Letter: Nuclear industry, Congress view Nevada as a wasteland

Tuesday, March 3, 1998 | 10:58 a.m.

Defenders of the bill claim that waste storage will be somehow "safer" in Nevada. The reason it's "safer" in Nevada is the bills allow radiation exposures to be four times higher than existing regulations allow anywhere else in the country! The legislation also pre-empts any state or local laws "inconsistent" with the bill. It exempts the facility from compliance with the environmental policy act, the safe drinking-water act and from site suitability guidelines.

A great deal of the nation views the West as an empty wasteland, suitable for all types of hazardous and radioactive garbage disposal. Las Vegas certainly does not fit into this mold. It is one of the West's largest cities and the country's fastest-growing metropolitan areas. The reality of the matter is that states with nuclear reactors (located predominantly in the East) find it easier to dump their radioactive waste on a politically weak state like Nevada than dealing seriously with a difficult problem.

Just because you are outnumbered doesn't mean you can't fight back. Call President Clinton at (202) 456-1111 and tell him you want him to veto this bill. Call your friends from out of state and tell them to call their representatives and tell them to kill this legislation.

David Hensel Driggs, Idaho

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