Letter to Senators John Warner and Carl Levin

May 6, 2004

Dear Chairman Warner and Ranking Member Levin:

As you develop the FY 05 Department of Defense Authorization Act, we urge you to oppose any proposals to provide the Department of Energy with authority to redefine high-level radioactive waste so as not to include material resulting from the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel. We also ask you to oppose the Department of Energy's Fiscal Year 2005 budget request for its so-called "High Level Waste Proposal." Both of these provisions would have serious consequences for New York, would undermine our state's ability to protect public health, and would significantly alter the intent of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA).

The DOE is responsible for cleaning up underground tanks containing approximately 100 million gallons of high-level nuclear waste in five states, including tanks at the West Valley site in New York. In an attempt to circumvent a July 2003 federal court ruling that found DOE in violation of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act, DOE made its FY05 request for funds for cleanup of the tanks contingent on Congress adopting a legislative reversal of the court's decision. In essence, DOE has threatened to withhold $350 million from necessary environmental cleanup until the affected states agree to accept lower cleanup standards for these tanks.

We agree that cleaning up these tanks should proceed quickly, but our constituents expect and deserve a complete cleanup as well. We believe that the court decision in question speaks to the completeness of cleanup, not the pace of cleanup, and this issue will not become critical for many years. The DOE should continue with its plans to remove liquids from the tanks while working with the states, tribes, and public health advocates to develop final cleanup solutions that are acceptable to all parties.

We understand that DOE has been working with members of Congress to develop a legislative proposal that would allow the agency to define high-level radioactive waste so as not to include material resulting from the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel under certain circumstances. This authority would potentially impact millions of gallons of radioactive waste
across the country, including waste at West Valley.

Again, we urge you to reject any proposal to provide DOE with authority to redefine high-level radioactive waste as it pertains to reprocessing of spent fuel, as well as language to tie $350 million of DOE cleanup funding to adoption of such a proposal.

Sincerely,

US Senator Charles E. Schumer

US Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton