Opening and operating the nation's first nuclear waste dump will cost more than $90 billion, an Energy Department official said. The price was $58 billion in 2001, the last time the administration released an estimate for the Yucca Mountain project in Nevada. The estimate includes $9 billion already spent and covers about 100 years of operation until the dump is sealed forever. Ward Sproat, the official in charge of the project, said at a Congressional hearing that the best-case situation would result in the Yucca Mountain site opening in 2020; originally it was supposed to open in 1998.

Hundreds of pounds of garbage has washed onto Lake Michigan shores in recent days, leading to an investigation by the Coast Guard and the temporary closing of a public beach. Trash was strewn along a 10-mile stretch in Mason and Manistee Counties in the northwestern Lower Peninsula. Piles up to eight inches high were reported at a beach in the city of Manistee. Garbage also washed onto private beaches in Holland, more than 100 miles south of Manistee. The trash in Mason and Manistee Counties included medical waste like prescription drug bottles and hypodermic syringes, the authorities said.

MARGAO, JULY 14 - The Fatorda Block Congress Committee has said it would support local residents against the Sonsodo dump yard and urged Chief Minister, Digambar Kamat to ensure there's no further delay in starting work on a proper solid waste management plant at the dumping site.

By Basavaraj Itnaal, DH News Service, Bangalore: To cut costs while increasing service delivery, the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) in its new garbage contracts has authorised contractors to collect service charges from hotels, choultries and other major commercial establishments. Though the terms of the existing contracts require the contractors to clear garbage from all commercial establishments, commercial activity has grown much faster than the projected rate.

When it comes to a colony's livability index, garbage matters, or rather the disposal of it. Rating the amenities provided by civic agencies in colonies, most residents stressed on the importance of cleanliness. In the

CALANGUTE, JULY 10

Kolar, DHNS: Revenue Department will soon set in motion the process to acquire 650 acres of land required for implementation of Yaragol project. A sum of Rs 13 crore will be released to the Department within a week in this behalf.

Pune July 06 The decision to impose fines and initiate legal proceedings is taken to dissuade builders who dump debris into the rivers, says municipal commissioner

Clad in a sensible cotton salwar-kameez, sporting silver and black sneakers, she is a powerhouse. She knows what she wants and does it.

She makes sure waste doesn't go to waste and re-uses it to create things of beauty. Her main aim is to "ensure every rag-picker gets his share of a monthly salary of Rs 3,500 to survive".

Civic authorities here are mulling approaching the Siliguri Municipal Corporation (SMC) for permission to use its open dump yard behind Don Bosco School on Eastern Bypass, as garbage accumulates on the streets of the hill town. Although the proposal looks impractical to implement given the distance of 65km between the two towns, what it does suggest is that the civic officials are desperate to find a solution to the garbage crisis that has been lingering for long. The row has also put at risk the health of thousands of people.