Utahns will have a chance to comment on the proposal at a hearing Tuesday.

Public testimony is required before the state Division of Radiation Control (DRC) finalizes its preliminary license for Envirocare to expand its hazardous and low-level radioactive waste landfill from 543 acres by an additional 536 acres immediately north. Assuming regulators see no health or safety reason to deny the license, the Legislature and Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. would have to give a political stamp of approval before the license is granted.

"Quite simply, it's for the [proposed] capital improvements at this time," said Envirocare spokesman Mark Walker. "To put new equipment on the part of our site that's already licensed would take up disposal space."

Envirocare has said it has enough landfill capacity to accept low-level radioactive and hazardous waste for up to 20 years. Still, the license application opens the door for the mile-square site to add disposal in the new area, as well as receiving and storing waste.

All that would be needed for additional disposal - assuming lawmakers and the governor sign off - would be a letter from Dane Finerfrock, the state director of Radiation Control who also serves as executive secretary of the advisory Radiation Control Board.

Walker said Envirocare will ask the Legislature to pre-approve disposal even before Finerfrock reviews specific plans for it. That way, Envirocare will only have to return to state regulators to get approval for the expansion.

"We're just doing the whole ball of wax" with the Legislature, said Walker. "We'll go back to the DRC for [final approval of new] disposal."

Finerfrock said he would require Envirocare to provide more technical data before it can build landfill cells on the new acreage.

The company plans to upgrade rail lines and the waste-delivery equipment on it, add a compactor and shredder, and construct a new administration building.

The Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah [HEAL] opposes the expansion.

"At some point, we as a state have to ask when we are ready to walk away from taking the nation's nuclear waste," said HEAL Director Jason Groenewold.

Envirocare is one of three sites in the United States that are licensed to take commercial low-level radioactive waste. The Washington state site is limited to taking waste from nine states, including Utah.

And a South Carolina facility is set to close its doors to all but three states in 2008. That leaves Envirocare as a solution for much of the commercial radioactive waste, which comes from nuclear power plants primarily, as well as from medical and research facilities. The Utah facility also counts on federal cleanup waste for about half of its revenue.

Groenewold pointed out that last year Envirocare also fought the addition of a new disposal facility in Utah, on the same land it's expanding to, by arguing the market for radioactive waste disposal was declining.

At that time, the acreage was owned by a would-be rival, former Envirocare President Charles Judd. Envirocare's new owners acquired the expansion area when they bought 18-year-old Envirocare Jan. 31.

Groenewold criticized a state regulatory process for controlled material that would allow the company to get an OK from political leaders before the disposal expansion plan is thoroughly vetted.

"They are asking the Legislature and the governor to approve a [technical assessment] when the actual steps have not been completed," he said. "So, they are putting the cart before the horse."

Public comment will be taken at the Radiation Control Division through Aug. 17. So far, 18 comments have been received by the agency.

fahys@sltrib.com