Ensign underscores need for alternative to nuke burial

Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2001 | 10:32 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., told a joint session of the Nevada Legislature Tuesday that nuclear waste will be "crammed down our throats" unless an alternative to burial is found.

He said a good start was made last week when a $34 million grant was awarded to New Mexico for studying nuclear waste recycling technology. But he said that's only a start.

In office slightly more than one month, Ensign hasn't been able to switch any votes to Nevada's side to stop the potential shipments of nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain, but he said it does appear that discussions about Nevada hosting a temporary nuclear waste dump have ceased.

"Just six years ago this looked impossible," Ensign said.

The Department of Energy is scheduled to make a decision later this year on whether it finds Yucca Mountain -- 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas -- suitable for burial of the waste. Ensign said the 31 other states where the waste is generated at nuclear power plants must be given an alternative to storing their materials if Nevada doesn't want to end up with the spent fuel.

He said Sen. Pete Domenici, R-New Mexico, is a big supporter of recycling nuclear waste. But Domenici was also quoted during the election campaign as saying that if President Bush were elected, nuclear waste would start flowing to Nevada within six months.

On the subject of bipartisanship, Ensign said his relations with Assistant Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., are better than expected. He said the two talk on the phone several times a week and often have face-to-face meetings to discuss issues.

"I've learned nurturing one-on-one relationships is a key to success in politics," Ensign said.

He said he has spent the first few weeks in Washington meeting with senators. It has paid off, he said, because for the first time, a Republican senator -- Gordon Smith, R-Ore. -- has joined with the Nevada delegation to sponsor a bill to combat illegal sports betting.

The bill allocates money and staff to the Justice Department to fight organized crime and illegal sports betting. It's aimed at heading off a bill to ban betting on college sports.

The freshman senator predicted that a bill adding prescription drug benefits to Medicare would be signed into law this year. He said he came up with a similar plan during his election campaign in which seniors of income of $17,000 would pay the first $1,200 and after that Medicare would pick up 100 percent of the cost.

He said he was for school vouchers but added the chances are "slim" for passage of the bill this Congress. One of his goals, he said, is to funnel more federal education money to Nevada.