Domenici said Tuesday night in a statement that money for continued study of the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator had been scrapped as part of negotiations over funding a bill for the Department of Energy.
"The focus will now be with the Defense Department and its research to earth penetrating technology using conventional weaponry," Domenici, who has been a supporter of the nuclear bunker buster, said in a statement.
Negotiators working on the bill tossed the $4 million provision to continue the research, a sigh of relief for downwinders and environmentalists worried that more study could lead to testing the weapon on U.S. soil.
"We hope this signifies a long-term commitment to avoid a nuclear catastrophe and the creation of a second-generation of downwinders," said Vanessa Pierce, program director of the advocacy group, Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah.
The House had approved its version of the bill without funding for the program, but the Senate approved the funding, a sticking point for those negotiating the final version. The move to remove the funding comes at the request of the National Nuclear Security Administration, which has been the driving force behind the bunker buster. It is unclear why the chief proponent of the funding withdrew its request.
This is the second year the funding has been dropped from the bill during negotiations.
Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, praised the decision.
"It's great news for everybody in Utah," Matheson said. "A new nuclear weapon means more nuclear weapon tests and I don't think we ever want to do down that road again."
Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said through a spokesman late Tuesday that he has always voted to find the best way to "deal with these deeply buried bunkers" and if the National Nuclear Security Administration "believes this can be accomplished through conventional weapons, all the better."
tburr@sltrib.com
