b'P ROVING THE P RINCIPLEshould remain where it was until it ment and demanded the AEC set a DC should recognize the wisdom ofcould go directly to a permanent reposi- schedule. Kent Just, speaking for the removing TRU waste at the end of thistory or to an interim site closer to a Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce, decade. And if you dont intend to, hefinal repository. The Commission then said he did not fully understand why wrote, notify me in writing as soon asembraced Governor Andruss mission waste management practices had possible. 21and asked the AEC to give its firm changed from burial to above-groundcommitment and a schedule for storage. I am not certain if it was sole- The rising tide of public doubt compro-removing buried TRU waste from the ly through public pressure or in con- mised the whole-hearted support ofNRTS. It requested that the AEC junction with new techniques, said Senator James McClure for the WASH-finance an independent environmental Just. We are not absolutely sure the 1539 proposal, eroding his power tomonitoring capability for Idaho. burial was a mistake. If Just expected boost the project. Then serving his sec-Finally, almost as an afterthought, the to receive clarification on this point ond term, he demanded publicly thatCommission said it favored a strong from either the IDO or the AEC, he the AEC investigate reports that hugenuclear program in Idaho as a matter apparently didnt receive any. 20 quantities of highly radioactive wastesof policy, provided it maintained a high had been buried in cardboard cartons.level of environmental quality. 19 After the hearing, Andrus conferred If there is even a minimal danger ofwith Glenn Bradley. He assured contamination of the Snake RiverAt the hearing on November 12, 1974, Bradley that his testimony had not pre- Aquifer, he said, then that is morethe constituent member organizations cluded receipt of Rocky Flats waste for than the people of Idaho should beof the Blue Ribbon Commission came interim storage. His position was still expected to live with. A subsequentout squarely for or against the proposal. consistent with the view that the NRTS Post-Registereditorial accused him ofAndrus himself endorsed the findings not receive TRU waste from new taking potshots threatening Idahosof the Blue Ribbon Commission. He re- sources. Nor was he critical of current chances of bringing in a project worthstated the AEC end-of-decade commit- waste practices. But, you and AEC- $3 billion in the next twenty-five years.Later, McClure mended his own bridgeto Idaho Falls and endorsed the WASH-1539 proposalbut only if all thewaste was above ground, constantlymonitored, dry, and interim. And, headded, the material buried in the earlyyears should be removed. 22RWMC activities in 1997 included waste storage,waste evaluation, environmental monitoring, wasterepackaging, and waste management research anddevelopment.INEEL 97-620-1-921 0'