The Jaczko Fiasco
Conn Carroll /
Controversy continues to grow around Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory Jaczko’s unilateral decision to order the NRC staff to stop its work on Yucca Mountain. The chairman defended his actions in a letter to the editor published by Energy Daily last week (subscription required). He suggested that he was authorized to stop work on Yucca by the 2011 budget. Never mind that the budget was never passed. The Chairman simply states that: “the administrative actions the agency has taken are simply a matter of efficient resource management and good government.”
Despite the effort, the Chairman’s letter only underscored the weakness of his rationale, which has launched a flurry of responses.
The first one came from former DOE official, Lake Barrett, who points out that the Chairman’s actions would ensure that the results of the NRC’s work on Yucca, which was scheduled for release this month would never be published : He asked: (more…)