WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Frank H. Murkowski (R-Alaska), Ranking Member on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, released the following statement today in response to Nevada Governor Kenny Guinn’s veto of Yucca Mountain as a permanent repository the for the nation’s high level nuclear waste. “Yesterday, another step in the process to approve Yucca Mountain was taken. The Governor of Nevada traveled to Washington to deliver his veto of the President’s recommendation to site this nation’s high-level waste repository at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. “And Senator Bingaman, the Chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee has today taken yet another step and introduced a resolution to override the Nevada veto. Bingaman’s action sets in motion a Congressional fast track procedure to approve this resolution - by a simple majority vote - so that we may finally approve a safe, remote, central facility for our nation’s nuclear waste. “Without this repository, our nuclear plants will have to shut down. Can we risk this? Now especially, when we can, and must reduce our reliance on foreign energy? Can we afford to lose 20% of our nation’s clean, emissions free generation? I don’t think so. “Without Yucca Mountain, the ‘Cold War Legacy’ sites throughout the U.S. will not get cleaned up because we will have no place to put the waste. The Federal Government has an obligation for commercial spent fuel and the legacy waste. To meet these obligations, we must open a repository and we must do it soon. “To date, we have spent over 20 years and 4 billion dollars to investigate and characterize the site. The science tells us this is the place.” ###