Statement of Administration Policy: S. 1271 - Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1996

(Senate)
(Craig (R-ID) and 25 cosponsors)

If S. 1271 were presented to the President in its current form, the President would veto the bill because it designates an interim storage facility at a specific site before the viability of a permanent geologic repository has been determined.

The Administration is committed to resolving the complex and important issue of nuclear waste storage in a timely and sensible manner. The Federal government's long-standing commitment to permanent, geologic disposal should remain the basic goal of high-level radioactive waste management policy. This Administration has instituted planning and management initiatives to accelerate progress on assessing Yucca Mountain, Nevada as a permanent storage site, and urges the Congress to provide sufficient resources to complete the Yucca Mountain assessments.

S. 1271, however, would effectively establish Nevada as the site of an interim nuclear waste storage facility before the viability of Yucca Mountain as a permanent geologic repository has been determined. Moreover, even if Yucca Mountain is determined to be unsuitable for a permanent repository, the bill would provide no practical opportunity to designate a viable alternative to Nevada as an interim storage site. Any potential siting decision concerning such a facility ultimately should be based on objective criteria and informed by the likelihood of success of the Yucca Mountain repository site.

In addition, the Administration has a number of other serious concerns about the bill. For example, the Administration strongly opposes S. 1271 because it would preempt most environmental laws, including the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Air Act, and the Safe Drinking Water Act, and it would remove the EPA from its role in setting human health and environmental safety standards for the repository.