Current Status and Potential Impacts Regarding the Proposed Development of a Rail Line to the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository

摘要

This paper provides a description of the current status regarding the proposed development of a rail line to the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository in Nye County, Southern Nevada, which includes potential impacts analyzed during the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process, and the subsequent creation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the rail line. Potential impacts are addressed within the context of impacts to natural and human environmental resources found within the geographic area of the proposed federal project. Potential impacts to these resources have been fully analyzed in the Rail Alignment Draft EIS (DEIS). This paper includes a summary of the potential impacts analyzed in the DEIS. Examples of potential impacts include land use conflicts, air quality, water use, and impacts to biological and cultural resources, among others.