Politicians in Utah are planning to lobby the Bureau of Indian Affairs to oppose the nuclear waste facility on the Skull Valley Goshute Reservation.
The BIA has to approve the lease between the Skull Valley Band and Private Fuel Storage, a consortium of private utility companies. The deal would allow the storage of up to 44,000 tons of highly radioactive waste on a small portion of the remote 18,000-acre reservation.
The state has already tried to force the BIA to reveal financial terms of the agreement. But the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals refused the request. The state has gone through other methods, including Congressional riders, in hopes of blocking the project, and spent $1.3 million in a losing effort to defend state laws against the tribe.
Former BIA assistant secretary Neal McCaleb and former Interior deputy secretary J. Steven Griles also tried to lure the tribe away from the deal by offering a land, natural resources and education package that largely depended on the state's approval. The tribe's chairman, Leon Bear, rejected the deal as "disingenuous" and an affront to the federal trust relationship.
Get the Story:Is used nuclear reactor fuel headed for the reservation? (The Christian Science Monitor 2/23)
Waste fight nets state a hefty bill (The Salt Lake Tribune 2/23) Relevant Links:
Skull Valley Goshute Tribe - http://www.skullvalleygoshutes.org
Private Fuel Storage - http://www.privatefuelstorage.com Related Stories:
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