Oregon Public Broadcasting

Civic leaders in Richland, Washington are expressing frustration with the Obama Administration.

Especially, its decision to abandon Nevada's Yucca Mountain as a nuclear storage facility.

The administration has appointed a blue ribbon commission to determine where to store the nation's nuclear waste.

One group from the Tri-Cities is getting close to filing a lawsuit against the federal government.

At a press conference Monday Gary Petersen says the people of southeast Washington have been promised that Hanford's waste would go somewhere safe.

Gary Petersen: "In 1983 Ben Rushche, and I think he was assistant secretary for Energy, said I will have Yucca Mountain open in 1990 and it will be accepting your waste from Washington Public Power Supply System. Here we are how many every years later that is -- 37 -- and we still don't have it."

Petersen, and two other leaders from the Tri-Cities, say the government will waste billions of dollars if it abandons Yucca Mountain and the Obama Administration has no Plan "B."

A South Carolina county also announced it's filing suit against the federal government over the same issue.