Nye County is the host to two hazardous facilities of regional or national significance: the Beatty Low-Level Radioactive and Hazardous Waste Facility, and the Department of Defense Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Facility on the Nevada Test Site. Yucca Mountain, also in Nye County, is the sole candidate site for the nation's first high-level civilian nuclear waste repository.
Although Nye County did not request such status, it is federally mandated as the candidate site for the Yucca Mountain repository. Because Nye is the host county for the proposed project, it has legal standing as the unit of local government with limited jurisdiction over the site. Based on this fact, Nye County has certain rights of participation, funding and on-site representation related to Yucca Mountain policies and activities.
MISSION STATEMENT: The Nye County Nuclear Waste Repository Project Office (NWRPO) works to protect the interests of the citizens of Nye County by providing independent and responsive scientific, environmental, socioeconomic, transportation, health, safety, regulatory and policy monitoring of activities and impacts related to transport, disposal and storage of nuclear waste in and through Nye County.
To accomplish this mission, the NWRPO will strive to:
- Safeguard the health and safety of Nye County residents in relation to transport, disposal and storage of nuclear waste in Nye County;
- Protect Nye County's valued natural and environmental resources;
- Assure political and economic equity for Nye County residents in relation to nuclear waste transportation, disposal and storage in Nye County;
- Provide meaningful opportunities for Nye County citizens to be fully educated about ongoing and long-term activities related to nuclear waste disposal and storage in Nye County;
- Conduct independent scientific and socioeconomic research, analysis and monitoring of the federal nuclear waste disposal program;
- Participate in a substantive way in all regulatory and licensing procedures related to the characterization, siting and construction of nuclear waste disposal and storage sites in Nye County;
- Assure a reliable and predictable funding source to address the health and safety, socioeconomic, scientific, regulatory and licensing, public education, transportation and equity offset needs of Nye County as related to transport, disposal and storage of nuclear waste in Nye County; and
- Engage in long-term planning activities to address Nye County concerns related to federal nuclear waste activities in the County and protection of the public health and safety.
