WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration set out in a plan unveiled Tuesday to clear away potential obstacles in Nevada while speeding licensing and other groundwork for a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain.
A bill being sent to Congress today seeks to strengthen the Department of Energy's authority over aspects of repository planning while expediting hearings the Nuclear Regulatory Commission would conduct to allow nuclear waste to be sent to the site, DOE officials said.
It would bolster DOE claims for precious water to operate a desert repository over objections written into Nevada law, according to officials.
It also seeks a head start to build a railroad across Nevada to the repository and to prepare other, non-nuclear features at the site 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, according to DOE officials and others who reviewed the measure.
A handful of other provisions -- some new and some old -- are contained in a "fix Yucca" bill that supporters said was part of an overhaul to get the repository back on track after years of setbacks and delays.
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