How much radiation can Nevadans take?
According to the nuclear industry, more than the rest of us.
The nuclear industry has long targeted Nevada, a state without nuclear reactors, as the dumping ground for its highly toxic garbage. Now the industry has decided that Nevadans can take more radiation than other citizens.
If passed, S. 104 would interfere with the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority to protect the public from radiation releases from the proposed Yucca Mountain repository. The bills would set a standard that allows radiation exposures far in excess of current regulations. The standard in these bills is so lax that the International Council on Radiological Protection associates it with one excess cancer death for every 286 individuals exposed over a lifetime.
As EPA Administrator Carol Browner wrote, the legislation would allow radiation “exposures of future generations of Nevadans which are much higher than those allowed for other Americans and citizens of other countries.”
All Americans are entitled to real protections from the risks of radiation. These standards should be set by qualified bodies, not nuclear industry lobbyists looking for corporate welfare.
Protect Public Health and the Environment. Oppose S. 104!
For more information, contact Bill Magavern or Auke Piersma at Public Citizen, 546-4996.
Auke Piersma Phone: (202) 546-4996
Researcher/Admin Assist Fax: (202) 547-7392
Critical Mass Energy Project Email: apiersma@citizen.org
Public Citizen Website: www.citizen.org/cmep/