Yucca

Biting back
A Nevada man used one of the world’s most elite forums—the letters to the editor column of the New York Times—to make the state’s case against the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump against the newspaper’s own previous editorials.

The newspaper ran an editorial on July 5 calling for protection in the nation’s capitol and other cities against the transportation of hazardous materials: “This vulnerability could be easily eliminated by a federal law barring the transportation of hazardous materials through Washington and other locations at high risk of a terrorist attack.”

Michael Green, a history professor at the Community College of Southern Nevada, fired back a letter reminding the newspaper of its own support for hazardous waste transportation:

“As a Nevadan, I would appreciate it if you would square this with your unrelenting support for a high level nuclear waste dump in my state … [which] would mean transporting the waste across the United States, endangering virtually the entire population especially if terrorists somehow go hold of the radioactive material. Perhaps Nevada means less to you than Washington does, but transporting the waste to this state would potentially cost a horrendous number of lives and/or a horrendous amount of money.

The Times published the letter.