LAS VEGAS (AP) - The Obama administration has appealed a ruling that dealt a blow to its efforts to shut down the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste project.
Department of Energy lawyers on Friday asked the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to set aside an application DOE filed two years ago to license a nuclear waste dump in southern Nevada.
The DOE hopes to reverse a ruling by a three-judge NRC panel last week that said the administration cannot halt repository licensing without a new law from Congress.
In its 48-page appeal, the DOE said the Yucca Mountain shutdown effort is a policy decision within the power of the secretary of energy.
In March, Energy Secretary Steven Chu filed to withdraw the repository license application.
The DOE appeal was supported by the state of Nevada.