Yucca Mountain
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The storage of nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, Nevada has become a hot issue and is politically charged. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham has notified Nevada officials that he favors tunnels beneath Yucca Mountain in the southwestern part of the state as the nation's long-term depository for highly radioactive nuclear waste (Perkins, 2002). Consequently, the Feb. 15 decision by President Bush to locate the National nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain made it official policy. This nuclear waste dump could open as early as 2010 and is needed to bury 77,000 tons of radioactive waste that is stored at more than 131 sites around the country (Barnes, 2002). The controversy is whether this waste depository is safe or not. Another related issue is whether it is safe to transport the nuclear waste across the Unites States to Nevada. The concern here is unforeseen accidents, sabotage, or even terrorists. The "transport issue" is Nevada's "backup plan" to prevent the opening of Yucca Mountain (Taubes, 2002). The fact remains that The Department of Energy has began looking for a nuclear depository since the 1960s and later identified nine possible sites...