15 millirem per year, with a separate 4 millirem standard for ground water. Craig and Murkowski say the EPA standard is so low it could disqualify Yucca as a waste site. If anyone sits in front of the TV, you will receive more radiation than is being proposed for Yucca Mountain. Bryan and Reid say the Nuclear Regulatory Commission should not set standards because it has a cozy relationship with power plants. Both Craig and Murkowski say Nevada's senators are unfairly trying to scare other senators by overstating the dangers of transporting waste.
Military waste has been moved around the United States for years without one injury, they argue.
It can be very easily done. Craig and Murkowski are upset that Congress has allowed nuclear waste to accumulate for so long at the nation's power plants and at Department of Defense sites. It's safer, cheaper and more efficient to store the waste in one place, Craig said. Yucca seems the safest place to store it, he said. Scientists have been studying Yucca for years to determine if it's the best location for waste, with no final conclusions.