[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 73 (Friday, April 15, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-9104]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: April 15, 1994]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 40-8584]

 

Kennecott Uranium Co.; Sweetwater Uranium Mill

AGENCY: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of intent to amend Source Material License SUA-1350 to 
authorize disposal of additional byproduct material at Kennecott 
Uranium Company's Sweetwater Mill.

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1. Proposed Action

    By letter dated July 21, 1993, Kennecott Uranium Company, Holder of 
Source Material License SUA-1350, for the Sweetwater Uranium Mill, 
requested an amendment to their license to allow for disposal of 
byproduct material from U.S. Energy's Green Mountain Ion Exchange 
(GMIX) facility, which is being decommissioned. The Sweetwater Mill has 
not operated since 1983 and is currently in a standby status. Under the 
current license, discharge to the tailings impoundment is limited to 
byproduct material in the form of debris generated by routine site 
maintenance. Since byproduct material from the GMIX facility is not 
debris from routine site maintenance, Kennecott has requested an 
amendment to the license to allow for disposal of this material.
    Kennecott proposes to dispose of about 12,000 tons of material. 
Compared to the existing storage capacity in the Sweetwater tailings 
impoundment of about 1.8 million tons, this volume is insignificant.
    Kennecott tested the GMIX material as per the RCRA Toxicity 
Characteristic Leaching Procedure. This testing determined that the 
materials are not hazardous wastes. Kennecott also performed 
radiological testing of the material to be placed in the tailings 
system. These tests showed a maximum Ra-226 concentration of 8.6 
picocuries per gram (pCi/g). This compares with a Ra-226 concentration 
in the Sweetwater tailings impoundment of about 64.3 pCi/g. Since the 
Ra-226 concentration of the sludges is much lower than the 
concentration in the impoundment, it is concluded that the impact of 
disposing of material from the GMIX facility will be insignificant.
    Kennecott also provided a Disposal Plan which provides the details 
of how byproduct materials will be loaded, covered, transported, and 
disposed. In addition, Kennecott has a Standard Operating Procedure for 
reducing voids in materials placed in the tailings cell. Based on a 
review of the information provided by Kennecott, the NRC concludes that 
the disposal of byproduct material from the GMIX facility at the 
Sweetwater tailings impoundment will not result in significant impacts 
to either to the environment or to the public health and safety. 
Further, the proposed action is consistent with Criterion 2 of appendix 
A to 10 CFR part 40 to avoid proliferation of small waste disposal 
sites which would be necessary if disposal in the large tailings system 
were not authorized.
    Paragraph 10 CFR 51.22 (c)(11), categorically excludes the 
requirement for an environmental assessment for this licensing action. 
That paragraph states that categorical exclusion applies to the 
issuance of amendments to licenses for uranium mills provided that (1) 
there is no significant change in the types or significant increase in 
the amounts of any effluents that may be released offsite, (2) there is 
no significant increase in individual or cumulative occupational 
radiation exposure, (3) there is no significant construction impact, 
and (4) there is no significant increase in the potential for or 
consequences from radiological accidents.
    This licensing action meets these criteria as the proposed 
amendment will result in only a small increase in the byproduct 
material to be disposed of in the Sweetwater Tailings impoundment.

2. Notice of Intent to Amend License

    The licensee's request for a license amendment to authorize 
disposal of byproduct material from U.S. Energy's GMIX facility was 
noticed in the Federal Register on February 28, 1994 (59 FR 9502). This 
notice offered an opportunity to request a hearing pursuant to title 
10, Code of Federal Regulations, part 2, subpart L. This subpart 
permits interested parties to request a hearing within thirty (30) days 
of the publication of the notice. No requests were received; therefore, 
Source Material License SUA-1350 will be amended coincident with this 
Notice.

    Signed in Denver, Colorado this 5th day of April 1994.
Ramon E. Hall,
Director, Uranium Recovery Field Office.
[FR Doc. 94-9104 Filed 4-14-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-M