A shortsighted vision

Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2009 | 2:07 a.m.

The mayor of Ely in eastern Nevada foresees a day when the mines that give employment to residents of his small city begin petering out. So a goal of starting now on a plan to diversify Ely’s economy would be understandable.

What is not understandable, however, is the direction he has taken to achieve this goal. In a state that has vigorously fought for more than 25 years against a federal plan to locate a dump for nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, just 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, and in a state that suffers from a scarcity of water, Mayor Jon Hickman is advocating for a nuclear power plant.

Hickman envisions an economic boom for the city: Thousands of workers would be required to build a plant, and new businesses would spring up to serve them, bringing even more jobs. Following construction, locals could land jobs at the plant and taxes would increase.

But that is a shortsighted vision for Ely, which is about a 230-mile drive northeast of Las Vegas. Nuclear energy cannot be produced without using massive amounts of water and creating tons of radioactive waste that will be lethal for hundreds of thousands of years.

On the waste issue, the federal government has spent billions of dollars over more than 20 years on a proposed solution — burying the deadly material at Yucca Mountain. But the state has raised numerous safety objections that cannot be refuted. The flawed Yucca Mountain solution is now dormant.

As for water, a nuclear power expert recently briefed Ely residents on the particulars of nuclear power plants. He said they consume at least 25,000 acre feet of water a year, with one acre foot being nearly 326,000 gallons.

In addition to the waste and water obstacles, it would be almost impossible to attract a nuclear power plant without support from the state Legislature, which funds Nevada’s legal opposition to Yucca Mountain. Hickman should turn his attention to other opportunities for diversifying Ely’s economy.