ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — There’s no way of knowing if cost increases and
missed construction deadlines will continue at the nation’s only
underground nuclear waste repository. That's according to a report made
public Tuesday by Government Accountability Office. The reports says the
U.S. Energy Department is not required to develop a corrective action
plan for addressing the root causes of challenges at the Waste Isolation
Pilot Plant in southern New Mexico. A multimillion-dollar project is
underway at the underground facility to build a new ventilation system
so full operations can resume. The Energy Department had blamed
significant cost overruns and delays on the contractor's inexperience
and difficulties in attracting workers.