Congresswoman Shelley Berkley today released the following statement on a House Science Committee hearing to examine recommendations from the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future. The expert panel recently completed a report (www.brc.gov) that highlights the need to move beyond the failed Yucca Mountain Project and calls for changes in the law that targets Nevada as the only site for the nation's high-level nuclear waste dump. Berkley's statement appears below:
"Yucca Mountain is dead, but there are some in Congress who are desperate to bring this project back from the grave. That's why they are ignoring expert recommendations that say it's time to rethink our nation's nuclear waste program. Republicans are working to bury this report because it doesn't support opening Yucca Mountain and because it exposes the billions that have been squandered on efforts to turn Nevada into a nuclear garbage dump over the fierce objections of Silver State families. The faster we dump Yucca Mountain, the faster we can start focusing resources on securing nuclear waste in hardened containers at existing plant sites to better protect nuclear communities. At the same time, Congress should look to the Blue Ribbon Commission's findings as a blueprint for changing current laws that unfairly target Nevada and limit options for waste storage and disposal. Unfortunately, Republicans refuse to listen to Nevadans when we say no Yucca Mountain and no more spending on this spectacular failure with the $100 billion price tag. From day one, I have been fighting in Congress to keep nuclear waste out of Nevada and to slash Yucca Mountain's budget, and Nevadans know I will not stop battling this threat to the safety of Nevada families and the future of our economy."