Legislators readying anti-nuke waste measure

Thursday, March 15, 2001 | 10:53 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Legislation to bar the transportation of high-level nuclear waste to within 10 miles of any city or town in Nevada is ready to be introduced today in the state Senate.

Sen. Ray Shaffer, D-North Las Vegas, intends to sponsor both the bill and a resolution urging Congress to require certain precautions if Yucca Mountain is designated as a high-level repository.

Though Shaffer wants to see safety rules increased, he says the legislation must not be constructed to indicate the state consents to the location of the dump.

Shaffer said the U.S. Department of Energy under the Bush administration "is more aggressive" in pushing for the designation of Yucca Mountain as the site for burial of the high-level waste.

The bill would make it unlawful for anyone, including governments, to transport the high-level waste "through any area which is located within 10 miles of any city or unincorporated town in this state whose population is 3,000 or more."

The measure also requires the state Environmental Commission to adopt regulations that require any of the waste at Yucca Mountain to be stored to allow for safe retrieval. Shaffer said nobody knows whether these casks containing the materials will leak.

He wants the state to be able to inspect the site for safety. The federal government must build a facility adjacent to the dumpsite so these leaking canisters can be repaired or replaced, according to the bill.

Members of the public must be allowed to view the nuclear waste casks through a website on the Internet.

The environmental commission must adopt regulations to ensure people are not exposed to radioactive waste of 4 millirems per year from normal consumption or use of any ground water.

Gov. Kenny Guinn has also proposed a $5 million budget to help fight nuclear waste. Shaffer said the Department of Energy has, for $20 million, hired a law firm to defend its expected choice of Yucca Mountain as the site for burial. Still, a resident of Nevada can't afford to fight this effort, he said.

Shaffer's resolution states that the transportation and storage of these radioactive substances will create a substantial risk for "their emission into the air, soil and ground water of this state and poses a serious long-term threat to the health of the residents of this state and the welfare of its economy."

He wants the government to set up a system of continuous monitoring of these containers and to permit the state to "have complete and unrestricted access to all locations and records necessary to confirm the safety of the repository."