New Yucca Mountain timetable wins bipartisan support of House panel

WASHINGTON (08/02/06) -- In recent testimony before Congress, an Energy Department spokesman said he now hopes the national nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain will be operational by 2017. The goal  drew bipartisan support among lawmakers at a July hearing of the House Energy Commerce Committee's Energy and Air Quality subcommittee.

The Department of Energy’s revised schedule is to submit a license application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission by June 30, 2008, with operations commencing at Yucca Mountain by March 31, 2017. The plan was detailed by DOE’s new director of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, Edward “Ward” Sproat.

"I am frustrated by the lack of progress at Yucca, but I’m not giving up as I’m not aware of any credible alternative," said U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, chairman of the full Energy and Commerce Committee.

"There are a lot of reasons and excuses to explain why progress on the repository has been so slow," Barton added. "But there is no better time than the present to begin exploring what actions may be necessary to begin operations as soon as possible."

“There has been speculation about whether or not we still need Yucca Mountain,” said U.S. Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., ranking member of the Energy and Commerce Committee. “I agree with DOE’s conclusion that the answer is yes, and trust that it can demonstrate that this long-delayed program can be put on a sound footing.

"The ratepayers who have paid into the fund for so many years, the utilities who have counted on Yucca Mountain, and potential investors in the nuclear industry need a clear signal that DOE can put this program right," Dingell added.

"This project has to move forward now," vowed Sproat, saying he shared the lawmakers frustration over the delays. Only five weeks into the job, Sproat said he is still completing a thorough assessment of the Yucca Mountain Project.

First authorized by Congress in 1982, Yucca Mountain was expected to open on Jan. 31, 1998. The uncertainty surrounding the repository is holding up investment in new nuclear power plants to increase America’s domestic supply of energy.

The project’s delays also cost U.S. taxpayers nearly $1 billion last year alone in penalties and interim storage expenses and could reach $7 billion by 2017. Sproat said he hopes to reduce such costs and is currently negotiating settlements to do so.

Sproat urged Congress to approve a proposal by the administration to reform the Nuclear Waste Fund, which finances development of the repository. Failure to enact some form of the legislation would not delay the license application, but would doom efforts to open Yucca Mountain by 2017, Sproat said.

In addition, Sproat testified that:

• The Bush Administration opposes any diversion of funds from the Yucca Mountain Project to the proposed Global Nuclear Energy Partnership, an effort to reprocess a portion of the world’s nuclear waste.
• Proposals to open interim storage sites hold, at best, modest promise, and could run into delays over siting and other issues. If Congress can reform the Nuclear Waste Fund, “I don’t think interim storage gets you that much,” he said.
• Failure to enact the administration’s proposal could result in the need for another repository.

Barton pledged to support Sproat’s efforts to open Yucca Mountain as soon as possible, saying: "I respect your resolve. I respect your energy. I respect your enthusiasm. I respect your commitment to achieving progress on the repository license. … You’ve got your work cut out for you, but I really hope that you can succeed. I’m going to do everything I can as chairman of this committee to help you succeed while so many other efforts have failed in the past."