It’s back, sort of

Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee are circulating a proposed draft of a bill creating incentives to revive the proposed dump for high level nuclear wastes at Nevada’s Yucca Mountain in Nye County.

Pushing the draft are committee chair Greg Walden of Oregon, which has the Trojan Nuclear Power Plant, and the chair of the committee’s Environment Subcommittee, John Shimkus of Illinois, which has six nuclear power plants.

Nevada was designated for the nation’s only dump in 1987 after a pledge that two dumps would be built in the east and west was dropped, after Mississippi was excluded from possible sites because a U.S. senator’s sister owned the likely Mississippi location, after New Hampshire was excluded because it hosts the first presidential primary, after Washington was excluded because it was the home of the then-speaker of the House, and Texas was excluded because it was then the home of the vice president of the United States.

Energy Secretary Rick Perry of Texas (four nuclear power plants) opposed the Nevada dump when he wanted Nevada’s support for his presidential campaign but has since reversed his position.

Nevada has no nuclear power plants.