What's New — Yucca Mountain
In the News
Today's News – April 2013
YUCCA MOUNTAIN – WHAT’S REALLY THERE? — State of Nevada
May 24, 2013 — Republicans press NRC chair for answers on Yucca Mountain — The crisis that engulfed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and threatened to tip the scales on the Yucca Mountain project last year is in the past, if the bipartisan nods of reserved approval that new chairwoman Allison MacFarlane received at her reconfirmation Thursday are any indicator — Las Vegas Sun
May 17, 2013 — Senate Confirms MIT’s Moniz as Obama’s Energy Secretary — Bloomberg
May 16, 2013 — Nye County official blasts Sen. Reid's "hypocrisy" on nuclear waste disposal — RJ.com
May 08, 2013 —
Senate plan could make Illinois ‘bullseye’ for nuclear wast — A proposal in the U.S. Senate has advocates concerned that Illinois could become a leading contender for storing nuclear waste from around the nation. . . midwestenergynews.com
May 07, 2013 — As Price of Nuclear Energy Drops, a Wisconsin Plant Is Shut — NyTimes.com [Related Story — Grist.org]
May 07, 2013 — SMUD wins $34.6 million nuclear waste suit, but won't see the money soon A federal court has awarded more than $34.7 million to the Sacramento Municipal Utility District in connection with the federal government's failure to provide a permanent storage site for nuclear waste from the utility's long-dormant Rancho Seco plant — Sacbee.com
May 02, 2013 — Outgoing NRC Chairman Jaczko Criticized for 'Bullying' in Inspector General Report — The Office of the Inspector General at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission found “more than 15 examples” of outgoing NRC Chairman Gregory Jaczko using “intimidating and bullying tactics” in order to push his own objectives at the regulatory agency that oversees the nation’s 104 nuclear plants. Moreover, the
much-anticipated IG report released on Tuesday found that Jaczko’s testimony . . . NationalJouirnal.com
May 01, 2013 —
Congress needs to focus on how nuclear waste is stored now
— U.S. nuclear power plants have been generating electricity for more than 50 years, but the nuclear industry and the federal government have yet to figure out what to do with nuclear waste, which remains dangerously radioactive for thousands of years. On April 25, a bipartisan group of senators . . . The Hill
April 27, 2013 — Wyden calls for new federal agency for nuclear waste — Tri_CithHearld.com [More Coverage — Yahoo News]
April 25, 2013 —
Senators Release Discussion Draft of Comprehensive Nuclear Waste Legislation
— Washington, D.C. – Today, a bipartisan group of four senior U.S. senators released a discussion draft of comprehensive nuclear waste management legislation, aimed at re-energizing the efforts to reach a long-term solution to our country’s highly radioactive nuclear waste — Senate.gov [More Coverage — The Hill]
April 14, 2013 — New U.S. Nuclear Waste Policy May Be Illegal: GAO In January The U.S. Department of Energy adopted a new policy for the storage of nuclear waste, embarking on a plan to build two new interim storage sites and a new permanent storage facility. On Thursday, a General Accounting Office official told Congress this policy may be illegal — Forbes
[Read the GAO Report (17 Pages) - COMMERCIAL SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL, Observations on the Key Attributes and Challenges of Storage and Disposal Options, Statement of Frank Rusco, Director Natural Resources and Environment.] [View Large Map of Current Storage Sites for Commerical Spent Nuclear Fuel -- 1 page GIF File]
April 12, 2013 — Titus concerned about plans to bury nuclear waste at test site Rep. Dina Titus charged Friday that the Department of Energy has been slow to answer questions and concerns about plans to bury potent uranium waste at the Nevada National Security Site and how it will be transported there. “I was disturbed about not being briefed so I can get more information about just exactly what this is,” Titus said — Stephens Washington Bureau
April 11, 2013 — DOE official: Focusing on Yucca prevents 'progress' on nuclear waste A senior Energy Department (DOE) official shot down using Nevada’s Yucca Mountain as a long-term storage site for nuclear waste Thursday, underscoring the difficulty lawmakers working on a comprehensive waste storage bill might encounter — The Hill
April 11, 2013 — How Should We Deal With Nuclear Waste? — The Wall Sreet Journal
April 11, 2013 — 2014 Appropriations: Energy and Water; Committee: House Appropriations Waste management World
April 10, 2013 — Several legislators voiced no concern Wednesday about the U.S. Department of Energy’s plans to bury 403 canisters of nuclear bomb-usable waste at the Nevada National Security Site — RJ.com
April 09, 2013 — DOE nominee favors volunteer sites for nuclear waste WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s choice for Energy secretary said Tuesday he was committed to finding volunteer states and communities to host repositories for nuclear waste — RJ.com
April 09, 2013 — Concerns raised over plans to bury bomb-usable nuclear material in Nevada — RJ.com
April 01, 2013 —Nuclear Waste Disposal Sites Still Rare After All These Years — The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) published in early January its “Strategy for the Management and Disposal of Used Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste,” an 18-page outline of how the Obama administration plans to implement recommendations made by its so-called Blue Ribbon Commission (BRC) on America’s Nuclear Future. The commission was set up in 2010 to review and recommend a plan of action to manage and dispose of used nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste— Powermag.com
April 01, 2013 — Fukushima meltdown appears to have sickened American infants — Grist.org
March 28, 2013 — Nuclear Waste Management: Minimum Requirements for Reforms and Legislation — heritage.org
February 28, 2013 — Is fight over storing nuclear waste in Nevada ready to resume? Congressional lawmakers could resume butting heads over Yucca Mountain next month, when a bipartisan team of senators starts circulating a draft nuclear waste bill — Las Vegas Sun
February 24, 2013 — Nuclear Waste in the Age of Climate ChangeConcerns about global warming are giving a boost to nuclear power. And that's bringing new focus — and a possible solution -- to the problem of radioactive waste — NationalJournal.com 
February 18, 2013 — Former Yucca Mountain Chief Questions Nuclear Waste Effort — A hydrogeologist who oversaw the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste site says the government’s new “consent-based” search for waste depositories doesn’t go far enough — Forbes.com
February 14, 2013 — Soft sell -- Obama tries a new approach to nuclear waste storage — NewsReview.com
February 06, 2013 — Yucca Must Be Part of Nuclear-Waste Bill, Shimkus Says — Legislation for U.S. disposal of nuclear waste must provide for storage at Yucca Mountain, the head of a House panel overseeing environmental issues said, renewing the debate over the abandoned Nevada site. “We will not move on any nuclear-waste provision without a Yucca Mountain component,” Representative John Shimkus, an Illinois Republican, said today at a Bloomberg Government conference in Washington — Bloomberg
February 05, 2013 — Nevada awaiting court ruling on Yucca Mountain licensing — Las Vegas Sun [More In depth Coverage — RGJ.com]
February 05, 2013 — Decades-long Yucca Mountain battle could flare up — CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) — Nevada's decades-long effort to stop high-level nuclear waste from being stored at Yucca Mountain is nearing a pivotal juncture as it heads toward all-but-certain victory, according to a state official who said Tuesday it was still too soon to declare the fight won — AP
February 04, 2013 — US Rep Shimkus Backs Yucca Mountain to Store Nuclear Waste — Illinois Public Media
February 03, 2013 — [Opinions] A central nuclear waste repository is years away — the Washington Post
February 01, 2013 — DOE Secretary Chu, who battled Yucca project, resigns — RJ.com
January 31, 2013 — NARUC, nuclear industry ask court to reopen waste fee case — platts
January 30, 2013 — DOE sets 2048 deadline for waste repository — WASHINGTON — The Department of Energy recently set a new 2048 target to open a burial site for nuclear waste — a deadline 50 years later than originally planned — Pahrump Valley Times
January 28, 2013 — U.S. To Bury Almost All Existing Used Nuclear Fuel; Recycling Deferred At Least 20 Years — Forbes
January 21, 2013 — Putting end to Yucca Mountain project ‘within reach,’ state commission says — The state says it is close to winning its long battle to stop high-level nuclear waste from being stored at Yucca Mountain. The Nevada Commission on Nuclear Waste has submitted its 2012 report to Gov. Brian Sandoval and the Nevada Legislature suggesting “success is within reach” regarding the fight against nuclear waste storage — Las Vegas Sun
January 11, 2013 — DOE sets new nuclear waste target date — WASHINGTON - The Department of Energy on Friday set a new 2048 target to open a burial site for nuclear waste - a deadline 50 years later than originally planned — Stephens Washington Bureau
January 2013 — [DOE Document] Strategy for the Management and Disposal of Used Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste [PDF 18 Pages]
January 05, 2013 — NRC pleads lack of funds in Yucca licensing battle — As in a football game when the offense does not have enough punch to move the ball down the field, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission does not have enough money left to proceed toward a license for the planned Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository — RJ.com [Print PDF]
January 02, 2013 — Scoping Comments on Proposed Draft EIS on Waste Confidence Decision — Eureka County Nuclear Waste Program — Eureka County
December 2012 — Report and Recommendations of the Nevada Commission on Nuclear Projects — State of Nevada
- Developments in the Yucca Mountain Project and the Federal High-Level Radioactive Waste Program
- The Future of Yucca Mountain -- Taking the Long View
- Recommendations to the Nevada Commission on Nuclear Projects
December 21, 2012 — Twenty-five years later, 'Screw Nevada' bill elicits strong feelings "This was raw, naked politics." That's how Richard Bryan remembers his time as Nevada governor in 1987 when Congress acted to designate Yucca Mountain as the only place scientists would study as a burial site for the nation's deadliest nuclear waste — RJ.com
December 21, 2012 — Utah N-waste site backers call it quits — Plans to store the nation’s high-level reactor waste in Utah are officially dead. The consortium of utility companies behind the idea has asked the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to scrap its license for a 100-acre parking lot for radioactive waste containers on the Skull Valley Goshute Reservation in Tooele County — Salt Lake Tribune
December 18, 2012 — Wyden open to moving nuclear waste to interim storage sites . . . The incoming Senate Energy and Natural Resources chairman’s stance, which differs from current Chairman Jeff Bingaman's (D-N.M.), could help revive efforts to address the nation’s nuclear waste management — The Hill
December 14, 2012 — Ruling in Yucca Mountain case pushed into new year — WASHINGTON - A federal court decision whether to resume license hearings for a Nevada nuclear waste site has been pushed into next year — Stephens Washington Bureau
December 05, 2012 —US nuclear repository siting: too hot an issue for politicians to handle in 2013? —nuclearenergyinsider.com
December 03, 2012 — Federal government must deal with nuclear waste: NARUC president— platts.com
November 27, 2012 — Spent fuel storage: could Congress fast-track a decision on US spent fuel storage? —nuclearenergyinsider.com
November 21, 2012 — Yucca Mountain still alive, consultants predict — The Nov. 6 election in which President Obama was re-elected and U.S. Sen. Harry Reid remains Senate majority leader means Yucca Mountain will probably remain dead, at least politically.But like the radioactive material it would store, the project continues to have a half-life of its own in the courts — Pahrump Valley Times
November 15, 2012 — Yucca Mountain: A Post-Mortem — The New Atlantis
November 11, 2012 — Election hasn't changed Yucca Mountain's future — WASHINGTON - The election brought no dramatic shifts to the nuclear waste landscape, allowing Nevada leaders to shelve fears that big changes might have allowed the Yucca Mountain program to be resurrected — Stephens Washington Bureau
November 09, 2012 — NUCLEAR PLANT POWERED BY SPENT FUEL — Reactors could use existing stockpiles of nuclear waste to produce electricity for the world through 2083 — Discovery.com
November 01, 2012 — Senate Bill on Nuclear Waste The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a hearing to review legislation that may serve as the framework for the storage and later permanent disposal of the nation’s civilian and defense nuclear waste. Meeting to receive testimony on S. 3469, The Nuclear Waste Administration Act of 2012, the committee received generally positive reviews of this bill introduced by committee chairman Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) — The AIP Bulletin of Science Policy News
October 10, 2012 — Status of Court of Appeals’ Yucca MountainRelated Cases and Standard Contract Litigation — Western Interstate Energy Board
Denver, CO
October 21, 2012 — Coming election could signal shift in opposition to Yucca Mountain — Las Vegas Sun
October 14, 2012 — Sierra Club opposes turning Nevada into a nuclear dumping ground — This is Reno
October 01, 2012 — Yucca nuclear waste site proponents push for final court decision — WASHINGTON - Groups that have sued to force the Obama administration to restart the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste project are asking federal judges to finalize a decision — Stephens Washington Bureau
Recent News — January / September 2012
News Archive — 2000 through 2011
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New Documents & Links
 April 2013 2013 — [Clean Air Task Force Document] Putting Energy Innovation First: Recommendations to Refocus, Reform, and Restructure the U.S. Department of Energy
January 2013 — [DOE Document] Strategy for the Management and Disposal of Used Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste [PDF 18 Pages]
December 2012 — Report and Recommendations of the Nevada Commission on Nuclear Projects — State of Nevada
- Developments in the Yucca Mountain Project and the Federal High-Level Radioactive Waste Program
- The Future of Yucca Mountain -- Taking the Long View
- Recommendations to the Nevada Commission on Nuclear Projects
August 2012 — The GAO — SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL Accumulating Quantities at Commercial Reactors Present Storage and Other Challenges [60 Pages - PDF]
October 2011 — Eureka County, Nevada Comments on Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future Draft Report to the Secretary of Energy [21 Pages]
October 2011 — Lessons Learned Video Project: Eureka County has undertaking a Lessons Learned Video Project, to capture on film and on transcripts the recollections and insights of 21 key participants and observers in the Yucca Mountain project. Nuggets of the interviews are presented along with the full transcript of each interview. The complete videos and transcripts will also be made available to researchers for historical and archival purposes [Read the Press Release]
Eureka County, Nevada: Lessons Learned Reprot Regarding U.S. Repository Siting Process: Summary of Findings and Recommendations For the Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future [April 2011 — 29 Pages, 590 KB ]
Nuclear Waste Update — Eureka County Newsletter, Summer 2011
Yucca mountain — what’s really there? — State of Nevada
Yucca Mountain — Nevada’s Perspective — By Marta Adams, published in the Idaho Law Review [April 2010]
Photo Slide Show: Union Pacific Freight Train Derailment & Bridge Collapse near Carlin Nevada - 12/27/08
April 28, 2009 — Eureka County Comments- OCRWM National Transportation Plan, Revision 0 [7 Pages]
Winter 2009 Newsletter
March 16, 2009 — Eureka County Comments: USDOE Draft Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement
February 17, 2009 — [Press Release] NRC approves rule incorporating EPA standardsfor Yucca Mountain repository
 Read the Final Rule 20 pages
February 06, 2009 — Nuclear Waste Disposal: Alternatives to Yucca Mountains — Congressional Research Service (27 Pages)
October 7, 2008 — CRS Report for Congress, Civilian Nuclear Waste Disposal [ 22 Pages]
Eureka County, Nevada
Mineral Assessment Report - 10/07
Lumos & Associates, Inc.
Eureka County, Nevada
Socioeconomic Conditions and Trends Update 2006 Lumos & Associates, Inc.
Impact Assessment Report Eureka County, Yucca Mountain Existing Transportation Corridor, Lumos & Associates, Inc.
Eureka County Atlas — The Atlas contains over 80 detailed maps of the county; each online map can be viewed or printed in Adobe pdf file format.
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