Editorial: Fight over nuke dump to continue

Government scientists haven't determined yet whether Yucca Mountain is suitable for a high-level nuclear waste repository, but Department of Energy officials already are discussing what a repository should look like. Department officials showed the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board on Monday a preliminary design for storing 77,000 tons of high-level nuclear waste, although the DOE is at least four years away from even asking for a license. Talk about putting the cart before the horse.

The DOE's investigation of Yucca Mountain would be more credible if it focused instead on listening with an open mind to all scientific work, including that which asserts it is unsafe to store nuclear waste in Nevada. This indifference took on an added urgency this week in light of earthquakes Monday and Wednesday near Yucca Mountain.

The earthquakes, which registered 3.5, 4.5 and 4.7 on the Richter scale, were centered about 30 miles from the proposed dump. More than 600 earthquakes measuring at least 2.5 on the Richter scale have happened since 1976 within a 50-mile radius of Yucca Mountain. These weren't all modest earthquakes. An earthquake with a 5.8 magnitude hit Little Skull Mountain in June 1992 -- only 12 miles from Yucca Mountain -- and caused more than $500,000 in damage to buildings in the area.

While it's disheartening that the DOE displays a cavalier attitude to a thorough scientific inquiry, it's less shocking that members of Congress want to stick a dump in Nevada because they don't want it in their back yards. The 106th Congress hasn't wasted any time, already introducing legislation that would make the Nevada Test Site a dump for nuclear waste until a final resting place is found.

Sen. Harry Reid, who holds the No. 2 leadership position among Senate Democrats, and Sen. Richard Bryan are already working to get enough votes to sustain a presidential veto of a temporary dump in Nevada. One voice that has been lost is that of Bob Miller, whose 10-year run as governor ended earlier this month. His close friendship with President Clinton helped Nevada get a fair hearing, which never was the case with previous presidents.

With the influential nuclear power lobby growing ever more restless, the 106th Congress could be pivotal in determining whether Nevada's fight against this unfair move can continue to be successful. Fortunately Miller's successor, Gov. Kenny Guinn, understands the issue's urgency. The new governor already is calling a summit of Nevada's congressional delegation, top state officials and legislative leaders. Since there is a new governor and a new member of Nevada's four-member congressional delegation, it is a smart move to make sure the state's strategy is consistent and well planned.

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