Alliance in Utah aims to get vocal

A powerful group of Utah religious, civic and business leaders unexpectedly weighed in on a hot political issue for the first time this past week, but it likely won't be the last.

Signaling a shift from its stated mission, the Alliance for Unity released a statement on Monday in opposition to the state receiving higher levels of nuclear waste. Hotter waste, the group said, would pose a danger to the community.

Executive director Elder Alexander Morrison, an emeritus member of the Quorums of the Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, acknowledged the alliance's stepping out from its founding purpose as "perhaps an evolution."

And he expects the alliance to speak out on other "major public policy" issues, though he says it will be "very selective."

"We don't want to get into partisan politics," Morrison said. "It would kill the organization within 10 minutes. We're not interested in that. No one in the organization is interested in that."

Some of Utah's most influential residents, including Jon M. Huntsman Sr., Salt Lake Mayor Rocky Anderson, Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve of the LDS Church, Catholic Bishop George Niederauer, Episcopal Bishop Carolyn Tanner Irish and banker Spencer F. Eccles make up the 19-member Alliance for Unity.

Huntsman and Anderson formed the group 2 1/2 years ago to bridge the divide between Utah's religious communities, political parties and ethnic groups. It stuck to that role in the bitter Main Street Plaza issue, acting as a catalyst as the city ultimately agreed to relinquish an easement on the plaza in exchange for the church's participation in creating a community center on the west side.

Alliance member Jay Shelledy, former Salt Lake Tribune editor, said outgoing University of Utah President Bernie Machen raised the hotter nuclear waste issue a couple of months ago, but the group did not decide to take a public stance at that time.

Shelledy said the statement opens up new territory.

"We turned a little bit of a corner and a right one. I think it's the right move," he said.

Morrison said he drafted the nuclear waste news release and brought the issue to the group's monthly meeting on Monday on his own. He said his interest in radioactive waste stemmed from 30 years at the health department in Canada where it was a concern.

A discussion ensued, and the panel voted unanimously to issue its statement.

"In the interest of a united community, we felt we should speak up about it," Morrison said. "We didn't see this as an issue of partisanship. We think nine out of 10 Utahns, regardless of what political party they belong to, don't want that stuff in this state."