Janet P. Kotra, Las Vegas, NV: an interview by Danielle Endres, 10 April 2008

Transcript (28 pages) of an interview by Danielle Endres with Nuclear Regulatory Commission member Janet P. Kotra of Herman, Virginia,on 10 April 2008. Part of the Nuclear Technology Oral History Project, Everett Cooley Collection tape no. U-1867

Janet Kotra (b. 1955) of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission discusses the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste disposal site. A scientist with a PhD from the University of Maryland, Dr. Kotra was born in Tacoma Park, Maryland, and aside from living in Hawaii as a young woman and while pursuing her bachelor´s degree, has lived in the DC area for much of her life. Dr. Kotra´s interest in public policy and abiding sense of justice took her to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, where she spent her entire PhD career. Her husband is Indian, and his uncle was involved with the Indian independence movement, and Dr. Kotra feels particularly close to the ideals MK Gandhi espoused. Most of the interview deals with the function and history of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the independent watchdog arm of the federal nuclear establishment. She explores the relationship between the development arm, the Department of Energy, and her own regulatory body, and its roots in the Atomic Energy Commission. The interview spells out in great detail the NRC´s duties, moral compass as Dr. Kotra sees it, and the commission´s commitment to working with stakeholders, including Native American tribal governments, whether on the Yucca Mountain project or others. Project: Nuclear Technology. Interviewer: Danielle Endres