🚀 go-pugleaf

ACTION ALERT

URGE PRESIDENT CLINTON TO STAND FIRM AGAINST GIVING LAND TO
CALIFORNIA FOR DANGEROUS WARD VALLEY RADIOACTIVE WASTE DUMP

BACKGROUND: 

	-The State of California is seeking the transfer of about 1,000 acres 
of land from the federal Bureau of Land Management for use as a 
"low-level" radioactive waste dump to be built and run by U.S. Ecology, a 
company whose previous dumps have leaked badly.

	-Committee to Bridge the Gap, a public interest group based in 
California that has led the opposition to the dump, projects that the 
following radioactive wastes would go to Ward Valley over its assumed 
30-year life (in curies):

       Nuclear Reactor Wastes

       Routine Releases                     141,009
       Irradiated Components                557,882
       Primary Coolant Decontamination      303,875
       Power Plant Decommissioning          375,907
       Reactor Design Firms                  15,207

       Total Nuclear Reactor Wastes       1,393,880      

These reactor wastes would constitute 97.59% of all radioactive wastes, 
in curies, to go to Ward Valley. The remaining 2.41% would come from 
industrial users, biotech companies, medical and academic institutions, 
and government entities. Despite the overwhelming predominance of the 
nuclear utility wastes, the dump proponents have tried to make this a
fight over hospital and biotechnology wastes. Despite the misleading tag 
of "low-level," much of this waste is highly toxic and will remain 
hazardous for centuries.

	-Data that was recently pried out of the U.S. Dept. of the Interior 
shows alarmingly high levels of tritium and carbon-14 near Nevada's 
Beatty dump for "low-level" radioactive waste.  Beatty, now closed, is 
operated by U.S. Ecology, the same contractor chosen for Ward Valley, and 
has been considered a model for Ward Valley. What the Beatty studies 
show is that radioactive waste migrates through the desert much more 
rapidly than previously thought, which means radiation from Ward 
Valley could leach into the water table and the Colorado River, source of 
drinking water for millions.

	-The land slated for the dump is sacred to several Native American 
tribes.

	-The land is also prime critical habitat for the desert tortoise, a 
threatened species.

	-The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 on November 
21 to ban disposal of radioactive waste above a "significant water 
resource," and to require waste to be disposed of in lead-lined 
waterproof vaults of steel-reinforced concrete.  Ward Valley is in the
county of San Bernardino and is above a significant water resource. U.S. 
Ecology does not plan vaults or liners of any sort; instead, waste would 
be dumped into unlined shallow trenches. The state and U.S. Ecology say 
the county has no authority to regulate radioactive waste dumps, and that 
issue will probably be decided in court. 

	-The Dept. of Interior has been negotiating with California Gov. Pete 
Wilson over the terms of the transfer of the federal land to the state 
for use as a dump. Interior has already reneged on a promise to hold a 
public hearing before any land transfer, so there is a danger of an
administration cave-in.

	-Congress, as part of its massive budget reconciliation bill, snuck in 
(with no public hearing or notice) a provision mandating the land 
transfer to California with no conditions and exempting the transfer from 
environmental laws. President Clinton vetoed the bill for 82 reasons, 
Ward Valley being one of them. The Clinton administration is now 
negotiating with Congress over the budget bill, so grass-roots support is 
key to convincing the president not to yield on this issue.
 
WHAT YOU CAN DO:

       	Email President Clinton, president@whitehouse.gov or 
75300.3115@compuserve.com, and Vice-President Gore, 
vice.president@whitehouse.gov. You can also fax Clinton at 202-456-2461, 
and Gore at 202-973-1475.

       	Californians should also fax letters to John Emerson, a deputy 
assistant for intergovernmental affairs who will be running the 
Clinton-Gore re-election campaign in California. His fax is 202-456-6220 
or 456-2889, and his phone numbers are 202-456-2896 and 456-7060. 

       	Thank the president for vetoing the budget reconciliation bill, 
and for listing the Ward Valley land transfer as one of his 82 reasons to 
veto. Urge him to continue to stand firm against signing any bill 
mandating a Ward Valley land transfer, and to refuse to administratively 
transfer the land to the State of California as long as major environmental,
health and safety questions remain unresolved.

       	For further information, contact Bill Magavern at Public Citizen,
202-546-4996 (on vacation until Jan. 2) or Joe Lyou at Committee to Bridge
the Gap, 310-478-0829. 
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