By 1987 DOE planned to build the facility near Oak Ridge, Tennessee on federal land as government nuclear research projects meant skilled personnel and infrastructure were already in place.
[9][10] After ONWN wound down, MRS efforts were picked up by a private consortium, Private Fuel Storage, LLC, led by Xcel Energy (via Northern States Power Company's Jim Howard and the "locally visible and vocal"[10] engineer, Scott Northard) to store 30,000 metric tons (30,000 long tons) on 450 acres (180 ha) of Mescalero land in New Mexico, called the Mescalero Utility Fuel Storage Initiative.
The Mescalero tribe voted against the $250 million deal[11] in 1995, then proceeded into a second referendum and accusations of coercion and outside involvement, though the vote supposedly ended in PFS's favor, leading Tom Udall (then the New Mexico Attorney General) to state "It appears to me that the tribal leadership has strong-armed members to get this result", with allegations of job losses to opponents, intimidation through killing horses and dogs of a tribe member, and assaulting children.
It was also opposed by others in the tribe and by many outside groups, such as Senators Orrin Hatch and Bob Bennett, and House Representatives Rob Bishop, Chris Cannon, James V. Hansen, Jim Matheson, Utah governors Mike Leavitt (who famously said "over my dead body" to the proposal) and Jon M. Huntsman Jr., and Salt Lake City mayor Rocky Anderson.
[19] Legal protection under the Price–Anderson Nuclear Industries Indemnity Act, even for private operation on Indian lands, was settled with 1999's El Paso Natural Gas Co. v. Neztsosie, which noted Price-Anderson's "unmistakable preference for a federal forum".
[3] Leon D. Bear ( (1956-02-14) February 14, 1956 (age 69)), identified as chairman of the Goshutes by PFS, had pushed for the project, describing it as appropriate given the surrounding toxic sites that already existed.
They proceeded to appeal BIA's approval of the lease agreement in September 2000 and were joined by other parties including the Ohngo Gaudedah Devia Awareness (OGDA or OGD) and the State of Utah.
This was then filed as a lawsuit on 2 May 2001, over the legality of the 1997 lease agreement, stating the "Bear regime" (Leon and his uncle Lawrence) had been recalled in 1994 over the spent fuel storage, and the Blackbears had been elected.
Blackbear alleged that Leon Bear had made "extraordinary purchases" for personal use and also did not allocate PFS project money to the tribe.
[23][24][25][26] The following day, as part of a NRC ASLPB investigation, Leon Bear and John Donnell (PFS project member working for Stone & Webster) were deposed.
While discussing the accusations of embezzlement, Vollmann noted the tribal leaders "are currently cooperating with a pending federal law enforcement investigation", but stated that wasn't under the ASLPB's purview.
In an unrelated case, Bear and tribal businesses, Starlike Properties Inc. and Diversified Acquisition Star LLC, were also under investigation for tax fraud from a Japanese Yen currency put option in 1998.
[33][34][35] Sammy Blackbear, an attorney, and two other tribe members were charged with similar counts of theft after a soft coup in 2001 where they withdrew over $45,000 in tribal funds and transferred over $400,000 in funds to the falsified new tribal organization (with authorization from the Henry Clayton, the non-recognized Nato Indian nation's self-described "residing judge of the First Federal District Court"), attempted to get $250,000 at a second branch, and attempted to withdraw $385,000 from another bank.
[13][41] In October 2000, Bonnie Raitt and the Indigo Girls held a concert in Salt Lake City to raise awareness to the project.
[12] The Indigo Girls, Ani DiFranco, Winona LaDuke, James Cromwell, Rep. Dennis Kucinich, Public Interest Research Group's Navin Nayak, and Margene Bullcreek also held a press briefing in Washington DC on July 25, 2005.
[41][45][37] Bayley Lopez of Nuclear Age Peace Foundation called the waste storage on Indian lands proposals "a form of economic racism akin to bribery".
Utah contended that NRC does not have jurisdiction via the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (NWPA), since it was for an intermediate offsite spent fuel storage facility (ISFSI), which was not explicitly discussed.
By the end of 2002 it was clear Enron's market manipulation was a key factor, and CEO Kenneth Lay was convicted on multiple charges in 2006 related to the events.
The commissioners invited parties to comment on the issue in February 2002, specifically asking "What is an agency's responsibility under NEPA to consider intentional malevolent acts, such as those directed at the United States on September 11, 2001?
PFS attempted to add a fifth factor to the standard NUREG-0800 3.5.1.6-3 four-factor airway calculation, further reducing the odds by the likelihood that a pilot could recognize and steer away from a dangerous crash site, initially discussed as being an 85.5% reduction.
[64][65] Ultimately, Utah's concerns (125 specific contentions) were struck down in court, finding the state had overstated their case, and it was ruled in PFS's favor.
TIME magazine stated the tribe was slated to get $100 million over 45 years from the project, but neither PFS's Sue Martin nor the band's Leon Bear would confirm that.
For instance, she explained the pro-PFS tribal group (Larry Bear) as fitting a narrative frame of self-determinism, "The Goshutes (agent) have made an educated decision (agency) about this facility and we feel it is in our best interest to go forward with the project.
The PFS argument was given in a dispassionate, pragmatic, and scientific tone; even references to the fuel storage facility rarely mentioned the humans working there.
[11][86][87] Additionally, the perception and stigma of nuclear waste combines to reduce institutional trust and promote a NIMBY attitude, leading to the siting of locally unwanted land uses in minority communities with less time or resources to organize against it.
Understandings and beliefs about the dangers of radiation, for example, are culturally dependent, with some tribes (such as the Paiutes) assigning a heavy spiritual cost to radioactivity.
[11] Tracylee Clarke also described the intra-tribe dynamic that led to lack of voice and access, shaping of the tribe's identity through the distorted narrative of the Larry Bear group.
The harsh environment shaped much of the Goshute tribal identity, lacking sufficient resources to allow for a powerful central rule or sense of community.
Expert proponents described their years of experience and awards won (such as six Nobel laureates who supported the project) to impress "with credentials rather than data".
In contrast, opponents vilified Leon Bear, disputing the legitimacy of his leadership and claiming corruption, such as embezzlement and having bribed tribe members.