RENO, Nev. (AP) — A federal judge in Nevada says she's unlikely to decide before next month whether to block the U.S. Energy Department from shipping a metric ton of weapons-grade plutonium from South Carolina to a nuclear security site north of Las Vegas.
U.S. District Judge Miranda Du expressed sympathy for the state's argument during an evidentiary hearing Thursday in Reno that the federal government has failed to complete an adequate environmental review necessary to ship the radioactive material to Nevada.
But she refused to immediately grant the state's request for a temporary injunction blocking the move and agreed to allow Justice Department lawyers to file additional briefs on behalf of the Energy Department.
She also wants to review a pending motion by the state of South Carolina due by the end of this month to transfer the case back to South Carolina where a federal judge has ordered the plutonium removed from the Savannah River reservation by Jan. 1, 2020.