Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz suggested a “new workable long-term goal” to manage nuclear waste at a hearing before the House Energy and Commerce Environment and the Economy Subcommittee on the grounds that disputes over Yucca Mountain – site of a proposed nuclear waste repository – are likely to persist for some time. “Moniz pushed back on the idea that the government would have difficulty finding communities willing to play host to the nation’s nuclear waste.” That sounds kind of implausible. [National Journal]

Moniz also told attendees of a Christian Science Monitor-hosted breakfast in Washington, DC that “there’s no war on coal”. President Obama called for carbon dioxide emissions limits on power plants during a speech last month that generated some concern in the coal industry, but Moniz said that the administration is still committed to an “all-of-the-above” approach to energy. “The Department of Energy aims to push down costs for all low-carbon energy technologies, not prioritize one fuel over another, Moniz said.” [Christian Science Monitor]

The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a hearing yesterday to discuss allegations of personnel misconduct at the Bonneville Power Administration, which generates electricity in the US Northwest. “Bonneville officials, according to a July 16 management alert report by the Department of Energy’s Office of Inspector General, engaged in ‘prohibited personnel practices’ in 65% — or 95 of 146 cases — of its competitive recruitments conducted from November 2010 through June 2012.” Apparently they also punished whistleblowers. [Fox News]