Nevada asks court to dismiss Texas’ Yucca Mountain lawsuit

Nevada has filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit by Texas seeking to force the federal government to restart the licensing process for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository.

“This week’s action is an important step in our continued and relentless efforts to defeat the proposal to store high level nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain,” Gov. Brian Sandoval said in a statement Wednesday announcing the filing by the state attorney general’s office. “The state of Nevada will continue to fight and defeat this dangerous project at every opportunity and in any venue.”

The motion, filed Monday with 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans, said the Texas lawsuit “directly — and adversely — threatens the rights of Nevada and its citizens.” It also hampers “Nevada’s ability to present its case at the licensing hearing, and rush a flawed project to completion at the direct expense of Nevada’s sovereign interests and the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens,” it said.

In addition to restarting the licensing process before the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the lawsuit would end the Department of Energy’s consent-based siting initiative, which would require a state’s approval to build a repository on its territory.

Contact Keith Rogers at krogers@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0308. Follow @KeithRogers2 on Twitter.