[CPEO-MEF] Nat'l "Green Scissors 2001" study says cut NIF

[marylia@earthlink.net]

Environmental and Taxpayer Groups Join Forces to Cut NIF and Other Harmful
Projects

by Marylia Kelley and Melanie Lombard
from Tri-Valley CAREs' March 2001 newsletter, Citizen's Watch

The federal government spends billions every year on programs that harm the
environment and public health, according to a new national study.

The report, "Green Scissors 2001," recommends cutting or reforming 74
programs worth $55 billion over the next 5 years.

"Green Scissors 2001" takes particular aim at the problem-plagued National
Ignition Facility (NIF) mega-laser, under construction at Livermore Lab.
NIF was chosen by the national coalition that produced the study as a
"choice cut" for this year.

"NIF should be canceled and construction terminated." This would save $10
billion over the 30 year lifetime of the project, according to the report.

Members of Tri-Valley CAREs and the California Public Interest Research
Group gathered at the Livermore Laboratory on Feb. 22 to release the
study's findings and meet with reporters.

Tri-Valley CAREs' Marylia Kelley explained the still-escalating costs,
environmental hazards and nuclear proliferation risks of building and
operating the NIF.

According to the federal General Accounting Office last year, estimates for
completion of the NIF rose from $1.2 billion to $4 billion. However, the $4
billion doesn't include actually throwing the switch and operating the
laser, among other things, explained Kelley.

"Green Scissors 2001" used a life-cycle estimate of $10 billion. As
shocking as that figure is, the total may climb even higher, Kelley told
reporters.
In the next day's edition of the Tri-Valley Herald, Livermore Lab
spokesperson Susan Houghton refused to provide any estimate for the cost of
the NIF over its 30-year lifetime. She merely attacked the $10 billion
figure as a "distortion."

Tri-Valley CAREs and CALPIRG also brought a NIF cake to the Lab, complete
with a colored-frosting target chamber, to celebrate the release of the
"Green Scissors 2001" study. The groups then cut the cake to symbolize
NIF's inclusion as one of only ten "choice cuts" in the report. (We are
less certain what eating the cake symbolized, but it was delicious.)

"Green Scissors 2001" resulted from research conducted by dozens of
taxpayer and environmental organizations across the nation. Programs that
most egregiously fleece the taxpayer and contaminate the environment were
then compiled into the final report. "'Green Scissors 2001' shows that the
practice of handing out polluter pork is still thriving in Washington, DC",
Melanie Lombard of  CALPIRG told reporters.

On the other hand, the unique "Green Scissors" coalition of conservative
taxpayer groups and progressive environmental organizations has proven to
be a potent lobbying force, particularly in the halls of Congress. We at
Tri-Valley CAREs stand always ready to assist them - for example with
up-to-the-minute, accurate information on NIF - as they seek to cut NIF's
budget in 2001. Working together, we believe we can succeed!

"Green Scissors 2001" can be downloaded from the web at
www.greenscissors.org. The recommendation to cut the NIF is printed on the
back of this insert. Please feel free to use this information in
discussions with your neighbors, co-workers and elected officials.

ends

Marylia Kelley
Tri-Valley CAREs
(Communities Against a Radioactive Environment)
2582 Old First Street
Livermore, CA USA 94550

<http://www.igc.org/tvc/> - is our web site, please visit us there!

(925) 443-7148 - is our phone
(925) 443-0177 - is our fax

Working for peace, justice and a healthy environment since 1983, Tri-Valley
CAREs has been a member of the nation-wide Alliance for Nuclear
Accountability in the U.S. since 1989, and is a co-founding member of the
Abolition 2000 global network for the elimination of nuclear weapons, the
U.S. Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons and the Back From the Brink
campaign to get nuclear weapons taken off hair-trigger alert.



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