(John Edwards suspended his race for the Democratic nomination on Jan. 30, following coming in third place in three contests, including his home state of South Carolina.)
In 2002, Edwards voted in favor of the Senate bill that would set up the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository, which would be 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. That's not surprising, because Edwards' home state of North Carolina has five nuclear reactors and is one of the top U.S. nuclear power producers. However, Edwards has changed his stand since 2002. He now opposes shipping nuclear waste across the country to Nevada. He also opposes building any new nuclear power plants and says U.S. energy needs should be met with renewable energy sources.
(Note: The Sun asked top tier Democratic candidates about Yucca in October. The following is the question and Edwards' response). All Democratic candidates oppose Yucca Mountain, but what’s your solution to solving the waste issue — and what’s your stance on nuclear power? Shipping nuclear waste across the country to Yucca is a bad idea. It has to be kept and stored where it’s produced. There is no attractive alternative. That’s where we are now. The French contend they have made progress on the waste issue. We can look at that technology. In general, I’m opposed to subsidizing and building more nuclear power plants. First, they are extremely expensive. Second, it takes a long time to get a plant online. We should be making the transition to renewable energy quickly.
Wired Magazine — John Edwards Rejects Nulear Power (July 25, 2007)
— Las Vegas Sun new media managing editor Dave Toplikar compiled this report.
