March 26, 2002 -- Poll says Americans are evenly divided on Yucca issue -- WASHINGTON -- Americans are evenly split in their opinion of Yucca Mountain, according to a new poll that Nevada officials believe will bolster their position in the fight against Yucca Mountain. A nationwide survey of 1,000 people found 47 percent supporting the nuclear waste project and 47 percent opposing it, but the poll showed the public has concern over the transportation of nuclear waste -- Las Vegas Sun March 26, 2002 -- Environmental groups form anti-Yucca lobby -- Many of the nation's leading environmental groups are standing as one lobbying force to Congress urging lawmakers not to approve a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. March 25, 2002 -- Nevada's anti-Yucca fight gets boost in Congress -- State leaders have long said a key to their anti-Yucca Mountain strategy is to publicize risks associated with transporting waste, especially after the Sept. 11 terrorist strikes. Now a powerful ally in Washington has given the state a forum to tell the rest of the nation of those dangers -- and possibly sway some senators -- with a congressional hearing on transportation concerns. U.S. Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, said Friday he has scheduled a May 9 hearing before his 75-member Transportation Committee, based on concerns he has repeatedly heard from U.S. Reps. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., and Shelley Berkley, D-Nev. -- Las Vegas Sun March 22, 2002 -- State could tap 'rainy day' fund -- $10 million sought for Yucca fight -- Nevada officials are considering declaring an emergency to shift $10 million from the state's "rainy day" fund to the fight against a proposed nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain. On Thursday Gov. Kenny Guinn said he is deciding whether to call a special session of the state Legislature to ask for the money from the $136 million fund. "These are tough times, but I still think it's worth looking at," Guinn said. "We need to look at all the ramifications" -- Las Vegas Sun (Related Story) (More Press) March 22, 2002 -- Hearings set on risks of shipping waste -- WASHINGTON -- The House Transportation Committee will hold hearings on the risks of shipping nuclear waste to Nevada's Yucca Mountain, Chairman Don Young, R-Alaska, was expected to announce today in Las Vegas. Young reportedly is concerned about whether the nation's highly radioactive waste could safely be transported by truck and train through 43 states to Yucca Mountain. If Congress and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission ultimately approve the nuclear waste repository 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, the site could become a permanent burial ground for 77,000 tons of waste by the end of the decade - Las Vegas Sun March 22, 2002 -- Experts shrug off leftover questions -- Advisers say Yucca Mountain licensing will advance despite remaining science issues -- WASHINGTON -- Remaining science questions should not hamper the Energy Department's progress toward readying a license application to operate a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, advisers told members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission this week . . . Among items requiring more work are questions about the ability of corrosion resistant canisters and titanium drip shields to contain radioactivity from decaying nuclear waste for 10,000 years, said Bob Loux, chief of the state's nuclear projects office -- Las Vegas Review Journal March 21, 2002 -- Guinn mulls special session -- Nevada leaders see need for more money in anti-Yucca fight -- Gov. Kenny Guinn is considering calling the Legislature into a special session to approve more money for the high-stakes battle against the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump. Guinn told the Sun this morning that he supports the idea of calling a special session to earmark another $10 million in state funds for the Yucca Mountain fight -- Las Vegas Sun (More Coverage - Las Vegas Review Journal) March 21, 2002 -- Anti-Yucca resolution OK'd -- The Las Vegas City Council on Wednesday unanimously passed a resolution opposing the storage of nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain. The ordinance, which mirrors similar measures introduced by other city councils throughout the state, reaffirms the council's long-standing opposition to the federal government's plan to store 77,000 tons of highly radioactive nuclear waste on public land 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. The city is also fighting the project in federal court -- Las Vegas Review Journal March 20, 2002 -- Guinn: More money needed -- With 26 days left to veto President Bush's Yucca Mountain decision, Gov. Kenny Guinn is worried the state doesn't have enough money to fight the proposed nuclear waste dump. On Tuesday, Guinn asked the private sector to "step up to the plate" to help fund the now-$6 million Nevada Protection Fund, which already has more than half of its donations spoken for. "Truthfully, $6 million is wonderful, but we could spend millions more," Guinn said. "The nuclear energy industry has earmarked $30 million to lobby" for the dump - Las Vegas Sun March 20, 2002 -- Daschle Yucca stance changes Democratic leader less certain of success --  WASHINGTON -- Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle said Tuesday he plans to help Nevada fight Yucca Mountain in Congress but he was less certain of success than when he declared last year that the nuclear waste project was "dead" as long as Democrats controlled the Senate -- Las Vegas Review Journalnbsp; (More Coverage - March 22, 2002 - Las Vegas Review Journal)
March 20, 2002 -- NUCLEAR WASTE: Guinn: Yucca fight everywhere Governor receives $70,000 in contributions With fresh donations for fighting plans to bury nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain, Gov. Kenny Guinn said Tuesday the battleground to sway opinion against the project is "every place where there's a United States senator." "That's where our fight is," Guinn said at a news briefing at the Sawyer Building, where he accepted a combined $70,000 from a Nevada commercial development firm and a Realtors association. That brings to more than $6 million the amount the state has to pay lobbyists, lawyers, consultants and a publicity firm - Las Vegas Review Journal. March 19, 2002 -- Nevadans: Barge plan could hurt Yucca support -- WASHINGTON -- Nevada officials say the proposal to use barges as part of a massive effort to transport the nation's nuclear waste to Nevada could make it tougher for lawmakers in Congress to support the Yucca Mountain project. "It is inherently dangerous to transport nuclear waste -- period," Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., said. "When are people going to wake up and realize this is an absurd proposal?" -- Las Vegas Sun March 19, 2002 -- Domenici, Reid plan to fund alternatives to Yucca -- Two U.S. senators on Monday said they plan to fund alternatives to burying nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain - Las Vegas Sun March 19, 2002 -- YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Video shows damage to nuclear waste cask -- WASHINGTON -- Rep. Shelley Berkley on Monday made public a videotape of an anti-tank missile blasting a hole in a nuclear waste shipping cask, the latest effort by Nevada officials to call attention to potential dangers of transporting radioactive spent nuclear fuel to Yucca Mountain - Las Vegas Review Journal March 19, 2002 -- Lawsuits over radiation standards advance -- WASHINGTON -- A federal court has agreed to hear challenges to the government's radiation safety standards at the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in Nevada. In a March 12 order, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit set a schedule for briefs to be submitted in lawsuits that were filed last year against the Environmental Protection Agency by the state of Nevada, environmental groups and the Nuclear Energy Institute -- Las Vegas Review Journal March 18, 2002 -- DOE files petition to keep water on at Yucca -- CARSON CITY -- The U.S. Energy Department has gone to court to stop the state from cutting off water at the proposed nuclear dump at Yucca Mountain on April 9. In a petition filed in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas last week, the department said state Engineer Hugh Ricci's decision to refuse to extend temporary water permits contradicts state law -- By Cy Ryan, Las Vegas Sun, Capital Bureau March 16, 2002 -- Reid may cut nuclear waste disposal budget -- WASHINGTON -- Sen. Harry Reid said Friday he will consider cutting the budget for Yucca Mountain again this year, a move that could slow the government's work on the nuclear waste program even after its endorsement by President Bush . . . Reid, who was highly critical of the president's backing of Yucca Mountain when it was announced last month, said Friday that Bush "doesn't run the (appropriations) committee, he runs the White House. And we do our best to run things up here" in Congress. - Las Vegas Review Journal March 15, 2002 -- Bush to dump nuclear waste in earthquake zone -- From the air, or from the lonely wastes of Highway 95 in the middle of the Mojave desert, it looks the remotest place on earth. Yucca Mountain is no more than a long ridge surrounded by dust, sand and little else for dozens of miles. And yet it could be the source of the next big scandal to hit the American administration -- Independent News co uk. March 15, 2002 -- YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Senior manager set to retire -- WASHINGTON -- The Energy Department's senior manager for Yucca Mountain confirmed Thursday he plans to retire from the government later this spring. Lake Barrett, 56, has been deputy director of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management since 1993, and three times served as acting director for extended periods, most recently for the past 14 months -- Las Vegas Review Journal March 15, 2002 -- Pro-Yucca groups' political giving criticized Opponents -- $29 million given to parties over 10 years -- Groups opposed to the federal government's plans for burying highly radioactive waste in Yucca Mountain said Wednesday that nuclear power industry backers funneled more than $29 million over 10 years to political parties in hopes of gaining support for the project. "It amounts to legalized bribery and we've got to change that," said Paul Brown, a director for one of the groups, the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada. -- Las Vegas Review Journal March 15, 2002 -- Shoshone to testify against measure -- Leaders: Money could open door for nuke waste dump -- Western Shoshone National Council officials said Thursday they will testify next week against a measure before a U.S. Senate committee that calls for distributing $129 million from a trust fund among an estimated 10,000 tribal members -- Las Vegas Review Journla March 14, 2002 -- Nuke industry donated $30 million to lawmakers -- Nuclear industry companies gave nearly $30 million to congressional lawmakers in the last decade, according to a new public interest group report -- Las Vegas Sun March 13, 2002 -- Heavyweight GOP lobbyist joins Nevada team -- WASHINGTON -- Nevada lawmakers have enlisted GOP heavyweight lobbyist Ken Duberstein to help them drum up opposition in Congress to the Yucca Mountain project - Las Vegas Sun (Related Story) March 10, 2002 -- NWTRB Corespondnace -- Letter from the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board (NWTRB) to Lake Barrett, OCRWM -- re: Three Principal Recommendations -- NWTRB March 9, 2002 -- Disposing of Nuclear Wastes -- The Bush administration is moving forward with plans to bury highly radioactive waste from the nation's nuclear power plants and bomb-making facilities at Yucca Mountain, a remote desert site in Nevada -- New York Times March 2002 -- Energy Department Okays Yucca Mountain -- Popular Mechanics March 08, 2002 -- Welcom to the Yucca Lemon -- Imagine you're buying a car. You ask: Does it have an air bag? The salesman hems and haws--and then offers to sell you a titanium crash helmet, a flame-retardant racing suit and a comprehensive health insurance plan -- Would you buy that car? -- Would you buy it if George W. Bush himself was doing the selling? Welcome to Yucca Mountain!! (Editorial, The Nation) March 07, 2002 -- New Mexico woman named to key DOE radioactive waste post -- A New Mexican woman has been appointed to a key U.S. Department of Energy position overseeing radioactive waste. Margaret Chu was nominated by a unanimous Senate vote Wednesday to be director of the DOE's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, said news releases from Sens. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., and Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M. -- Las Vegas Sun March 05, 2002 -- Former Clinton aide joins state's anti-Yucca team -- John Podesta, a former White House chief of staff for President Bill Clinton, has been hired to help Nevada leaders lobby Congress against the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste project. Podesta, part of the Washington lobbying firm of Podesta Mattoon, will work primarily with Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., to rally support for the state's position among Democrats in the Senate, where the next battle over Yucca Mountain is unfolding. March 05, 2002 -- 38 of 293 questions on Yucca resolved -- NRC members discuss repository's licensing -- WASHINGTON -- The Energy Department has ample time to resolve 293 technical issues regarding nuclear waste storage at Yucca Mountain before submitting a license application in December 2004, a Nuclear Regulatory Commission official said Monday. But Martin Virgilio, director of the NRC's office of nuclear materials safety and safeguards, said new technical issues still could arise - Las Vegas Review Journal March 04, 2002 -- Yucca fight to target nation's counties -- Herrera to outline project to educate leaders on hazards of shipping waste -- WASHINGTON -- Clark County should bombard leaders of other counties nationwide with its anti-Yucca Mountain message, Clark County Commission Chairman Dario Herrera said today. Herrera this week intends to outline a plan to launch an information campaign aimed at other county managers. Herrera specifically wants to target officials in counties along the transportation routes that likely would be used to haul nuclear waste to Nevada if the Yucca plan is approved - Las Vegas Sun. March 04, 2002 DOE challenged over disposal plan
Environmentalists target storage of waste from military reactors -- WASHINGTON -- As the Energy Department marches ahead with its plan to bury waste from civilian nuclear reactors at Yucca Mountain, it is disposing of waste from its own military reactors in three far shallower sites around the country where it once produced weapons material -- New York Times News Service
March 04, 2002 -- Gephardt stumps against moving nuclear waste, cites safety -- WEBSTER GROVES, Mo. (AP) - House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt has urged a St. Louis suburb to help challenge any government plans to ship nuclear waste through Missouri, calling such a move bad for the country and Missouri. March 02, 2002 Nuclear Energy Institute . . . Howard, Nuclear Energy Institute executive vice president, is one of a platoon of industry-backed lobbyists answering lawmakers' questions about Yucca Mountain and trying to secure Congress' support for the proposed nuclear waste dump. . . . As the most vocal supporter of Yucca Mountain, the institute has a budget of about $28 million, a staff of 130 and a handful of lobbying firms on its payroll . . . . The nuclear power industry has very deep pockets and they are mounting a full-court press," said Richard Bryan, a former Nevada governor and U.S.senator who battled 8-year-old NEI and its predecessors for years. "(It is) extremely powerful, with unlimited amounts of money to retain lobbyists and initiate PR campaigns." -- Las Vegas Sun
March 02, 2002 -- Yucca Mountain water rights issue heats up -- It's crunch time for water at Yucca Mountain -- Saying there is only enough left for the next five weeks, a government lawyer urged a federal judge Friday to act quickly on a case involving permits for water needed to build and operate a nuclear waste repository in the mountain, 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas - Las Vegas Sun March 02, 2002 -- County Commission chairman tries to interest other states in Nevada's fight -- WASHINGTON -- Dario Herrera on Friday became the latest Nevada elected official to tell a national group that the state does not want to store the nation's nuclear waste - Las Vegas Review Jouranl April April 29, 2002 -- Clinton tells Las Vegas crowd that Yucca Mountain not justified -- LAS VEGAS (AP) - Former President Bill Clinton told a packed crowd at UNLV's Thomas and Mack Center on Monday that he hasn't seen scientific evidence that Yucca Mountain is safe to store the nation's nuclear waste. April 29, 2002 -- TVA says delays in storing waste may cost it $120 million -- TVA says delays in storing waste may cost it $120 million KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Tennessee Valley Authority officials estimate federal delays in accepting and storing radioactive waste from nuclear power plants might cost it more than $120 million for extra storage - Printed in the Las Vegas Sun April 2002 - State of Nevada: Testimony Before The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Subcomittees on Railroads and Transportation and Hazardous Materials: Statement of Kenny C. Guinn Governor Written Testimony of Dr. Marvin Resnikoff Testimony of Robert J. Halstead Written Testimony of Professor James David Ballard
April 28, 2002 -- Yucca Mountain Survey: Project has big support -- Those in favor of dump have lead in Senate -- WASHINGTON -- Those who want to store nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain hold a commanding lead in the U.S. Senate, a Review-Journal survey of senators shows -- By TONY BATT, Stephens Washington Bureau April 27, 2002 -- Nevada lauds article on Yucca science -- State leaders found surprising allies in their fight against Yucca Mountain in two pro-nuclear scientists who wrote in an article published today that the decision to put the dump in Nevada is being pushed by policy concerns, not science - Las Vegas Sun  April 26, 2002 -- YUCCA MOUNTAIN: House committee endorses project State leaders level new accusation against DOE -- WASHINGTON -- The House of Representatives on Thursday moved closer to approving the Yucca Mountain Project, while Nevada leaders again sought to discredit the work of the Energy Department -- Stephens Washington Bureau April 26, 2002 -- Guinn says better reaction from Congress this time -- Gov. Kenny Guinn says he was much happier with the reaction from members of Congress this time than the last time he testified against Yucca Mountain -- by Geoff Dornan, Nevada Appeal April 26, 2002 -- Impoverished Utah desert tribe sees salvation in nuclear waste; Utah officials are aghast -- For 150 years, the Goshute Indians have scratched a poor living in Utah's West Desert while watching their ancient homeland overrun by white encroachment and industrialization -- AP. April 25, 2002 -- Former Governor List pitches Yucca endorsement -- One day after a House panel rubber-stamped a federal plan to send nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain, former Nevada Gov. Bob List explained his endorsement of the project to a room of skeptical Northern Nevada business people - By Jim Scripps, Nevada Appeal April 25, 2002 -- Committee OKs Yucca site 41 - 6 : Full House vote is expected in 2 weeks -- WASHINGTON -- The Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository cleared another hurdle today when the House Energy and Commerce Committee approved the site on a 41-6 vote. The next step: a full House vote. The proposed repository continued its march through the House with the overwhelming vote and several lawmakers spoke highly of the plan to ship 77,000 tons of high-level waste to Nevada - Las Vegas Sun (Related Story) April 25, 2002 -- NEVADA OFFICIALS WATCHFUL: Nuclear waste panel to change State hopes new members will continue critical approach to Yucca repository WASHINGTON -- President Bush is weighing nominees to fill five seats on the prestigious science board that watchdogs nuclear waste repository efforts at Yucca Mountain. Terms expired Friday for five members of the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board, including its chairman, Jared Cohon, president of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh - Las Vegas Review Journal April 25, 2002 -- Study says politics override science in review of Yucca -- WASHINGTON -- A decision on Yucca Mountain as the nation's nuclear waste dump should be postponed until more is known about its geology and how man-made barriers will perform over thousands of years, an independent study of the proposed site says - AP April 24, 2002 -- House panel votes for Yucca -- Lawmakers back nuke disposal site WASHINGTON -- The drive to override Gov. Kenny Guinn's nuclear waste veto began with a lopsided House subcommittee vote Tuesday in favor of the Yucca Mountain Project. The House energy and air quality subcommittee voted 24-2 to approve the Nevada site for a repository that will store about 77,000 tons of highly radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel - Las Vegas Sun (Related Story - Guinn to return to Washington) April 23, 2002 -- Reno OKs loan, bond sale for trench --By a one-vote margin, the Reno City Council approved most of the financing for the downtown train trench on Tuesday, flouting a successful citizen initiative petition that will put the contentious project to a citywide vote in September. Mayor Jeff Griffin joined council members Pierre Hascheff, Dave Aiazzi and Sherrie Doyle in authorizing city staff to proceed with selling $115 million in bonds and finalize a $50.5 million federal loan -- Reno Gazette Journal April 23, 2002 -- Bankers exhorted to fight Yucca -- Las Vegas real estate and media executive Brian Greenspun was asked this morning to give a sales pitch on U.S. savings bonds to a group of about 50 local bankers and business people. But Greenspun had a fight against a federal project on his mind -- the fight to block the proposed nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. And he exhorted the city's bankers to join that fight. "It is our lives, our businesses and our investments that will pay the price," Greenspun said at the U.S. Treasury Department's local annual Savings Bond promotion breakfast. "Why is the banking community among the largest non-contributors to the fight against the dump?" -- Las Vegas Sun April 23, 2002 -- House Yucca vote likely to mirror panel's -- Dump advocates hope lopsided result will sway senators WASHINGTON -- The expected approval of a Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump by a House subcommittee today likely will set up an overwhelming vote of support for the project by the full House, congressional sources said. In a vote as early as next week, as many as 300 lawmakers in the 435-member House could support the proposal to dump the nation's nuclear waste in Nevada, several sources said -- Las Vegas Sun April 23, 2002 -- Guinn won't lie on highway to stop nuke waste -- Although sympathetic, he doesn't intend to take same stance as South Carolina governor CARSON CITY -- Unlike his counterpart in South Carolina, Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn has no plans to lie on a highway to prevent trucks hauling nuclear waste from entering the Silver State. South Carolina Gov. Jim Hodges vowed Monday to do "whatever it takes" -- including lying down on the highway in an act of gubernatorial civil disobedience -- to block shipments of plutonium from entering his state. He even ordered about three dozen state troopers and transport police officers to conduct a blockade practice drill Monday - Las Vegas Review Journal April 22, 2002 -- Yucca lobby group pushes TV ads -- WASHINGTON -- As America celebrates Earth Day -- and as Congress prepares to vote on a Yucca Mountain repository -- the nuclear power industry has launched a national campaign to tout the clean-air benefits of nuclear-generated electricity -Las Vegas Sun April 21, 2002 -- COLUMN: Thomas Mitchell -- Some rays of reason for Congress -- New York Times columnist and three-time Pulitzer Prize winner Thomas Friedman notes there are two kinds of columnists, those who work for the heating company and those who work for the lighting company. He prefers to bring light. April 20, 2002 -- South Carolina plutonium dispute might aid Yucca foes -- Debate over transporting radioactive waste helps Nevada's position WASHINGTON -- Nevada officials see a dispute between South Carolina and the Energy Department over plutonium shipments as a possible opening in the battle to win Senate votes against a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain -- Las Vegas Review Journal April 19, 2002 -- Yucca hearing flows against Nevada -- WASHINGTON -- A familiar pattern of point and counterpoint arguments emerged Thursday during the first congressional hearing on the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository. Nevada lawmakers said Yucca Mountain was a geologically unsuitable site to bury waste. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham disagreed - Las Vegas Sun. April 19, 2002 -- Yucca director plans visit -- The new Energy Department director in charge of the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository is scheduled to visit with local officials in Las Vegas, a spokesman said - Las Vegas Sun 
April 17, 2002 -- Yucca foes rally on Capitol Hill -- Ads begin airing to sway senators -- WASHINGTON -- Environmental activists fanned out to lobby senators on Tuesday after embracing Nevada's fight against the Yucca Mountain Project at a U.S. Capitol rally where they chanted "Safety Yes, Yucca No!" The state opened another front with a television commercial, airing in Vermont, that raises questions about the safety of nuclear shipments -- Stephens Washington Bureau (Related Stories)
April 16, 2002 -- Commission OKs $1.5 million for fight -- Clark County commissioners voted 5-2 this morning to approve giving $1.5 million to the state to help with legal fees associated with the fight to keep nuclear waste from being stored at Yucca Mountain -- Las Vegas Sun April 16, 2002 -- Anti-Yucca Mountain appeals get rolling with lucky $77,777 -- CARSON CITY -- Nevada residents have contributed a jackpot-like $77,777 to the drive to prevent nuclear waste from coming to Yucca Mountain - Las Vegas Review Journal April 16, 2002 -- State files motion on Yucca water -- CARSON CITY -- The attorney general's office said today that as of now the proposed nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain is dead because of the veto of Gov. Kenny Guinn earlier this month. April 16, 2002 -- Yucca case goes to Vermont -- State takes its argument public with TV advertisement -- WASHINGTON -- Nevada's effort to rally public opinion against a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain kicks off in earnest tonight with the premiere of a television ad in Vermont -- The state's first anti-dump commercial tells viewers that the nuclear power industry plans to drive waste "right through the towns we live in -- Las Vegas Sun April 15, 2002 -- Environmental lobby set to turn up heat -- WASHINGTON -- Local, state and national environmental groups that have helped muster support against shipping nuclear waste in Congress face their toughest battle with Yucca Mountain. The environmental lobby, which plans to gather at the U.S. Capitol Tuesday to pressure lawmakers to oppose the proposed nuclear waste dump, has a record of helping rally their friends in Congress on several key votes to defeat the measures - Las Vegas Sun (More Coverage - Las Vegas Review Journal) April 15, 2002 -- UNLV could see Yucca boon -- While UNLV President Carol Harter doesn't like the idea of a nuclear waste dump coming to Nevada, as an academic she sees the opportunity it holds for her university -- Las Vegas Sun April 14, 2002 -- The Road to Yucca -- Nevada leaders are pinning their hopes on one issue above all others in their effort to prevent Yucca Mountain from becoming the nation's nuclear waste burial ground: transportation -- By Keith Rogers, Las Vegas Review Journal April 13, 2002 -- New debate erupts over volcanic threat at Yucca Mountain -- TONOPAH — At one time, they spewed ash and lava. Now, they slumber in the southern Nevada desert where President Bush wants to build the nation’s nuclear waste dump -- AP April 13, 2002 -- Official: Lawmakers ill-informed on Yucca -- Effect of shipments on legislators' districts not being made clear, consultant for Nevada says WAINGTON -- Representatives for House lawmakers were told Friday that their bosses are about to vote on sending nuclear waste to Nevada without adequate information about how shipments of the radioactive material may affect their districts -- By Steve Tetreault Stephens Washington Bureau April 12, 2002 Nevada's anti-Yucca fight turns green -- WASHINGTON -- Nevada leaders are counting on what may be an unprecedented swell of support from the environmental
community -- including a few green-minded celebrities -- as the Yucca Mountain project faces a decision in Congress . . . We have started a full-court press," said Daniel Becker, director of global and energy programs at the Sierra Club. The 750,000-nationwide member parent group sent e-mails this week to its 63 chapters in all 50 states with Yucca updates, urging locals to pressure their lawmakers, he said. "It's a tough battle, but it's a winnable battle." - Las Vegas Sun
April 11, 2002 -- Scientists plan nuke waste transmutation experiment -- A process to convert highly radioactive waste into less dangerous substances, which has been touted as an alternative to dumping nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, may get on a fast track - Las Vegas Sun 
April 11, 2002 -- Freshman senator now at center of Nevada's lobbying campaign --
WASHINGTON -- As the behind-the-scenes lobbying on both sides of the Yucca Mountain issue intensifies on Capitol Hill, many eyes are on Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev. Ensign is key, arguably the most important person at the moment, in Nevada's effort to stop plans to bury radioactive waste at Yucca, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas -- Las Vegas Sun
April 11, 2002 -- Nevada files lawsuit against the Nuclear Regulatory Commission -- LAS VEGAS (AP) - Nevada is challenging the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's licensing rule for making Yucca Mountain the nation's nuclear waste dump. The state attorney general's office filed a lawsuit with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia on Thursday against the regulatory commission's November ruling. That ruling established health and safety regulations for storing 77,000 tons of the nation's high-level nuclear waste 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. April 11, 2002 -- Interim Finance approves $3 million for anti-Yucca Mountain campaign -- Nevada lawmakers on Wednesday boosted by $3 million the state's fund to pay for an advertising and lobbying campaign aimed at stopping nuclear waste storage at Yucca Mountain. Gov. Kenny Guinn told legislators the money will be used to help sway key senators by building pressure on them from their home states. It will pay for newspaper and television coverage to tell residents in those states about the dangers of transporting radioactive waste through their towns on the way to the dump site 75 miles north of Las Vegas - By Geoff Dornan, Nevada Appeal Capitol Bureau (Related Story) (More Coverage - Las Vegas Sun) (More Coverage - Las Vegas Review Journal) 
April 10, 2002 Lott says Yucca will pass -- Republican senator says he can get enough votes WASHINGTON -- Senate Republican leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., confidently predicted Tuesday that Democratic attempts to block a vote on a Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository would surely fail and that "at least 60 senators" would vote to approve it. Lott's comments fell on the first day of a 90-day period in which Congress is required by law to vote on the controversial project - Las Vegas Sun (Related Story -- Las Vegas Review Journal)
April 10, 2002 -- Dueling ads kick off media blitz on Yucca -- WASHINGTON -- The debate over Yucca Mountain began on the pages of the Washington Post today in advertisements from the state of Nevada and the Nuclear Energy Institute. For the state, it's the first ad in the what officials hope will be a campaign to drum up opposition to the proposed nuclear dump at Yucca Mountain - Las Vegas Sun April 10, 2002 -- DOE turns to tank as state cuts off Yucca water supply -- Stockpiled reserves expected to last for several months -- Water for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste project was reduced to a trickle Tuesday as the Department of Energy's temporary permits to withdraw 140 million gallons per year from five Nye County wells expired at midnight -- Las Vegas Review Journal April 10, 2002 YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Case taken to nation --
Guinn, congressional delegation challenge safety of waste transport
WASHINGTON -- Gov. Kenny Guinn kicked off a widening campaign against the Yucca Mountain Project on Tuesday by warning millions of Americans that transporting nuclear waste to Nevada poses a direct threat to their health and safety -- Las Vegas Review Journal
April 09, 2002 -- Guinn takes case to D.C. -- Nevadans highlight risk of shipping nuclear waste -- WASHINGTON --  The Yucca Mountain project is riddled with flawed scientific research, broken laws and centers on bad public policy, Gov. Kenny Guinn said today in the glaring spotlight of the national media outside the Capitol. (More Coverage -- Now that Guinn has acted, the state believes the Yucca Mountain project is "legally dead" until revived by an act of Congress) -- Las Vegas Sun
April 09, 2002 -- Ad agencies prepare anti-Yucca campaign Hauling dangers will be emphasized -- CARSON CITY -- Advertising agencies hope Nevada-sponsored television announcements critical of the Yucca Mountain Project will scare Easterners off their sofas and persuade federal lawmakers to sustain Gov. Kenny Guinn's veto of the nuclear waste repository - Las Vegas Review Journal April 09, 2002 -- Herrera halves request for anti-Yucca money -- Clark County Commission Chairman Dario Herrera on Monday cut in half his request for $3 million to fight Yucca Mountain after county administrators reported that the fiscal outlook isn't as rosy as it's been in the past -- Las Vegas Review Journal April 09, 2002 -- Hearings begin on nuclear waste proposal -- SALT LAKE CITY -- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's atomic safety and licensing board began a series of hearings Monday on a proposal to store spent nuclear fuel on the Goshute Indian reservation -- AP April 08, 2002 -- Guinn vetoes Yucca dump -- Beneath the state's Battle Born flag, Gov. Kenny Guinn vetoed the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump this morning, declaring that the dump "is not inevitable" and saying he would press the fight to "expose the Department of Energy's dirty little secrets about Yucca Mountain." Becoming the first governor to veto a president, Guinn took a hard line against negotiating over Yucca Mountain and said the health, safety and welfare of Nevada's citizens are at risk if the government goes ahead with plans to ship 77,000 tons of high-level nuclear waste to the site 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas -- Las Vegas Sun (More Coverage - Las Vegas Review Journal) April 08, 2002 -- Anti-Yucca drive heads to Congress -- WASHINGTON — Opponents of burying nuclear waste in Nevada will give Americans a crash course in the dangers of hauling radioactive materials across the country — part of a longshot lobbying campaign to kill the plan in Congress (More Coverage - San Francisco Chronicle)  April 05, 2002 -- Reid Told No Safety Tests Have Ever Been Done On Full Size Nuclear Transportation Containers -- WASHINGTON D.C. - Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) has learned that no government tests have been conducted on full size containers intended to transport high level radioactive waste across America’s roads, railways and waterways. Senator Reid has also learned that testing for damage caused by fire has been largely preformed and analyzed by computer simulation alone -- Press Release, Senator Reid (More Coverage -- AP)
April 05, 2002 -- Too bad George cut class on Yucca Geology 101 -- I went to class on Thursday, but I didn't see George or Spencer there. The class was on the geology of Yucca Mountain, taught by Professor Winnie Kortemeier at Western Nevada Community College as part of a series on environmental issues in Nevada -- By Barry Smith, Nevada Appeal (Carson City) April 05, 2002 -- Goodman hopes city will add to fund -- Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman is looking for support from his colleagues to help fund the campaign against Yucca Mountain. Goodman has asked City Manager Virginia Valentine to poll the six council members to see if they want to contribute additional funds toward the fight. The city has already provided $100,000 to the state's fund - Las Vegas Sun  April 04, 2002 -- Nevadans say show helps Yucca fight -- Nevada leaders wanted a bit more out of Wednesday's episode of "The West Wing," but admit that anytime a national audience gets even a glimpse of what could occur if Yucca Mountain is approved as the nation's nuclear waste repository, the outcome is beneficial -- Las Vegas Sun. (More Coverage - Las Vegas Review Journal)
April 03, 2002 -- Yucca funding debate bogs down -- Territorial politics crept into the state's fight against the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository as Clark County commissioners Tuesday withheld a decision to contribute an additional $3 million to fund the campaign against the dump - By Adrienne Packer - Las Vegas Sun April 03, 2002 -- Guinn to address Yucca veto -- Gov. Kenny Guinn will address Nevadans on Monday about his plans to veto President Bush's recommendation that Yucca Mountain be developed as the nation's nuclear waste repository. The public address will begin at 9 a.m. at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas' Tam Alumni Center - Las Vegas Review Journal
April 03, 2002 -- County puts off propo |