Foreign Correspondence

[CoalTrain]

Matheson reintroduces nuke testing bill

By ED KOCIELA
[e-mail]

http://www.thespectrum.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050310/NEWS01/503100303/1002

Just days after a fellow Utah lawmaker spoke in favor of renewed nuclear testing in Nevada, Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, re-introduced a bill Wednesday afternoon that would require the federal government to conduct a nationwide environmental impact assessment and set up nationwide monitoring systems before renewing atomic weapons tests.

"I'm committed," Matheson said moments after stepping off the floor of the House of Representatives on Wednesday afternoon. "We got the money for this zeroed out last year, but it's not over.

"(Secretary of Energy) Samuel Bodman said he's ready to move ahead with getting the Nevada Test Site ready. He said it would not just be for the development of new nuclear weapons, that we have an aging nuclear arsenal, and we have to test to make sure it works. I'm concerned about that."

Bodman's remarks were echoed by Rep. Chris Cannon, R-Utah, who told the Salt Lake Tribune in Washington, D.C., earlier this week that he believed the United States needs a clear deterrent for its enemies.

"To the degree that we have people blow up our skyscrapers and hiding underground we have to have the ability to respond to them," Cannon told the Tribune. "I don't ever expect we'll end up using a bunker buster, but the other side needs to know that we have them." Cannon also said he believes tests can be conducted safely.

The idea of renewed testing didn't sit well with some Southern Utah "downwinders," who were among the 40,000 area residents exposed to radiation during nuclear weapons tests in the 1950s and '60s.

Michelle Thomas, a St. George resident and downwinder, called Cannon's support of the resumption of testing "cavalier." She said his backing of renewed tests shows an "incredibly short-term memory on his part" because Cannon has said in the past that he believes his father died as a result of the radioactive fallout.

Matheson's bill to put hurdles in front of renewed tests, the Safety for Americans from Nuclear Weapons Testing Act, is similar to legislation he introduced a year ago.

It would require:


The government to conduct a National Environmental Policy Act review to assess health, safety and environmental impacts prior to conducting nuclear tests.

Congressional authorization prior to the resumption of testing at the Nevada Test Site.

One week's notice before any test.

Governmental and private monitoring of radiation levels throughout the country.

The creation of a consortium of universities to study the health effects of radiation exposure.

Provisions that ensure local citizen involvement.
The last item was picked up from a bill introduced last year in the Senate by Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah.

"We liked that idea," Matheson said. "Sen. Bennett sort of wrote his bill off mine last time. I talked to him about this one."

Bennett has said that he will reintroduce his measure this session, which would require the installation of radiation monitoring stations in any Utah county that requests one and establish the citizen review board to meet with the Department of Energy to discuss testing concerns.

As Matheson introduced his measure on the House floor, he pointed first to a large photograph of the 1970 Shot Baneberry underground test that reportedly tossed debris and a mushroom cloud 10,000 feet into the air. He also cited a map that researchers from the National Cancer Institute claim shows the atmospheric flow of Iodine 131 as a result of nuclear tests.

"Counties in upstate New York and Vermont received fallout," Matheson said from the House floor. "This is an issue of national importance and national scope."

Matheson condemned the behavior of the federal government as it conducted testing from 1951 to 1992.

"At the time, the government told the people the tests were safe," he said in introducing his bill. "What we know is the government lied. Now the history is pretty clear. We know the government knew people were at risk and thousands died from nuclear testing."

One of those victims was Matheson's father, Scott, who served as governor of Utah and obtained documents proving the federal government's culpability.

While some downwinders said they appreciated the obstacles Matheson's bill would put in place, some residents said any renewed testing would result in a betrayal of trust.

"I think it was very ignorant of the government to use their own people as guinea pigs, and I never want that to happen again," said Jeff Bradshaw, a St. George resident and downwinder.

Besides Matheson and Bennett, the Utah Legislature also has spoken out against renewed testing. In the recently concluded session, the Legislature passed a resolution against testing, which was signed by Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.

"A resumption of nuclear testing at the federal government's Nevada Test Site would mean a return to the mistakes and miscalculations of the past, which have marred many Utahns," the resolution said. It "would signify a dramatic step backward in the United States of America's resolve to learn from its tragic nuclear testing legacy."