The ore may have arrived tidy, contained in plastic bags and packed metal containers, but state regulators acknowledged Friday the public relations around the ore has been rather messy, often leaving people concerned and confused.
Department of Environmental Quality Director Dianne Nielson said she has asked regulators overseeing the White Mesa mill to do more to inform Utahns about future plans to recycle uranium at the site. The move was welcomed by Radiation Control Board members, some of whom also felt a bit left out of the loop on the Japan ore.
"I think the more people know about it and feel included, the better they feel about it," said Karen Langley, chairman of the radiation board, which had its meeting in Moab this month.
Nielson noted that the state could improve public involvement through the license amendment process, which International Uranium Corp. (IUC) must go through every time it wants to put "alternate feed" through the White Mesa mill. Alternate feed is basically milling leftovers called tailing that are recycled at White Mesa, one of only two operating uranium mills in the United States.
IUC has used nothing but alternate feed at its plant for six years. Until recently, uranium prices have been so low, there has been no demand for milling. But that appears to be changing as the price rises from under $9 several years ago to around $34 today.
Nielson said regulators will:
l Make it routine to provide updates on any license amendments.
l Keep a full record of amendment-related materials at libraries in Grand and San Juan counties.
l Include a hearing in the public review period for license amendments.
These moves would not have helped in the Japan flap. Under its state license, IUC needs special permission to process alternate feed - but not ore - and the 500 tons coming from Japan is ore.
Castle Valley resident Bob Lippman urged the board to undertake a broader look at the issue of radioactive material in Utah. He called the potential hazards of radioactive material "the big elephant in the room" that everyone seems to ignore.
Even before the U.S. Energy Department has removed a shovelful of contaminated uranium waste from the Atlas Corp. site north of Moab, people are talking about a "nuclear renaissance," he noted.
Meanwhile, the legacy of the past two booms includes more than a billion dollars worth of cleanups, thousands of sick uranium workers and energy and security policies that fall short.
These factors tell us "we have a lot of homework to do and a much larger spectrum of concerns to address," he said.
fahys@sltrib.com
And more may be coming from Oklahoma
The International Uranium Corp. has a request pending to process 32,000 tons of contaminated material from a cleanup of the Fansteel site in Muskogee, Okla. The company's mill at White Mesa, south of Blanding in southeastern Utah, would extract uranium and dispose of leftover material in containment ponds on site. The Utah Division of Radiation Control is taking public comment on the proposal through Dec. 2. More information about the proposal can be found at http://www.radiationcontrol.utah.gov/MILLS/IUCamend.pdf.
