Friday, July 23, 2004
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

YUCCA MOUNTAIN: State seeks money to fight repository

Managers apply for $13.75 million grant, ask Clark County to help finance battle

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.