October 16, 1998
By Peggy Fikac
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
AUSTIN - Mexican lawmakers are continuing their campaign against a nuclear waste dump proposed for West Texas, 15.5 miles from the Rio Grande.
With the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission prepared to consider a license for the facility on Oct. 22, federal, state and local officials from Mexico met with Texas lawmakers who support their cause.
The group also met with Texas Secretary of State Al Gonzales and pressed for a face-to-face meeting with Republican Gov. George W. Bush, who has said if the dump isn't safe it won't be built.
Two Texas lawmakers, both Democrats, said Bush should meet with the Mexican officials.
``The governor should have at least met with this large delegation,'' said Rep. Norma Chavez of El Paso, which is 90 miles from the proposed dump site near Sierra Blanca.
Rep. Domingo Garcia of Dallas, who grew up near Sierra Blanca, called the dump ``a clear, blatant case of environmental racism. ... When you're talking about an area that's 80 percent Mexican American, I think that's environmental racism.''
Garcia also said Bush should meet with the Mexican officials.
``When you're talking about what's going to happen to Mexico if this government ... is taking nuclear waste from the Canadian border - from Maine and from Vermont - and bringing it to the Mexican-Texas border, that shows a total disrespect of the people of Mexico and the government of Mexico,'' he said.
``And by failing to meet with the individuals today, I believe that's another sign of disrespect, and that's not being a good neighbor.''
The dump agreement signed into law by President Clinton last month would allow Maine and Vermont to ship radioactive waste to Texas. The two states will pay Texas $55 million for long-term storage of their refuse.
Bush was traveling Wednesday but had designated Gonzales as his representative on the issue, said Bush spokeswoman Linda Edwards.
``Secretary of State Gonzales met with the delegation ... to hear their concerns and will relay those to the governor. Gov. Bush has met with a number of different officials from Mexico and discussed Sierra Blanca among other issues of common concern,'' she said.
Jeffrey Jones, a Mexican federal representative from Chihuahua, said of Bush, ``He's been very open with those groups that are in favor of the project, from what we've seen, but he hasn't been open with groups that are not in favor of this project.''
Jones said the group - which also wanted to meet with Bush in June but instead met with Gonzales - has again asked that Mexican congressmen get a meeting with the governor.
``The common-sense perspective on this whole thing is why is nuclear waste being transported from the Canadian border to the Mexican border? ... If it's so safe, why not leave it where it is?'' he asked.
Gonzales said Bush supports Texas' policy of ``a single, well-monitored site to store low-level waste instead of the 650 or more sites around the state.''
``If the proposed site in Sierra Blanca is determined to be safe by the commissioners of the TNRCC, he will support it. If the commissioners conclude the site is not safe, he will not support it and will ask the Legislature to revisit how the state of Texas should properly dispose of its low-level waste.''
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