could be called ultimately final standards, is an exploration of alternative stabilization and disposal methods. It is a fact that at this time we do not have a single uranium milltailings pile that has been successfully stabilized or disposed of. The experience we will gain in working with the inactive uranium milltailings will be invaluable. The present innovative licensing requirements that NRC is implementing will provide further useful information. It may be several years before all the answers are in. We are assured, however, from our discussion with NRC that provision can be made for a continuity of the licensing process during this time. We are convinced that the involved Federal agencies are similarly dedicated to resolving this matter. We are indeed pleased to be able to make this statement. Mr. DINGELL. The committee thanks you for a very helpful statement. Gentlemen, the Chair will now recognize counsel, Mr. Finnegan, for the purpose of asking questions. Mr. FINNEGAN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Before going into the specifics of this bill, I wanted to harken back to previous testimony of Mr. Hendrie on the assistance part of this legislation. I think you will recall that the NRC and EPA, as well as GAO, testified previously that this is a responsibility of the Federal Government and it would be very difficult to pin this responsibility on the operators for cleaning up these inactive tailings, is that correct? Mr. HENDRIE. At the inactive sites we discussed in connection with the previous bill to clean up those 22-odd sites, I believe that is correct, Mr. Finnegan. Mr. FINNEGAN. What puzzles me a little bit about this issue is that the chairman recently received, a letter from the Union Carbide Corp. in which they attached to it a copy of an agreement called a joint Federal agency position regarding control of uranium milltailings and it is signed by your predecessor, the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, by the Assistant Secretary of HEW and the Assistant Secretary of the Interior. It was dated in 1966 at a time when EPA was part of the Interior Department-the Federal Water Pollution Control Agency. That agreement discusses the tailings piles and in the second paragraph specifically states: "Planning, management, stabilization and containment of tailing piles are viewed as being the responsibility of the individual mill owners.' [Testimony resumes on p. 380.] [The full text of the agreement and related correspondence follows:] COPY AGREEMENT JOINT FEDERAL AGENCY POSITION REGARDING CONTROL OF COPY The Federal Water Pollution Control Administration, the Public Health Service, and the Atomic Energy Commission agree that inactive tailings piles resulting from uranium milling operations should be structurally stabilized and contained to prevent water and wind erosion. Active tailings piles should be managed to minimize such erosion during use. Planning, management, stabilization and containment of tailings piles are viewed as being the responsibility of the individual mill owners. Mill owners should develop, without undue delay, specific plans for accomplishing such management, stabilization and containment, and submit such plans through the appropriate state regulatory agencies for approval. The staffs of the Federal Water Pollution Control Administration, the Public Health Service, and the Atomic Energy Commission will be available to the state regulatory agencies, upon request, to provide advice and assistance regarding the development of pile stabilization and containment objectives and measures for achieving them. : Compliance by mill owners with approved plans for stabilization and containment should be recognized as constituting fulfillment of mill owner responsibility with regard to such tailings piles. Obtaining and enforcement of tallings piles stabilization and containment plans should rest initially with the states concerned. R. L. FOLK MAN SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT UNION CARBIDE CORPORATION METALS DIVISION 270 PARK AVENUE, NEW YORK. N. Y. 10017 July 10, 1978 The Honorable John D. Dingell Chairman, Subcommittee on Energy and Power of the Dear Mr. Dingell: This is further to our June 12, 1978 reply to your letter of June 6, 1978 regarding H. R. 12535 and H. R. 11698, companion bills establishing remedial action programs for several uranium mill tailings sites, and specifically responds to the following questions you asked: a. The use now made of these sites and adjacent property as well as the b. The extent of ownership or control of these sites and other uranium c. The number of acres involved. Union Carbide at one time operated milling facilities at some of the sites mentioned in the bills and presently owns or controls five sites in Utah and Colorado. Replies to the above questions concerning these sites follow: Green River, Utah The tailings area is not presently used nor is any use planned for the future. Use of the adjacent property is limited to storage sites south and east of the tailings on 80 acres leased to the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers. Union Carbide is currently negotiating with the Army for the sale of these 80 acres. No future use is planned for the remaining adjacent property. Union Carbide owns the tailings site, comprising approximately 9 acres, and the adjacent 240 acres in fee. Maybell, Colorado The tailings area is not presently used nor, to our knowledge, is any future use planned. The adjacent property is presently being mined and used for a heap leaching operation that will continue until approximately 1981. Use after cessation of this operation will be governed by the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board. The reclamation plan submitted includes an off-road recreation vehicle area to the west of the tailings area and the remainder to rangeland and wildlife values. Union Carbide does not own or control the tailings area. The tailings are on unpatented mining claims which were quit claimed to the original owners in 1970. Union Carbide controls the adjacent property, consisting of approximately 2,000 acres. Rifle, Colorado (old) The tailings area is not being used at the present time nor is any future use planned. Similarly, no use is being made of the adjacent property nor is any planned for the future. Union Carbide owns the tailings area, approximately 10 acres, and adjacent property, approximately 11 acres, in fee. Rifle, Colorado (new) The tailings area is not presently being used. The adjacent area is presently occupied by a plant processing vanadium and this use will continue in the future. The tailings area consists of approximately 32 acres and the adjacent property, approximately 240 acres, both owned by Union Carbide in fee. Slick Rock, Colorado (Union Carbide Site) The tailings area is not being used at the present time and no use is planned for the future. A portion of the adjacent property is being used by a natural gas treatment plant. A small housing and trailer court area is also located on property more remote from the tailings site. No other future use is planned. Union Carbide controls the tailings area (approximately 19 acres) and adjoining 320 acres by unpatented mill site claims and in fee. Slick Rock, Colorado (North Continent Site) The tailings area and adjacent property are not being used at the present time nor is any use planned for the future. Union Carbide owns the tailings area (approximately 6 acres) and adjoining 154 acres in fee. Your letter of June 6, 1978 also requested our comments concerning several questions asked in your June 5, 1978 letter to Under-Secretary Myers. We have noted the Department of Energy's response to those questions and would further comment as follows: 6 (a) Please explain why the United States should assume "compassionate Reply: We concur in the response of DOE regarding its lack of authority to require clean up by the owners and would add that the tailings were generated as a direct result of an entirely federal program for the benefit of the United States as a whole. It then seems logical that the United States should pay the major share, if not the whole cost, of any required remedial action. 6 (b) What studies and legal opinions have been made by the DOE or the former Reply: We agree entirely with DOE's reply that "the owners had no obligation thereunder. The contracts contained no provisions to require mill tailings stabilization." We would also emphasize that at the time when the contracts were written, there was no recognition of a potential health hazard associated with the tailings. In 1965, AEC, Public Health Service (HEW), and the Federal Water Pollution Control Administration (Department of Interior) expressed concern over the possible erosion of inactive uranium mill tailings piles but questioned their individual authorities to take action. The problem was resolved in Colorado when Union Carbide and other uranium mill operators and the Colorado Department of Public Health cooperatively drafted regulations requiring the stabilization of uranium and thorium mill tailings (See Attachment A). Prior to their adoption, these regulations were submitted to AEC,. HEW and Interior by the Colorado Department of Health. AEC, HEW and Interior then jointly agreed (see Attachment B) that inactive tailings piles should be structurally stabilized and contained to prevent wind and water erosion and mill owners were required to submit plans to the appropriate state regulatory agencies. The federal agencies agreed that "Compliance by mill owners with approved plans for stabilization and containment should be recognized as constituting fulfillment of mill owner responsibility with regard to such tailings piles." Owners of the sites then proceeded, at their own expense, to stabilize and contain the piles to comply with the Colorado regulation. Although similar regulations were discussed with the State of Utah, no such regulation was promulgated. Union Carbide, however, voluntarily stabilized its Green River, Utah, tailings pile according to Colorado criteria. Accordingly, we do not believe Union Carbide and other owners are further obligated to participate in additional remedial action. |