End of nuclear waste limit urged

The Bush administration said there are no technology constraints to a major expansion of the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste site near Las Vegas, calling for possibly tripling the amount of highly radioactive used reactor fuel that could be stored there.

In a report to Congress, the Energy Department asked that the current capacity limit of 77,000 tons of waste be removed to accommodate all of the waste expected to be generated at commercial power plants, many of which are likely to operate for at least four decades.