DOE Resubmits Nuclear Waste Bill

Legislation drafted by the Department of Energy that is intended to help obtain a Nuclear Regulatory Commission license to construct and operate the long-delayed nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, was sent to Congress last week. The bill's provisions would ease some licensing and construction requirements of the geological repository, eliminate the 70,000-metric-ton cap on nuclear waste disposal at the site, permanently withdraw the land from public use, and consolidate and simplify environmental reviews. The bill is strongly opposed by some in Congress, including Nevada's Sen. Harry Reid (D), Senate majority leader. Similar legislation was offered last year, but a bill never cleared committee. DOE has long been stymied in developing the site (shown) and recently predicted that the earliest the repository may open is 2017, nearly two decades after the originally planned opening date.