[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 237 (Friday, December 10, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69241-69242]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-32053]



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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY


Identification of Preferred Alternatives for the Department of 
Energy's Waste Management Program: Low-Level Waste and Mixed Low-Level 
Waste Disposal Sites

AGENCY: Department of Energy (DOE).

ACTION: Notice of Preferred Alternatives.

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SUMMARY: DOE's Final Waste Management Programmatic Environmental Impact 
Statement (WM PEIS) identified preferred alternatives for disposal of 
low-level waste (LLW) and mixed low-level waste (MLLW) as regional 
disposal at two or three sites to be selected from six candidate sites. 
(As used here and in the WM PEIS, ``regional disposal'' refers to using 
only a few disposal sites for a much larger number of waste generating 
sites.) The six candidate sites were: the Hanford Site in Washington, 
the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL), 
the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) in New Mexico, the Nevada 
Test Site (NTS), the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR) in Tennessee, and the 
Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina. As committed to in the WM 
PEIS, this Notice identifies the specific sites the Department prefers 
for regional disposal of LLW and MLLW.
    For the management of LLW analyzed in the WM PEIS, DOE prefers 
regional disposal at Hanford and NTS. In addition, consistent with 
current practice, LLW disposal operations at LANL, ORR, INEEL and SRS 
would continue, to the extent practicable. LANL and ORR would continue 
disposal of LLW generated on-site. INEEL and SRS would continue to 
dispose of LLW generated on-site or by the Naval Nuclear Propulsion 
Program.
    For the management of MLLW analyzed in the WM PEIS, the Department 
prefers regional disposal at Hanford and NTS.
    DOE will issue a Record of Decision for LLW and MLLW disposal no 
sooner than 30 days after publication of this Notice.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Copies of the Final WM PEIS and this Notice 
are available in DOE public reading rooms and selected libraries 
located across the United States; the WM PEIS also is available on the 
internet at www.osti.gov/bridge (select Advanced Search; under Select 
Field, choose Identifying Number, then key in ``DOE/EIS-0200-F''). A 
list of the public reading rooms can be accessed on the internet at 
http://www.em.doe.gov/em30/. To request copies of the WM PEIS, this 
Notice, or a list of the reading rooms and public libraries, contact: 
The Center for Environmental Management Information, PO Box 23769, 
Washington, DC 20026-3769, phone number 1-800-736-3282 (in Washington, 
D.C., 202-863-5084).
    For further information on the WM PEIS, or this Notice, contact: 
Ms. Karen Guevara, WM PEIS Program Manager, U.S. Department of Energy, 
Office of Environmental Management, 19901 Germantown Road, Germantown, 
MD 20874, 301-903-4981.
    For general information on DOE's National Environmental Policy Act 
(NEPA) process, contact: Ms. Carol M. Borgstrom, Director, Office of 
NEPA Policy and Assistance (EH-42), U.S. Department of Energy, Office 
of Environment, Safety and Health, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW, 
Washington, DC 20585-0119, 202-586-4600, or leave a message at 1-800-
472-2756.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    DOE analyzed alternatives for low-level waste (LLW) and mixed low-
level waste (MLLW) treatment and disposal in the Final Waste Management 
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (DOE/EIS-0200) (WM PEIS) 
(Chapters 7 and 6, respectively). DOE prepared the WM PEIS under the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq., and 
issued the Final WM PEIS in May 1997.
    For LLW and MLLW treatment and disposal, the Final WM PEIS 
identified preferred alternatives as required under Council on 
Environmental Quality regulations implementing NEPA, in accordance with 
criteria established (after considering public comments) in Section 
1.7.3 of the Final WM PEIS. For LLW and MLLW treatment, the Final WM 
PEIS identified specific site preferences. However, for LLW and MLLW 
disposal, the Final WM PEIS did not identify specific site preferences. 
As a result, DOE is issuing this Notice of Preferred Alternatives to 
identify specific LLW and MLLW disposal site preferences.
    Neither this Notice of Preferred Alternatives nor the subsequent 
Record of Decision will address or limit treatment or disposal of DOE 
waste at commercial facilities; nor will either affect individual, 
site-specific cleanup decisions on where to dispose of remediation 
wastes that are not in the waste management program. The Record of 
Decision for LLW and MLLW will name both treatment and disposal sites, 
whereas the Notice of Preferred Alternatives focuses only on disposal 
sites.
    The Final WM PEIS identified DOE's preferred alternative for LLW 
treatment as performing minimum treatment (as defined in the WM PEIS) 
of LLW at all sites that generate LLW. For MLLW treatment, DOE's 
preferred alternative is to regionally treat MLLW at the Hanford Site 
in Washington, the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental 
Laboratory (INEEL), the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR) in Tennessee, and 
the Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina, or on-site, consistent 
with Site Treatment Plans issued under the Federal Facilities 
Compliance Act, Pub. L. 102-386.
    The Final WM PEIS also identified DOE's preferred alternatives for 
LLW and MLLW disposal as regional disposal at two or three disposal 
sites, to be selected from the six candidate sites at which DOE 
currently disposes of LLW or MLLW: the Hanford Site, INEEL, the Los 
Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) in New Mexico, the Nevada Test Site 
(NTS), ORR, and SRS. This Notice identifies the specific sites DOE 
prefers for regional disposal of LLW and MLLW.*
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    \*\ After the Final WM PEIS was issued in May 1997, DOE issued 
``Accelerating Cleanup: Paths to Closure.'' In that document, DOE 
provided estimates of waste volumes that would result from the 
planned operations and accelerated cleanup processes at DOE sites. 
Because some of the estimates differed from those provided in the WM 
PEIS, DOE examined the LLW and MLLW volumes to determine if the 
updated volume estimates constitute significant new information 
relevant to environmental concerns that would warrant preparation of 
a supplemental EIS or a new PEIS. This examination extended only to 
LLW and MLLW volumes, because the transuranic, hazardous and high-
level waste volume estimates did not change from those analyzed in 
the Final WM PEIS.
    The preferred disposal site alternatives were chosen based on 
factors that would not be affected by these changed waste volume 
estimates. Waste volume considerations could have influenced the 
choice of preferred disposal site alternatives only if the estimated 
volume of LLW, the estimated volume of MLLW, or the expected 
nationwide distribution of waste had changed dramatically, none of 
which occurred. Therefore, DOE has concluded that its decisionmaking 
process for LLW and MLLW disposal can proceed without preparing a 
supplemental EIS or a new PEIS.
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Preferred Alternative for LLW Disposal Sites

    DOE's preferred alternative for LLW disposal is to establish 
regional LLW disposal at two DOE sites: Hanford and NTS. Specifically, 
Hanford and NTS would each dispose of its own LLW on-site, and would 
receive and dispose of LLW that is generated and shipped from other 
sites and meets the waste

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acceptance criteria. (Use of the term ``regional'' would not impose 
geographical restrictions on which DOE sites could ship LLW to Hanford 
or NTS for disposal.) In addition, disposal operations at INEEL, LANL, 
ORR, and SRS would continue, consistent with current practice and to 
the extent practicable. LANL and ORR would continue disposal of LLW 
generated on-site. INEEL and SRS would continue to dispose of LLW 
generated on-site or by the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program. DOE's 
current preferred alternative for LLW disposal is a combination of the 
preferred LLW disposal alternative identified in the Final WM PEIS 
(i.e., regionalized disposal at two DOE sites--Hanford and NTS) and the 
Decentralized Alternative described in the Final WM PEIS (on-site 
disposal of on-site generated LLW--INEEL, LANL, ORR, and SRS).

Preferred Alternative for MLLW Disposal Sites

    The Department's preferred alternative for MLLW disposal is to 
establish regional MLLW disposal operations at two DOE sites: Hanford 
and NTS. Specifically, Hanford and NTS would each dispose of its own 
MLLW on-site, and would receive and dispose of MLLW generated and 
shipped by other sites, consistent with permit conditions and other 
applicable requirements. Therefore, DOE's current preferred alternative 
for MLLW disposal is the preferred MLLW disposal alternative identified 
in the Final WM PEIS.

Factors Used to Identify Preferred Alternatives for LLW and MLLW 
Disposal Sites

    In identifying the preferred alternatives announced today, DOE 
considered the following factors, among others (a more complete list is 
presented in Volume I, Section 1.7.3 of the WM PEIS):
     DOE's mission to safely and efficiently dispose of wastes.
     Environmental impacts, including health impacts on workers 
and the public.
     Distribution of waste management facilities in ways that 
are considered equitable.
     Overall implementation cost.
     Flexibility of implementation.
     Transportation.
    In addition to the factors presented in the Final WM PEIS, DOE also 
considered the subsequent comments of stakeholders in identifying the 
preferred alternatives announced in this Notice. DOE received these 
comments as part of a consultative process it has engaged in with 
States, Tribal governments, regulators, and other stakeholders since 
the Final WM PEIS was issued. The preferred alternatives announced 
today for LLW and MLLW disposal sites are among the options discussed 
with stakeholders, including on the following occasions:
     National Governors' Association's Federal Facilities 
Compliance Task Force meetings in March and October 1998.
     National Association of Attorneys General's DOE Workgroup 
meetings in April and December 1998.
     Intersite Discussions on Nuclear Material and Waste 
convened by the League of Women Voters Education Fund in June 1998.
     Transportation External Coordination Working Group in July 
1998 and January 1999.
     LLW Seminar sponsored by the Nevada Citizens' Advisory 
Board in August 1998.
     State and Tribal Government Working Group meetings in 
October 1998 and April 1999.
     LLW Forum in October 1998.
     Environmental Management Advisory Board in October 1998.
     National Council of State Legislators Roundtable 
Discussion in September 1999.
    Through this process, the Department received comments on factors 
to consider in its decisionmaking process. This public input focused on 
transportation, site conditions, cost effectiveness, and waste/
materials consolidation. In summary, the comments suggested that DOE 
should:
     Address urgent risks.
     Seek to minimize transportation of nuclear waste and 
materials.
     Pursue consolidation of nuclear waste and materials only 
as needed to address risk and to allow for site closures.
     Consider each site's suitability and surrounding 
population in deciding which sites should receive wastes.
     Consider cost effectiveness in deciding which sites should 
receive waste.
     Compensate receiving communities for receiving other 
sites' wastes.
     Continue ongoing discussions with the public about 
radioactive waste and material issues, including transportation routes 
and implementation.

Decision Process for LLW and MLLW Disposal Sites

    This Notice fulfills a commitment DOE made in the WM PEIS, Volume 
I, Section 3.7, to announce which specific LLW and MLLW disposal sites 
it prefers at least 30 days before making decisions on disposal sites. 
DOE will issue a Record of Decision for LLW and MLLW treatment and 
disposal no sooner than 30 days after publication of this Notice.

    Issued in Washington, DC, this 5th day of December, 1999.
Carolyn L. Huntoon,
Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management.
[FR Doc. 99-32053 Filed 12-9-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P