This page contains brief responses to questions about Yucca Mountain Project issues that may affect Nye County residents.  You can find additional information in Fact Sheets about the Yucca Mountain Project that cover a range of topics, from "facts about radiation" to "why do scientists think a repository will work?"
 

Where in Nye County is the Yucca Mountain repository located?

Yucca Mountain is located at the edge of the Nevada Test Site where more than 900 nuclear weapons tests have been conducted. With approximately 1,375 square miles, this site is surrounded by thousands of additional acres of land withdrawn from the public domain for use as a protected wildlife range and for a military gunnery range, creating an unpopulated land area comprising some 5,470 square miles. The U.S. Air Force Nevada Test and Training Range (formerly called the Nellis Air Force Range) — with its restricted airspace and defensive capabilities — surrounds the Yucca Mountain area on three sides.

What is Nye County's Policy Regarding the Yucca Mountain Project?

Nye County "believes the project should be conducted under conditions that ensure the safety of its citizens and that provide for long-term success" (Community Protection Plan, Approved August 2006).

Nye County intends to "engage energetically and constructively with DOE as the project proceeds" (Board of County Commissioners Resolution 2002-22).

What is the status of the Yucca Mountain Project?

During his presidential campaign, President Obama made a commitment that he would not go forward with Yucca Mountain.  In early 2010 the federal budget for the fiscal year beginning in Oct. 2010 eliminated funding related to the licensing proceeding for Yucca Mountain. The Department of Energy (DOE) subsequently submitted a request to withdraw its application to construct a permanent geologic nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. However, until the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 2004, as amended is rescinded or changed, the Yucca Mountain Project lives on.