Yucca Mountain News Clips
Friday, July 23, 2004
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Las Vegas SUN
July 23, 2004
Nevada wants NRC to help with funds for Yucca project
By Suzanne Struglinski
<suzanne@lasvegassun.com>
Sun Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON -- Nevada wants the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to help pay for the state's work on the Yucca Mountain project because Congress and the Energy Department have not allocated enough money.
Bob Loux, executive director of the state's Agency for Nuclear Projects and the state's attorneys met with commission officials Thursday to talk about the prospect of getting some financial assistance from the agency.
But there wasn't much talking.
In a meeting that had been scheduled to last four hours but was over after only 40 minutes, Jack Strosnider, head of the commission's office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguard, and staff from the Office of General Counsel asked few questions and did not say much about the possibility of the state getting the money.
Nevada believes the rules clearly allow the commission to help the state financially with the project. The state filed a 34-page petition with the commission in May asking for close to $14 million to help prepare for the Yucca Mountain licensing hearings.
"Without financial assistance for Nevada, the Yucca Mountain licensing proceeding will be seriously compromised by Nevada's inability to participate meaningfully and by the lopsided nature of the parties and their respective resources," according to the petition.
Egan, a lawyer who represents Nevada on Yucca issues said the state went to the meeting "hat in hand but with a justifiable argument we should get assistance."
Egan said that a lot of the scientific work the state wants to continue will not be done by any other party but could be vital to finding information about the Yucca Mountain project.
Janet Kotra, who is also with the office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, questioned whether the commission's rules would allow for it to help the state. She said she believes it would be a decision for the Energy Department to make, not the commission.
She said she expects a decision to be made later this year.
Loux has asked the department for more money on top of the $1 million Congress allocated for this fiscal year, but the department has told him that unless Congress acts the state will not receive any.
The state has sued the department to get more money, because it believes it violated the Nuclear Waste Policy Act that says Nevada should get assistance.
In March, the department signed a contract worth up to $63 million with Hunton & Williams, a large Richmond, Va., law firm, Loux said.
The state has asked the NRC for $4.7 million, which Loux points out is a fraction of what the department will spend on lawyers alone.
Loux said he thinks the state is OK right now in funding its fight against the project but without additional money in the future some cuts will have to be made.
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Las Vegas Review-Journal
July 23, 2004
YUCCA MOUNTAIN: State seeks money to fight repository
Managers apply for $13.75 million grant, ask Clark County to help finance battle
By Steve Tetreault
Stephens Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON -- Nevada is running short of money to challenge the government's licensing bid for a Yucca Mountain repository, a state official and attorneys said Thursday as they applied for a $13.75 million grant to continue the effort.
Nevada managers have directed contract scientists to curtail research into some elements of the Energy Department's nuclear waste proposal and are negotiating to have Clark County pick up some costs, according to the state's nuclear coordinator.
The financial squeeze comes at a bad time for the state, when its lawyers and scientists need to step up for complex licensing hearings that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission might convene early next year, said Bob Loux, executive director of the Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects.
Loux said the severity of the problem is difficult to pinpoint because of myriad uncertainties facing the Yucca project, including a court ruling this month that could force DOE into long delays and relieve some of the financial pressures.
Nevada had relied heavily on federal appropriations to pay for its Yucca work but got only $1 million from Congress last year, 20 percent of what it wanted. This year, no money has been set aside for the state.
Attorney General Brian Sandoval is suing the Department of Energy for more funding, but decisions in that case are not expected until next year.
Loux said the Nevada Protection Fund that Gov. Kenny Guinn established for a Yucca Mountain fight contains about $800,000, and that also is being tapped.
As its funding has shrunk, state costs have grown to pay a team of lawyers and 25 technical experts that are dissecting the Energy Department's repository science looking for flaws. Loux has said the state projected needs at about $10 million a year through the licensing process, which could take four years or longer.
On Thursday, Loux and two of the state's attorneys appeared before officials at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to ask for close to $14 million.
"We are coming to you with hat in hand but with a justifiable argument why we should get assistance," said Joe Egan, the state's lead nuclear waste lawyer.
Accompanied by partner Martin Malsch, Egan said Nevada is the only one performing comprehensive research that could add to understanding Yucca Mountain and the science that the Energy Department will put forth to support its repository plan.
Janet Kotra, an NRC senior project manager, said the agency could decide the state's application by the end of the summer. The decision will be made by Jack Strosnider, head of the agency's nuclear materials safety and safeguards division.
But, Kotra warned during the meeting, there are questions whether the NRC can grant the request. She said commissioners in 1985 interpreted NRC regulations to rule out financial assistance for independent application reviews, which is what Nevada has undertaken.
Loux said his expectations "are not high" that Nevada will win funding, "but the way we read the regulations, clearly it can be done."
Included in the state's request was $2 million to examine repository performance, $1.8 million to continue corrosion research, $800,000 for hydrology work and $600,000 for transportation analyses.
Nevada also is seeking $4.75 million to pay its lawyers. State officials said the financial request for attorneys was 31 percent of what the Energy Department has budgeted for its attorneys.
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State of Nevada
Agency for Nuclear Projects
www.state.nv.us/nucwaste/
nwpo@nuc.state.nv.us
775-687-3744
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