Editorial: Confusion abounds

Wednesday, June 21, 2006 | 7:15 a.m.

Whether the detonation of a 700-ton bomb at the Nevada Test Site is stalled indefinitely or is happening later this year seems to depend largely on who is doing the talking.

According to a story in the Las Vegas Sun, Defense Department officials have told congressional members that the blast, originally set for June 2, has been postponed indefinitely, pending the outcome of a challenge in U.S. District Court. Energy Department officials, however, were in Las Vegas on Monday laying preliminary groundwork for a test blast that they told the Sun could happen as early as September.

The bomb would be composed of fuel oil and ammonium nitrate and is designed to simulate an explosion of atomic proportions to destroy underground structures, such as concealed bunkers. It is believed to be the largest open-air chemical explosion ever to be conducted at the Nevada Test Site, an area just north of Las Vegas where atomic tests were conducted until 1992.

Opponents who feared that the blast could kick up radioactive dust and material left from decades of atomic tests have filed a lawsuit to prevent it from moving forward. Many of them are people who live in Southern Nevada and Utah in communities located downwind of previous Test Site blasts. Once the lawsuit is resolved, the Energy Department still must obtain approval from the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection.

The Energy Department, which manages the Test Site, has pledged to host public meetings to address residents' concerns before the Defense Department carries out its test. That promise, issued last month, was in response to widespread public criticism and questions of health effects. Federal officials still haven't concluded whether the test would kick up toxic dust. And, given the recent confusion over the new proposed test date, it is apparent they still are not being candid about their intentions.