Report Criticizes U.S. Nuclear Regulator

A report by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's inspector general says the commission's leader, Gregory Jaczko, "strategically" withheld information in an attempt to put a stop to the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in Nevada. The report doesn't accuse Jaczko of breaking any laws, but it says he wasn't entirely honest in ending the controversial project. When Congress hadn't passed a 2011 budget, Jaczko directed staff to use President Obama's budget request, which called for terminating the project, a decision that put a stop to a safety review proponents of the project had been hoping would vindicate them. Jaczko gave "varying amounts of information" to the other commissioners about his intention to shut down the safety reviews. The report, which is expected to be circulated on Capitol Hill today, will likely revive the debate over what to do with the nation's nuclear waste.