New Mexico woman named to key DOE radioactive waste post

AP

Thursday, March 7, 2002 | 4:03 a.m.

A New Mexican woman has been appointed to a key U.S. Department of Energy position overseeing radioactive waste.

Margaret Chu was nominated by a unanimous Senate vote Wednesday to be director of the DOE's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, said news releases from Sens. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., and Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M.

Chu has been manager of Sandia National Laboratories' Nuclear Waste Management program since 1998, Domenici said.

Chu also served as deputy manager for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, a radioactive waste dump near Carlsbad.

In her new post, Chu will be responsible for advising the energy secretary and President Bush on issues surrounding a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain in Nevada.

--

archive