[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 56 (Friday, April 17, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E527-E528]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             YUCCA MOUNTAIN

                                  _____
                                 

                            HON. JOHN KLINE

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, April 17, 2015

  Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to point out an absurdity that 
my constituents have long realized--and communities in Minnesota have 
had to deal with--but one that remains lost on the Administration.
  Xcel Energy's Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant sits on an 
island in the middle of

[[Page E528]]

the Mississippi River in Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District of 
which I proudly represent.
  This plant provides 30 percent of electricity for Xcel Energy 
customers in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and 
Michigan making it an important part of the region's energy 
infrastructure.
  However, without Yucca or a comparable solution, all fuel generated 
in its 42 years of operation has been stored on-site. That equates to 
2,550 used fuel assemblies and close to 1000 metric tons of nuclear 
waste sitting on an island in the middle of the Mississippi River.
  Mr. Speaker, this is absurd.
  In 2009, the Administration ended the Yucca program without any 
alternative strategy and after taxpayers already spent 15 billion 
dollars to ensure the safety and security of the Yucca Mountain site.
  The dereliction by the Administration leaves us open to both 
environmental and national security risks. Minnesotans know too well 
the threat of home-grown terrorism with recent threats made to the Mall 
of America. We need a safe and secure site to store our nuclear waste 
out of the reach of potential terrorists. We need to move forward with 
Yucca Mountain.
  Mr. Speaker, my constituents and all Minnesotans deserve better and I 
join my colleagues today in urging support for the Yucca Mountain site.

                          ____________________