To get ball rolling on Yucca Mountain, Perry makes surprise visit to Nevada site

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John Locher / AP

This photo shows the south portal of the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump near Mercury.

Mon, Mar 27, 2017 (5:10 p.m.)

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Republican presidential candidate Texas Gov. Rick Perry is interviewed at Red Rock Resort on Monday, Oct. 17, 2011.

Energy Secretary Rick Perry made an unannounced visit to Yucca Mountain on Monday, in a move that he said was to initiate licensing proceedings for the proposed nuclear waste repository.

In President Donald Trump’s fiscal year 2108 budget, $120 million was earmarked to restart those proceedings at Yucca Mountain.

After his tour, Perry said he met with Gov. Brian Sandoval at the Nevada Supreme Court building to discuss the status of the long dormant site.

“Gov. Sandoval and I had a frank and productive conversation, where he expressed his appreciation for my visit and reiterated his opposition to the proposed project,” Perry said. “We have worked on a variety of subjects over the years. I value his friendship, leadership and look forward to staying in contact on this and other issues in the years ahead.”

Perry acknowledged the state’s place in the country’s nuclear discussion, one that is ongoing.

“I thanked him for the long and storied history the state of Nevada has had in our nuclear and defense industries,” he said. “I stressed the need for Nevada to maintain its key role as we seek sensible, stable and long-term solutions to fulfilling our responsibility to safely manage spent nuclear fuel. Today’s meeting with Gov. Sandoval was the first step in a process that will involve talking with many federal, state, local and commercial stakeholders.”

Sandoval noted his longstanding relationship with Perry but reiterated that the meeting was not the starting point for any discussions regarding renewed Yucca Mountain talks.

“I reaffirmed my unwavering opposition to any potential progress toward developing the site as a potential destination for high-level nuclear waste,” Sandoval said. “Nevada has always worked with our federal partners on issues that could affect the Silver State, but the storage of high-level waste at Yucca Mountain is not something I am willing to consider.”

Despite the governor's opposition, Perry said he hoped the state would once again lead the U.S. in keeping the country secure in the future, as the site sits on land that once was the Nevada Test Site.

“The state of Nevada has helped keep America strong, safe and secure since the earliest days of the Cold War. I look forward to Nevada maintaining its leadership role in America’s safety and security.”

Perry’s surprise meeting irked U.S. Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., stating that she had invited President Trump and his staff to meet with them about Yucca Mountain.

“Less than two weeks after Rick Perry’s friends in the Texas Attorney General’s Office sued the federal government to revive the failed Yucca Mountain waste dump and President Trump requested funding for it, I am troubled that the new energy secretary is visiting the site without informing members of the Nevada congressional delegation,” Titus said.

Titus said she wrote to Trump earlier this year to request that his administration visit Nevada and meet with experts who have spent years studying why the project imperils the state and nearly every congressional district in the country.

“The Trump administration has yet to acknowledge the invitation or the fact that Nevadans do not want a project that has dangerous implications for the environment, economy, and security of the region,” she said. “Southern Nevada is not a wasteland, and I will continue to fight to protect it from becoming a dangerous dumping ground.”

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