Panel to Study Radioactive Waste Disposal

Gov. Gray Davis said Wednesday that he will order a panel of experts and environmentalists to explore options for the disposal of radioactive waste now that plans for a controversial site in Ward Valley have been scuttled.

The governor announced that he will not appeal a judge’s decision in March that blocked an attempt by California to obtain the Ward Valley property in the eastern Mojave Desert from the federal government.

Davis has been a longtime opponent of the Ward Valley proposal. The state’s attempt to obtain the property was filed by his predecessor, Pete Wilson.

Environmentalists complained Wednesday that the Davis task force apparently will be dominated by producers of radioactive waste and industry representatives. Davis named University of California President Richard Atkinson to head the panel.

But Daniel Hirsch, whose Committee to Bridge the Gap environmental group was a party in the lawsuit to stop Ward Valley, complained that the University of California is a producer of radioactive waste and was a proponent of the Ward Valley site.

“It would have been better if a more neutral group had been chosen,” he said. “More troubling is the makeup of the panel, which it appears will be dominated by waste generators with only a token representation from the environmental community.”

Davis did not name other members of the panel. But he said the group will include academic, scientific and environmental representatives as well as appointees from biotechnology groups, utility industries and state agencies.

Davis Press Secretary Michael Bustamante dismissed the concerns. “The panel will look at all diverse points of view,” he said.

One possibility is that the panel will explore other California locations that might be appropriate for a radioactive waste site.