Some in House suspicious of Senate nuclear waste bill
Legislators in both chambers are saying they want to give nuclear power a new boost in the American energy market, but rival legislation on what to do with rapidly accruing nuclear waste has left some members of the House questioning the intentions of their counterparts in the Senate.
Members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee are expressing opposition to a Senate bill that would open interim storage sites for nuclear waste across the country while Nevada's Yucca Mountain repository continues to be derailed by poor planning, cost overruns, and fierce opposition by Nevadans, including Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. Many House leaders suspect the Senate proposal is meant to further undercut the project.
"We should not allow pursuit of interim storage to block Yucca Mountain," said Rep. Rick Boucher, a Virginia Democrat and ranking member of the subcommittee on energy and air quality, in a hearing yesterday. House members say that in order for nuclear power to expand, a permanent home for nuclear waste is necessary. Rep. Gene Green, a Texas Democrat, tells U.S. News that the Senate bill, which would devote money and agency oversight to interim storage sites, is a masked attempt to kill the Yucca Mountain project for good.
"If you can't kill it straight up, you can kill it by taking away resources," Green said. "I know if I opposed Yucca Mountain, I would be very creative, and this looks like a very creative way to delay and divert resources from Yucca Mountain."