Ensign seeks Bush nuke clarification

Friday, June 2, 2000 | 11:11 a.m.

INCLINE VILLAGE -- After meeting with Texas Gov. George W. Bush Thursday, Republican Senate candidate John Ensign says he's still "not completely satisfied" with the likely GOP presidential nominee's stance on bringing nuclear waste to Nevada.

There will be additional meetings, Ensign said, to determine what Bush means when he says he'll oppose sending the waste to Yucca Mountain until the site is "scientifically sound."

Bush visited Lake Tahoe Thursday, gave an address on conservation and then attended two fund-raising events before leaving for Sacramento.

Before leaving Nevada, Bush at a $20,000-a-person roundtable discussion, reaffirmed his position he will not approve a nuclear dump for Nevada if it is not proven scientifically sound. He did not address the issue at the $1,000-a-plate luncheon, said Peter Ernaut, a former aide to Gov. Kenny Guinn and an official of the Bush campaign in Nevada.

About 250 people attended the Bush speech at Sand Harbor, and there were about 20 people at the $20,000-a-person discussion, Ernaut said. At that session, Bush said he would not support gambling in Texas but had no objection if his state's residents wanted to visit Las Vegas casinos, Ernaut said.

At the $1,000-a-plate lunch, Ernaut said Bush talked about health care, defense, education and family values.

Bush collected about $700,000, of which $400,000 goes to the national Republican Party and $300,000 to the Bush campaign, said Ernaut.

When asked by a reporter about Yucca Mountain, Bush replied, "You have my statement."

In May, the Texas governor said, "As president, I would not sign legislation that would send nuclear waste to any proposed site unless it's been deemed scientifically safe."

At that time Ensign said he wanted clarification of the statement and how far Bush would go.

Ensign was asked Thursday whether Bush is committed to veto legislation that was rejected by President Clinton earlier this year. That bill would have altered the health and safety standards for judging if Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, is an appropriate site.

"The Bush camp said he would veto that," Ensign said. "That was weeks ago he (Bush) said that."

Ensign said he would continue discussions with the Bush staff, just as Democratic Sens. Harry Reid and Richard Bryan confer with the Clinton staff in an effort to stop the repository from being built in Nevada.

Nevada must continue to fight the siting of a repository, Ensign said, adding that a solution must be found for handling the nation's 77,000 tons of high-level nuclear waste.

One answer is transmutation, converting the waste into a harmless substance, he said.

If Yucca Mountain is found suitable, Ensign said the waste would start coming in 2010.

"That's not long," he said.

Siting an interim dump in Nevada is a "dead issue," he said, because people are focusing on the permanent location. But alternatives must be sought to stop the waste from heading for Nevada, he said.

Bush, in his first campaign stop in Nevada, called for full funding of the Land and Water Conservation Act, which he said was depleted. That means the fund should be brought up to $900 million a year with half going to the states or local conservation groups.

At present the fund stands at about an annual $500 million, a Bush aide said. That would mean an extra $400 million a year of the federal budget going to this program. The governor said the states have been shortchanged by not getting any money.

State Parks Administrator Wayne Perock said the Sand Harbor site of Bush's address was developed in part with the Land and Water Conservation funds. He said the state has not received any money in the last four years, but this fiscal year received a small amount of about $400,000.

Other parts of Bush's speech called for matching federal grants to the states to help private landowners protect rare species on their property; establish president's awards to recognize conservation by private parties; a capital gains tax break to those who sell their property for conservation purposes and elimination of the estate tax to make it easier for landowners to send their land to the next generation, instead of the heirs facing a healthy tax bill.

Abolishing the estate tax would save taxpayers $55 billion over five years. Nevada picks up a share of the federal estate tax so that will mean a loss of revenue to the state. The annual amount to the state ranges widely, depending on how many people died and the size of their estates.

This year Nevada will realize more than $72 million, but last year it was only $22.8 million. The money is split between the public schools and the University and Community College System of Nevada.

Rochelle Nason, executive director of the League to Save Lake Tahoe, applauded Bush's environmental statement to fully fund the land and water conservation program.