Government & Policy Roundup

The Department of Energy has a new timeline for the long-delayed Yucca Mountain repository, projecting a March 2017 date to begin accepting spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste at the Nevada site. The repository was originally scheduled to begin operations in January 1998, but the project has been delayed by numerous lawsuits and budget shortages.

The U.S. Chemical Safety & Hazard Investigation Board has issued its case study (www.csb.gov) of the Oct. 6, 2005, fire and explosion at Formosa Plastics' Point Comfort, Texas, facility. Among the study's recommendations is that Formosa provide fire-resistant clothing to workers at risk of flash fires.

EPA has proposed to fine Dow Chemical $53,109 for alleged chemical release violations under the Clean Air Act at the company's Midland, Mich., facility. The company violated testing, operating, monitoring, record keeping, reporting, and notification requirements, EPA says.