[Timothy Towns]

Midnight Oil and Oregon Activists Condemn
Yucca Mountain Nuclear Dump as Environmentally Unsafe

Activists and Musicians Urge U.S. Sens. Wyden and Smith to Oppose Dangerous
Plan
for Nuclear Waste Transport Through Oregon

PORTLAND, Ore.-- Peter Garrett, lead singer of the Australian band Midnight
Oil, and other band members teamed with Portland environmental and public
interest groups today at the Benson Hotel to emphasize the dangers
associated with the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump in Nevada.

At a press conference prior to their show at the Roseland Theatre, the band
denounced the dangerous plan to transport 77,000 tons of high-level
radioactive waste across the country via highway, rail and barge shipments.
The U.S. Department of Energy projects that 3,324 truck shipments and 649
train shipments alone would travel through Oregon on I-84 and rail lines
through Portland.

  Garrett, a fiery environmental activist in his native Australia, urged
  U.S. activists to write and call their senators to tell them to oppose
  the Yucca Mountain proposal.

 "Mass transport of large amounts of highly dangerous radioactive waste
 through Oregon is a very dumb idea, dangerous for people and their
 environment," Garrett said. "We oppose it in Australia and we oppose it
 here. Our fans and the Oregon public deserve a lot better than this
 harebrained recipe for hell."

Participants at today's event included members from Oregon Peaceworks,
National Environmental Trust, Oregon Sierra Club, Oregon State Public
Interest Research Group (OSPIRG), Physicians for Social Responsibility
(PSR), Heart of America Northwest, Hanford Action, and Women's
International League for Peace and Freedom.

Local activists have expressed concern about the safety of transporting
waste as well as about the site itself.  Yucca Mountain is located 80 miles
northwest of Las Vegas, Nev.  It sits on an earthquake zone and lies atop a
fresh water aquifer that supplies local residents with drinking water.

"We are sending a clear message to our congressional delegation that
Oregonians do not want nuclear waste transported through Oregon to Yucca
Mountain," said Michael Carrigan, program director of Oregon Peaceworks.
"Senators Wyden and Smith have already received a letter to that effect
signed by 22 groups with tens of thousands of members in Oregon. They will
continue to hear from us right up until they vote."

Speakers praised Oregon U.S. Reps. Darlene Hooley, David Wu, Earl
Blumenauer and Peter DeFazio for voting against the proposal in yesterday's
vote on HJ Resolution 87.  The U.S. House of Representatives voted 306-117
to approve the Yucca Mountain dump.  U.S. Rep. Greg Walden voted in favor
of the proposal. The next step is the U.S. Senate, which is more evenly
divided on the issue and is expected to vote this summer.  Representatives
of Oregon Peaceworks traveled to Washington, D.C., in April to meet with
Oregon senators to urge their opposition to the Yucca Mountain project.

The following are quotes from the four lawmakers who voted against Yucca
Mountain:

Hooley: "Currently there are so many questions surrounding the geology of
Yucca Mountain, the adequacy of the containers that will house the nuclear
waste, and the methods of transporting this high-level nuclear waste to the
site, that I could not in good conscience vote for this proposal."

DeFazio: "The president and the Republican House leadership, supposed
defenders of states rights, jammed through legislation to override Gov.
Guinn's veto and allow millions of tons of nuclear waste to be shipped to
Nevada, a state that has no nuclear power plants. Instead of acting
responsibly and addressing the dangers of nuclear energy or finding viable
sources of alternative energy, Congress has chosen to pass the buck to
Nevada and say, 'not in my back yard.' "

Blumenauer: "The approval of Yucca Mountain will set a dangerous precedent
for other potential sites such as Hanford.  When Yucca Mountain failed to
meet repository guidelines, the Department of Energy rewrote those
guidelines to avoid disqualifying the site.  I don't want this same low
standard to be applied to Hanford or any of the other potential sites."

Wu: "The nuclear waste will be with us for at least another 10,000 years,
and it's only common sense to take additional time to ensure that public
health and safety will not be jeopardized."

For more information on Yucca Mountain, please visit www.CITIZEN.ORG/CMEP.

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