Our Responsibilities

The White Pine County Nuclear Waste Project Office monitors the Yucca Mountain Project activities, especially in regard to potential shipments of high-level radioactive waste through White Pine County and its communities.

U.S. Highway 93 passes directly through McGill and Ely in very close proximity to residences, businesses and schools. It is a primary route through White Pine County for tourists traveling to and from the Pacific Northwest. Although this route is not currently identified as an alternative for transporting high-level waste, it is used for transporting low-level waste to the Nevada Test Site, and there is concern that high-level waste could potentially be transported via this route.

The residents of White Pine County want to ensure that transportation routes to Yucca Mountain would not endanger their health, welfare and quality of life. With tourism and ranching as major economic sources for the region, White Pine County cannot afford adverse impacts or the stigma associated with the transportation of radioactive materials. All parties involved want to ensure that potential high-level waste transportation through the County does not pose serious health risks or adversely impact the County's socioeconomic and demographic condition.