[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 20 (Tuesday, January 30, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3058-3059]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-1679]



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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 40-3453]


Atlas Corporation; Draft Environmental Impact Statement

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), in cooperation 
with the National Park Service (NPS), U.S. Department of Interior, has 
published a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) regarding the 
proposed reclamation by Atlas Corporation (Atlas) of an existing 
uranium mill tailings pile near Moab, Utah. This DEIS describes and 
evaluates the potential environmental impacts of approving Atlas' 
request to amend its existing NRC License No. SUA-917 to reclaim the 
tailings pile in place. Based on the evaluations in this DEIS, the NRC 
staff's preliminary conclusion is that the Atlas proposal is acceptable 
with respect to environmental costs and benefits.
    The NRC has also published a Draft Technical Evaluation Report 
(DTER) evaluating the proposed reclamation with respect to appropriate 
NRC safety regulations, primarily Appendix A of 10 CFR, Part 40. Until 
and unless open issues identified in geology, seismology, geotechnical 
engineering, erosion protection, water resources protection, and radon 
attenuation are adequately resolved, NRC will not approve the proposed 
reclamation plan.

DATES: A public meeting on the DEIS and DTER will be held at Star Hall 
in Moab, Utah, on Wednesday, February 28, 1996, at 6:30 in the evening. 
Written comments on either document should be received at the address 
listed below 

[[Page 3059]]
within 60 days from the date of this notice.

ADDRESSES: A free single copy of the DEIS (NUREG-1531) and DTER (NUREG-
1532) may be requested by those considering public comment by writing 
to the NRC Publications Section, ATTN: Superintendent of Documents, 
U.S. Government Printing Office, P.O. Box 37082, Washington, DC 20013-
7082. A copy of each document is also available for inspection and/or 
copying in the NRC Public Document Room, 2120 L St. NW, Washington, DC.
    Any interested party may submit comments on these documents for 
consideration by the staff. Consistent with its past commitments, NRC 
is extending the comment period 15 days beyond the required minimum of 
45 days. To be certain of consideration, comments on these reports must 
be received within 60 days from the date of this notice. Comments 
received after the due date will be considered to the extent practical. 
Comments on either document should be sent to Chief, High-Level Waste 
and Uranium Recovery Projects Branch, Mail Stop TWFN 7-J9, Division of 
Waste Management, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Myron Fliegel, High-Level Waste 
and Uranium Recovery Projects Branch, Mail Stop TWFN 7-J9, Division of 
Waste Management, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555. Telephone 
301/415-6629.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The NRC, in cooperation with the NPS, has 
prepared a DEIS regarding the administrative action of approving an 
amendment to Atlas' NRC license authorizing reclamation of uranium mill 
tailings at the existing site near Moab, Utah. The uranium mill no 
longer operates and is currently being dismantled. The nearby 9.52-
million-metric-ton (10.5-million-ton), 52.6-ha (130-acre), uranium mill 
tailings pile needs to be stabilized for long-term disposal. The DEIS 
describes the evaluation concerning (1) the purpose of and need for the 
proposed action, evaluated under NEPA and the agencies' implementing 
regulations, (2) alternatives considered, (3) existing environmental 
conditions, and (4) environmental consequences of the proposed action 
and proposed mitigating measures.
    Three alternatives were evaluated. Atlas' proposal (Alternative 1) 
is to reclaim the tailings pile for permanent disposal and long-term 
custodial care by a government agency in its current location near 
Moab, prepare the 162-ha (400-acre) site for closure, and depart the 
site after having its NRC license terminated.
    Under Alternative 2, Atlas would transport all of the tailings and 
other contaminated material to an alternate site. The DEIS considers 
the Plateau site, located approximately 29 km (18 mi) northwest of 
Moab, as the primary alternate site. The DEIS considers several 
alternatives for transporting the tailings to the alternate site.
    Under the no-action alternative (Alternative 3), the NRC would make 
no licensing decision, and Atlas would cease operations involving 
management of the tailings. Because this alternative would not comply 
with regulations and is not environmentally acceptable, it is not 
evaluated in detail in this DEIS.
    As documented in the DEIS, the NRC's preliminary conclusion is that 
Atlas' proposal (reclamation on site) is acceptable with respect to 
environmental costs and benefits. Alternative 2 (transport to and 
stabilization at an alternate site) would result in some advantages 
(primarily by freeing the current site near the Colorado River for 
other uses and eliminating the potential for impacts to the Colorado 
River) and disadvantages (primarily related to the transport of 
tailings to a new site and the longer period of construction) compared 
to Alternative 1. Alternative 2 would be considerably more expensive 
than Alternative 1.
    The NRC has also prepared a DTER that evaluates Atlas' proposed 
reclamation of the uranium mill tailings with respect to NRC safety 
regulations. NRC regulations applicable to reclamation of uranium 
tailings are primarily in Part 40 of 10 CFR, with specific technical 
criteria appearing in Appendix A. The DTER is organized by the 
technical disciplines involved in the assessment of the proposed 
reclamation, but also provides a criterion by criterion evaluation of 
Atlas' proposed reclamation with respect to Appendix A. The NRC review 
identified 20 issues in geology, seismology, geotechnical engineering, 
erosion protection, water resources protection, and radon attenuation 
that preclude the NRC from concluding that the applicable regulations 
would be met under Atlas' proposed reclamation. Atlas can provide 
further information to try to resolve these issues.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 24th day of January 1996.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Joseph J. Holonich,
Chief, High-Level Waste and Uranium Recovery Projects Branch, Division 
of Waste Management, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 96-1679 Filed 1-29-96; 8:45 am]
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