3 Republicans may oppose Yucca dump

Benjamin Grove

Tuesday, June 25, 2002 | 11:07 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- Three Republican senators may vote against a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., said this morning.

In the high-stakes scramble to secure 51 votes against the project, Reid and Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., have been lobbying colleagues to stop the proposed dump, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

Reid said about a dozen Republican senators would be needed to supplement the Democrats he has corralled.

Three more GOP votes would still leave the Nevadans shy of the votes they need, but any conversions could signal a significant shift in the lobbying momentum.

So far, the only two GOP senators that openly oppose Yucca are Ensign and Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell of Colorado.

Reid today said it would be fair to categorize three other Republicans as "leaning" toward voting against Yucca, in addition to siding with the Nevada senators on a procedural motion designed to block the vote altogether.

Reid would not name the senators. Ensign, who has been trying to woo Republican colleagues, would not comment, spokeswoman Traci Scott said.

Reid would say little to explain why three Republicans would consider opposing Yucca. He said senators are becoming more aware of the project's flaws as the vote nears.

"I think they must be reading the news," Reid said.

Nevada officials in recent days have stressed the risks of shipping high-level nuclear waste cross-country to Yucca. They pointed to a Denver Post editorial Sunday that opposed Yucca, although many newspapers nationwide have supported the project.

Reid today sent Democratic senators a copy of a USA Today story that describes a misleading public relations campaign by the nuclear industry and Energy Department to build support for Yucca.

Nevada has been managing a multimillion-dollar public relations campaign of its own, which the industry and Energy Department have said unfairly inflate transportation risks.

Reid may be using his influence as an Appropriations Committee member to win votes on Yucca, GOP sources say. The committee budgets money for federal projects. Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, last week said Reid was making deals in exchange for support in the Yucca vote.

Several Republican Senate staffers today said Reid's comments are likely just bluster. Reid is trying to generate speculation that there are breaks in the GOP rank, the sources said.

Energy officials, who manage Yucca, also are not aware of any senators who are reconsidering their vote.

"Every member, Democrat and Republican, who has told us that they support Yucca Mountain is still saying that," department spokesman Joe Davis said.

While most observers expect the Senate to approve Yucca -- Craig said between 58 and 62 would vote for the project -- it is difficult to count votes, said Melanie Lyons, spokeswoman for the Nuclear Energy Institute, which has led a pro-Yucca lobbying effort.

It does not have a vote count, she said. Some senators are keeping their stance a secret until the vote to avoid a swarm of lobbyists on both sides of the issue.