The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“YUCCA MOUNTAIN” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Energy was published in the Senate section on pages S840-S841 on Feb. 14, 2002.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
YUCCA MOUNTAIN
Mr. REID. Mr. President, today the Secretary of Energy recommended to the President that Yucca Mountain, Nevada should be the site for storing all of America's nuclear waste, all 70,000 tons. This recommendation came despite the objections of all the credible independent experts who have reviewed the project. I will name just few of them. There are many others, but the credibility of those I will name cannot be refuted. These experts all say that the science is not sound.
The General Accounting Office is the watchdog of Congress and the watchdog for the American people. The GAO has been an important part of our Government for many decades and is noted for its independence and veracity. The General Accounting Office has stated that making a decision now regarding the Yucca Mountain project is neither
``prudent'' nor ``practical.'' That is pretty direct.
The Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board is an independent agency established to review what is going on with nuclear waste from a technical standpoint. It is chaired by the former dean of the Forestry School at Yale University, who is now the president of Carnegie-Mellon in Pennsylvania and is one of the foremost scientists in America. The Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board says that the scientific review that has been conducted at Yucca Mountain is ``weak.'' That is pretty direct.
The Inspector General of the Department of Energy stated that because the law firm giving advice to the Secretary of Energy on Yucca Mountain, Winston and Strawn, was the same law firm that was giving legal advice to the Nuclear Energy Institute, the umbrella for the nuclear utilities in this country, there was a clear conflict of interest. That too is pretty direct.
No one can challenge the credibility of this all-star team of independent experts: The Inspector General, the General Accounting Office, the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board. No one can challenge their credibility.
Secretary Abraham has made a hasty, poor, and really indefensible decision. Now the question of whether a high-level nuclear waste dump will be built in Nevada lies with the President of the United States.
It is time for President Bush to fulfill the commitment he made to the people of Nevada and to the country; that is, that he would not allow nuclear waste to come to Yucca Mountain unless there was sound science justifying such a decision.
The General Accounting Office, the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board, and the Inspector General have all said that science does not exist.
The President should demand sound science--peer-reviewed scientific evidence of the highest caliber--and wait until he receives it before making a decision about Yucca Mountain. The President has the responsibility and the authority to fulfill the promise he made to this Nation as a candidate regarding nuclear waste.
I urge President Bush to exercise that authority and show the Nation he is a man of his word. We are depending on him.
Mr. President, this visual aid represents the proposed routes that trucks and trains would travel to Nevada carrying 70,000 tons of toxic material. One hundred thousand truckloads of nuclear waste will be hauled on these roads. And 20,000 trainloads of nuclear waste will be hauled along the railways we see here on this map.
The Department of Energy has refused to do an environmental impact statement assessing the effects of transporting all of this deadly material. Why? Because they cannot explain how it would be possible to safely haul 70,000 tons of nuclear waste over the highways and railways of this country.
Since September 11, we know that terrorists are waiting for targets of opportunity. We know now not only that they are waiting for targets of opportunity but also that they are capable of hitting their targets. The tragic events of September 11 demonstrated that in such a dramatic fashion. It would be reckless and dangerous to provide terrorists with more than a hundred thousand additional targets, which the trucks and trains carrying nuclear waste would become.
So, Mr. President, I say to you, and the rest of America, we are depending on the President of the United States, George W. Bush, to be a man of his word and not allow nuclear waste to travel across this country until there is sound science. There is not sound science, as separate reports prepared by the General Accounting Office, the Inspector General of the Department of Energy, and, of course, also by the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board all make clear.
The President should wait until he has credible evidence and a sound scientific basis to support a plan for storing nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain and allowing it to travel across the country.
Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
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