Senator John Ensign released the following statement in response to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s acceptance of the Department of Energy’s license application for Yucca Mountain as a nuclear waste repository:

“There can be no question that the citizens of Nevada are opposed to Yucca Mountain and the delegation is fighting hard to ensure that the DOE’s proposal to make our state a dumping ground for the nation’s nuclear waste is dead.  This latest announcement by the NRC that they will docket the application for Yucca Mountain is merely a formality.  This next step will consist of several years of review by the NRC, and I am confident that during this time, the red flags for this proposal will become even more apparent and will result in the NRC’s rejection of the DOE proposal. I fully expect that the risks associated with moving forward with Yucca Mountain will far outweigh any convincing argument on behalf of the DOE.   During these next few years, I urge Nevadans to continue voicing their opposition to Yucca Mountain by signing the petition on my website, and I will continue to work diligently to ensure that Yucca Mountain is and remains dead.”