Nayak then cited a few more reasons to have strong doubts about the proposal before the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to violate that sovereignty. There have, he noted, been no Congressional hearings on this important public question of whether to ship 44 thousand tons of nuclear waste through as many as 45 states and store it above ground. There has been no examination of the safety of this proposal. Within days, he said, we could have a decision from the NRC. "It is time for Congress to step in."
Emily Saliers f the Indigo Girls spoke very briefly and to the point: "Nuclear energy is not clean energy." If we don't change from nuclear power and fossil fuels to renewables, she said, "then every time we switch on a light we are complicit in injustice that affects people's lives."
Nayek added that the United States imports over 50 percent of its oil, and that the new energy bill would increase the nation's dependence on oil. Meanwhile, he said, over 90 percent of Americans support renewables and conservation as the top solution to our energy policy.
The last to speak was musician, singer, song-writer Ani DiFranco.
The job of a poet or a singer, DiFranco said, is to draw connections. She was compelled, she said, "to speak one word: cancer." Cancer, she said, "is the physiological reaction to toxicity in our environment."
There is no barrel, DiFranco said, that can be guaranteed safely sealed. There is no safe way to ship nuclear waste. "We all know there's a bit of a farce in this policy."
"This week," DiFranco urged those in attendance, "rather than writing a check to the Leukemia Foundation, we can stop the Skull Valley dump and stop this energy bill. And we can invest in renewable energy that is out there waiting for us to use it".
"Radioactive waste is not clean. Therefore, anyone who is trying to tell me that nuclear power is clean is lying to me. And subsidizing nuclear power is absolutely a deal breaker in a twenty-first century energy policy."
DiFranco probably received the most applause of all the speakers, with the exception of Congressman Kucinich's closing remarks - see below.
Nayek concluded the prepared agenda of the press conference by noting that if an energy bill passes this week, it will likely set our energy policy for a decade. This policy will not focus on renewables. Focusing on renewables could create hundreds of thousands of new jobs, save consumers dollars, and protect public health.
Nayek asked for questions from the media, and seeing none, asked for questions from others. A man asked about the likelihood of the energy bill passing.
A committee of the House of Representatives, Nayek said, is trying to complete a bill tonight - likely a 1,000 page bill - and a vote in the House may come tomorrow, which is when the public will first see the bill. A Senate vote could come as early as Thursday.
Kucinich rose to the podium to point out, in addition, that most Congress Members will not have seen the bill before it comes to the floor.
Expert speakers who were available for questions rose and spoke briefly, one after another, because there were few reporters present, and none with questions.
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