REID: YUCCA MOUNTAIN IS DEAD

April 11, 2011

Washington, DC— During a press conference call today, Nevada Senator Harry Reid discussed the impact of the historic budget agreement on the future of the nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain.  Particularly, he highlighted his success eliminating a reckless provision House Republican tried to attach to the legislation prohibiting the Nuclear Regulatory Commission from closing down the licensing process for Yucca Mountain.

“This budget agreement makes it crystal clear: the nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain is dead,” said Reid.  “Despite attempts by House Republicans to revive this ill-conceived project, we’ve once again driven a nail into its coffin.  This bipartisan agreement not only cuts historic levels of spending, it ensures that Nevada will never become the country’s nuclear dumping ground.  It’s time for proponents of Yucca Mountain to move on and stop wasting taxpayer money on this boondoggle.”

The agreement will be voted on this week and represents the largest cuts to discretionary spending since 1982.  While cutting wasteful spending and excess, Reid successfully held strong against ideologically driven cuts that would have hurt our kids’ education, cost us clean energy jobs and impaired life-saving medical advancements.

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