For all the minorities in this country who have raised pluperfect hell about their past or current situations, the American Indian has been the quietist, and I wonder why.

Before you write me nasty emails, I’m not minimizing the concerns of minorities in this country: they have their issues and the right to use their voices, and that’s good.

But think for a moment about the original settlers of this land, the American Indian.

They did just fine for centuries, sustaining their cultures with the fruits of the land, picking fights and having wars, just like we all do.

Then, came the white man (no emails please, because that’s what happened), who invaded the natives’ birthright, confiscated their tribal lands, transferred them to reservations and literally forgot about them. Many of those Native Americans to this very day are without electricity and running water, in some cases, living in dirt poor conditions, and they languish without raising their voices.

How incredibly sad.

To add insult to this incomprehensible indignity, mining companies in search of uranium invaded their tribal homes, gouged out huge amounts of topsoil, taking what uranium they could profitably retrieve and leaving open sores bleeding toxic radiation into the soil, air and water.

Their legacy? Still-born babies, children with birth defects, cancer for hundreds, maybe even thousands, livestock mutations and God only knows what else. Maybe to the nuclear industry and our federal government, these people are considered “collateral damage.”

The government that put these noble people onto these lands, quickly approved the mining claims and encouraged uranium miners to take what they can, and in many cases paid only lip service to the clean-up process.

Now, with the price of uranium soaring, those uranium people are at it again, boring test holes on federal lands, in our “protected” forests, and on Indian nation lands.

For the first time in the history of this country, the Navajo communities of Crownpoint and Church Rock, New Mexico are saying NO to the feds and uranium miners.

In an unprecedented move, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will be challenged in Federal appeals court for its approval of a source materials license for an in situ leach uranium mine on Navajo tribal lands.

The New Mexico Environmental Law Center (NMELC), will present oral arguments on May 12 to a panel of Federal judges in Denver, asking that the NRC decision to allow mining be set aside.

Eric Jantz, an attorney for the NMELC, said in a news release:

“The importance of our hearing on May 12 cannot be overstated. “We are talking about the land, water, air and health of two whole communities. There are people on this land grazing their cattle and hauling their daily drinking water.”

The company in question, Hydro Resources, is proposing mining operations in four areas in the Church Rock-Crownpoint region. The NRC approved the license in 2006, but the New Mexico Environmental Law Center filed a lawsuit in 2007, asking that the license application be overturned.

In it’s release, the NMELC states the NRC has violated the National Environmental Policy Act, the Atomic Energy Act, and it’s own regulations.

The NMELC’s clients are appealing the following points:

Hydro Resources failed to prove that it will protect groundwater from contamination by uranium and other toxic heavy metals. The company failed to ensure that the health of residents near the mines would be protected from damaging radioactive air emissions.

Hydro Resources’ proposed financial bond for the site is inadequate to ensure that the site(s) would be cleaned up in the event that the company is unable to undertake reclamation of the land and/or water impacted by the mining.

Three cheers for the Navajo Nation, for standing up to our big-brother government.

My stand on nuclear energy is well-stated, en toto: it’s a dirty, dangerous, toxic, life-threatening industry and until miners are held responsible for the mess they make, there should be no new mining of nuclear materials in America.

Photo: LA Times

In our previous podcasts, Yucca Mountain: The Nevada Case Podcast, Part One, Mr. Loux talked about his agency, it’s mission and why the state is so critical of the DOE and it’s practices.

In the second presentation, Yucca Mountain: The Nevada Cast Podcast, Part Two, he talks about the regulatory process and unsuitability of the mountain as a long-term repository for high-level nuclear waste.

In this portion of the interview, Mr. Loux addresses transportation of nuclear waste to the facility, and the apparent faltering support for the project, both in the government and in scientific circles. The Walker River Paiute Indian Nation opposed allowing building of a railroad across their reservation, allowing nuclear waste to be shipped to Yucca Mountain. I asked Mr. Loux if the issue has been resolved.

What will happen to Yucca Mountain is still a subject of speculation. Nevada Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) has a bill pending in the Senate that would end the project, and instead, require new and existing nuclear power facilities to store their spent fuel on site until a suitable repository site is developed.

The Department of Energy announced layoffs at the project, claiming lack of suitable funding when Congress cut over $100 million from the current operating budget. The DOE will probably have to go forward as best it can, since the project is mandated by Congress.

Meanwhile, all Democratic presidential candidates have made it clear they will close Yucca Mountain if and when seated in the White House. Senator Reid has been quoted as saying he will make sure the new president and Congress will bring an end to the project.

Here is a link to the State of Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects.

This link will take you to a very large Government Accounting Office website, where Mr. Loux says you will find negative information on the DOE and its handling of nuclear issues.

The State of Nevada also put up a map of rail, truck and barge routes that would cover nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain. This site breaks it down into states.

This is the second part of a podcast with Robert Loux, Executive Director of the Agency for Nuclear Projects in Nevada.

If you missed the first installment, it’s available at: Yucca Mountain: The Nevada Case Podcast, Part One .

In this segment, Loux discusses the Department of Energy’s regulatory process, falsehoods and other manipulation of reports. He also talks about Yucca Mountains unsuitability, even for a short term, as a nuclear repository. Loux mentions how air and water pass freely through the mountain, the earthquake faults beneath the storage area, and even the possible threat of young volcanoes in the future.

Our third portion will address transportation issues, and the faltering support for the project both in the government and in scientific circles. DOE officials recently annouced layoffs at the facility, citing budget cuts by Congress.

Now, here’s Bob Loux, stating again, how Nevada became the “poster child” for long-term nuclear waste disposal.

Here is a link to the State of Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects.

Here is a link to the Government Accounting Office, dealing with information on the DOE and it’s handling of nuclear issues.

The answer to the waste situation was supposed to have been Yucca Mountain, a remote natural structure some 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada. Since it’s inception nearly 25 years ago, Nevadans have fought creation of a long-term storage facility in their back yard.

I wanted to know more about Nevada’s opposition to the Yucca Mountain project, so I picked up the phone and talked with Robert Loux, Executive Director of the Agency for Nuclear Projects in Nevada. He’s been going head-to-head with the DOE and other agencies for a long time, and has some interesting things to say about the project and the DOE.

As you know, Department of Energy officials have announced layoffs at the unfinished facility, and it appears Yucca Mountain may not fulfill it’s promise as a high-level nuclear waste repository. That told me Nevada’s been pretty successful in its fight against the government, and I felt it was time to learn more.

The interview was long, and has been separated into three segments, each covering a specific area of Nevada’s concerns about the project.

In the 1st, Loux explains his office and it’s responsibilities, then tells why the state is so critical of the DOE and it’s practices.

The 2nd interview concerns the regulatory process, and he talks about the mountain’s unsuitability due to earthquake faults, the threat of young volcanoes, and that water and air move freely through the structure.

In the 3rd segment, Loux addresses transportation issues connected with Yucca Mountain and why, at this point, there is no hope of getting large amounts of spent fuel to the facility in the next ten years, if ever.

A 4th segment is yet to be announced. I have calls in to the Department of Energy, and to Nevada Senator Harry Reid (D-NV), author of a bill awaiting action that would put a dagger through the heart of Yucca Mountain and make nuclear facilities responsible for their own waste products.

So we start with Mr. Loux introducing himself and the responsibilities of his agency.

Here is a link to the State of Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects.

A link to the Government Accounting Office information mentioned in today’s interview.

The State of Nevada has opposed the Yucca Mountain project since it’s inception, and now, years overdue and billions of taxpayers dollars later, it’s still at least 10 years away from completion.

She criticized the Bush administration for it’s continuation of the project, calling it botched science.

Not only has Hillary promised to stop Yucca Mountain’s progress toward nuclear storage, but all Democratic candidates for president have done the same. Even Republican Presidential candidate Ron Paul has ruled it out.

While Yucca Mountain is Nevada’s signature issue, the concern for shipment of nuclear materials stretches across the nation. I’ve included links to two sites showing proposed rail, truck and barge routes, with links to individual states showing which cities will be affected.

The waste, according to Las Vegas-based transportation consultant Fred Dilger, would arrive in 10,000 shipments, many going through major cities like chicago and Atlanta. Railway and truck accidents could have tragic consequences, especially since shipping routes are open to terrorist attacks.

So it looks as if we’re headed back to square one again, if Yucca Mountain is scrubbed as a high-level waste repository, where will it go? And, with more reactors apparently coming on line, how much is going to pile up before something terrible happens?

Potential Rail, Barge and Truck Routes to Yucca Mountain

Truck Shipments

State of Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects

Ward Sproat, shown in the Las Vegas Review-Journal photo at the left, is director of the Department of Energy’s Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, and announced Tuesday that Yucca Mountain in Nevada is still a long way from receiving any spent nuclear fuel. Sproat told Nevada’s Legislative Committee on High-Level Nuclear Waste, that lack of funding will result in significant worker layoffs at the facility. He is quoted as saying, “They’re going to come in waves”.

Podcast, if you’d rather listen:

The program has 2,400 full-time employees, a number that will shrink, as Sproat put it, “by the hundreds.” He is quoted as saying, “at least 500 people would be removed from the program in the next several months, the majority in Nevada, some in New Mexico from Sandia (National) Labs.”

On top of that, Sproat doubts a licensing application will be submitted this summer as previously anticipated. It was hoped the facility would be licensed and operational by 2017, but this latest news casts serious doubt on those plans.

What does this mean for the nation’s high-level waste repository? Sproat says the first deliveries of 77,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel probably won’t arrive at the facility in 2017. As a matter of fact, he isn’t certain the facility will even be licensed for some time to come.

The reason for the budget crunch apparently lies with Congress, who cut $108 million in funding from the 2008 budget. The Bush administration had asked for $494.5 million, and Congress responded with $386.5 million.

Sproat says the tunnel’s ventilation system was shut down in December to save on what he termed “substantial” electrical bills. It cost $3 million last year to keep the lights on, provide water and maintenance at the site.

Also on the chopping block, at least for the time being, is construction of a rail line across east-central Nevada to deliver the spent fuel. Sproat said there’ll be no rail delivery system in place by 2016 as planned.

Waste, according to Sproat, will not arrive at Yucca Mountain by 2017.

The state, which has been fighting the project for years, has a list of more than 25 concerns about the project. Nevada officials claim the Department of Energy’s repository design is only about 40% complete, and the agency has failed to fully address concerns about terrorism and sabotage in the transport of high-level nuclear waste products across the nation.

Earlier concerns about Yucca Mountain have clouded the issue even more, primarily discovery of an earthquake fault that runs directly beneath one of the areas designated for storage.

So, it looks like we’ll continue to pile up tons of high-level nuclear waste with no place to go but in deep-water pools and huge casks basking in the sunlight.

If you want a really good read on Yucca Mountain, I recommend the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s archive, where you’ll find this article, and a list of stories going back five years. You’ll have plenty of material to research.

Well, once again, here we are folks, piling up high-level, dangerously radioactive nuclear waste by the ton, and no place to go but in populated areas of not only our country, but around the world.

For the bleeding hearts who can’t wait to put another nuclear reactor on line, I can only wish you’d put more energy into finding a solution for waste management, and less into contributing to the problem.

Or, do you really think there is a problem with high-level nuclear waste, keeping in mind the ever-present “Oops Factor” that bedevils our every enterprise? I’d like to know. Change my mind.

I decided to dedicate my first official Planetsave podcast to the nuclear industry and the threats to our safety that come with it. Several links are mentioned in the podcast, and they are listed below.

Before we start, let me call your attention to some photos taken by the Department of Energy. They show open air storage vessels containing high-level radioactive material.

The image above is one of the three cylinder storage yards in America. You will find more pictures of rusted, leaking and patched cylinders in the Department of Energy link.

So, let’s continue…

The links I mentioned are below.

Department of Energy
The Tennessean
Sierra Club
Sierra Club Marilyn Berlin Snell