Press Release-09-053, Atomic Safety & Licensing Boards to Hold Yucca Mountain Pre-Hearing Sessions in Las Vegas, March 31 - April 2

Press Release-09-053: Atomic Safety & Licensing Boards to Hold Yucca Mountain Pre-Hearing Sessions in Las Vegas, March 31 - April 2

ML090780856
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Site:	06300001
Issue date:	03/19/2009
From:	Office of Public Affairs
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Press Release-09-053
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NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200 Washington, D.C. 20555-0001 E-mail: opa@nrc.gov Site: http://www.nrc.gov No.09-053 March 19, 2009 ATOMIC SAFETY & LICENSING BOARDS TO HOLD YUCCA MOUNTAIN PRE-HEARING SESSIONS IN LAS VEGAS, MARCH 31 - APRIL 2 Three Nuclear Regulatory Commission Atomic Safety and Licensing Boards will conduct oral arguments in the Yucca Mountain proceeding in Las Vegas from March 31 through April 2 on the standing of petitioners and the admissibility of their proposed contentions.

These oral arguments are part of the adjudicatory proceeding on the Department of Energys application for authorization to construct an underground geologic repository for the nations high-level nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas. DOE submitted the application to the NRC on June 3, 2008.

Each board consists of three judges, two with legal expertise and one with technical expertise. The three boards will consider and rule upon the admissibility of approximately 320 proposed contentions filed by 14 petitioners. These boards will consider only the standing of the petitioners and the admissibility of the contentions. The merits of any admitted contentions will be considered at a later time.

The sessions will be held at the NRCs Las Vegas Hearing Facility, Pacific Enterprise Plaza, Building 1, 3250 Pepper Lane, Las Vegas, beginning at 9 a.m. each day. Each board will hear arguments for one day, and will try to complete the days proceedings by 5 p.m.

Media wishing to cover the pre-hearing sessions are strongly encouraged to register in advance with NRCs Office of Public Affairs in Rockville, Maryland, by calling (301) 415-8200.

Pre-registration is essential for television media, as space inside the hearing room is limited.

Photographers (video or still) will not be permitted to move around the hearing room while the boards are in session. ASLB judges will not grant interviews. No interviews of other participants shall be permitted inside the hearing facility. Two brochures on the Las Vegas Hearing Facility -

one for media and one for the general public - will be available on the NRCs Web site at this address: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/.

NOTE: Anyone wishing to take photos or use a camera to record any portion of a NRC meeting should contact the Office of Public Affairs beforehand.

News releases are available through a free listserv subscription at the following Web address:

http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/listserver.html. The NRC homepage at www.nrc.gov also offers a SUBSCRIBE link. E-mail notifications are sent to subscribers when news releases are posted to NRC's Web site.