Berkley Praises Court Ruling Blocking
Department of Energy (DOE) Water Use At Yucca Mountain
Bush Backed Water Grab in Congress Still a Threat
CONGRESSWOMAN SHELLEY BERKLEY (D-NV) today [September 4, 2007] praised a federal court ruling that prevents the Bush Administration and the DOE from using water for on-going work at Yucca Mountain. Nevada officials had rejected DOE's request to use the water, but the Energy Department ignored the State and continued work on the proposed dump 90 minutes outside Las Vegas. The State took the issue to federal court and triumphed in a ruling that cited arrogance on the part of the Bush Administration in pursuing its policy at the proposed dump.
"This ruling clearly shows the arrogance of the Bush Administration, which chose to flaunt the law and to ignore those officials charged with protecting families in Nevada and our State's natural resources. I congratulate Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto and her team for this victory and for refusing to back down on an issue that is critical in the fight to prevent Nevada from becoming a nuclear garbage dump. The decision handed down today should also send an unmistakable message to President Bush and his Republican allies that Nevada will fight any attempt in Congress to pass legislation that would authorize a full blown water grab—as has already been proposed by this White House," said Berkley. "Water is one of the most important natural resources we have and allowing these supplies to be polluted by toxic nuclear waste is not in the best interest of the families who call Las Vegas and other Nevada communities home."
