[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 218 (Tuesday, November 13, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63934-63935]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-22114]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 40-8905]
Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of
No Significant Impact for Cell 2 Expansion Reclamation Plan License
Amendment; Rio Algom Mining LLC, Ambrosia Lake, NM
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas McLaughlin, Project Manager,
Materials Decommissioning Branch, Division of Waste Management and
Environmental Protection, Office of Federal and State Materials and
Environmental Management Programs, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC, 20555. Telephone: (301) 415-5869; fax number: (301)
415-5369; e-mail: tgm@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) proposes to issue a license
amendment of Source Materials License No. SUA-1473 held by Rio Algom
Mining LLC (Rio Algom/the licensee), to approve a Cell 2 Expansion
Reclamation Plan for its uranium mill tailings site in Ambrosia Lake,
New Mexico. The NRC has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) for
this amendment in accordance with the requirements of 10 CFR Part 51,
and has concluded that a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) is
appropriate. The amendment will be issued following the publication of
this Notice.
The Ambrosia Lake site is in the Ambrosia Lake mining district of
New Mexico, 25 miles north of Grants, New Mexico. Rio Algom began
processing ore in 1958, and processed approximately 33 million tons of
ore through 1985. The site continued to be an active uranium production
facility through December 2002. Site reclamation activities commenced
in 1989 with some work on the top surface of the largest tailings cell.
There are three tailings/waste cells situated adjacent to each other at
the Rio Algom site: The large Tailings Cell 1, Tailings Cell 2 to the
west of Cell 1, and a small Cell 3 east of Cell 1 that was used to
dispose of contaminated windblown material. Reclamation of Cell 1 is
complete, and cover construction of Cells 2 and 3 is still ongoing.
Reclamation activities have at times included unlined evaporation pond
residue excavation and disposal, contaminated windblown soil cleanup,
tailings impoundment reclamation, surface water erosion protection
feature construction, and mill building demolition.
The licensee has indicated that this proposed cell expansion design
is one component of the overall site reclamation plan. The licensee
previously has addressed, and NRC has approved, the remaining site-wide
reclamation plan elements through separate licensing actions, including
the original reclamation plan for Tailings Cells 1, 2, and 3 (approved
in September 1990), mill demolition, relocation of lined evaporation
pond sediments, soil decommissioning plan, and groundwater remediation.
II. EA Summary
In April 2005, Rio Algom sent the NRC a Reclamation Plan for
disposal of evaporation pond sediments for its Ambrosia Lake uranium
mill tailings facility. In a followup to the proposed plan, Rio Algom
submitted, under letter dated May 31, 2007, Revision 1 of the plan and
a response to NRC's request for additional information. The Uranium
Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act of 1978, as amended, and
regulations in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 40 (10
CFR Part 40) require that material at uranium mill tailings sites be
disposed of in a manner that protects human health and the environment.
Rio Algom proposes to excavate its lined evaporation ponds (Ponds 9
and 11 through 21), and place all the contaminated sediments, dikes,
and underlying materials onto the existing Tailings Cell 2. The
expanded Cell 2 will then be closed as part of the facility
decommissioning plan. Rio Algom estimates that up to 3 million cubic
yards of materials will be excavated, hauled, and compacted as part of
this action. The reclamation of the expanded Tailings Cell 2 is
intended to: (1) Control radiological hazards for 1,000 years to the
extent reasonably achievable; (2) limit the release of radon-222 from
uranium by-product, and radon-220 from thorium by-product materials to
the atmosphere so as not to exceed an average of 20 pCi/m\2\/sec; (3)
reduce direct gamma exposure from the reclaimed tailings cell to
background levels; (4) avoid proliferation of small waste disposal
sites; and (5) provide a final site that is geotechnically stable and
provides protection of water resources for the long term.
The NRC staff has prepared the EA in support of the proposed
license amendment. The New Mexico Environment Department was consulted
during the EA preparation. The staff considered impacts that the
licensee's amended Reclamation Plan will have on ground water, surface
water, socioeconomic conditions, threatened and endangered species,
transportation, land use, public and occupational health, and historic
and cultural resources.
The EA supports a FONSI based on the following conclusions. The
potential impacts of the proposed action are limited to the land
surface and are temporary during the construction activity. The direct
impacts to the surface primarily will be dust generation due to
excavating material, hauling it to the disposal area, and working it at
the disposal area. Fugitive dust from heavy equipment operation will be
mitigated through the use of dust suppression methods on haul roads.
Impacts at the expansion cell area itself are minimal, since the area
is already disturbed from site reclamation activities. The licensee's
implementation of its National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
(NPDES) permits, its Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan for the
site, its site Health, Safety and Environment Management System, and
NRC license requirements provide adequate assurances to control impacts
to the environment. Additional ambient air monitoring stations have
been installed to collect data to demonstrate that control measures are
implemented and effective.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
On the basis of the EA, NRC has concluded that there are no
significant environmental impacts from the proposed amendment, and
there is no
[[Page 63935]]
need to prepare an environmental impact statement.
IV. Further Information
Documents related to this action, including the application for
amendment and supporting documentation, are available electronically at
the NRC's Electronic Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/
adams.html. From this site, you can access the NRC's Agencywide
Document Access and Management System (ADAMS), which provides text and
image files of NRC's public documents. The ADAMS accession numbers for
the documents related to this notice are as follows:
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ADAMS
Document accession No. Date
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NUREG-1748, ``Environmental Review Guidance ML031000403 April 10, 2003.
for Licensing Actions Associated With NMSS
Programs--Final Report,'' Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, DC.
NUREG-1620, Rev. 1, ``Standard Review Plan ML040560561 February 19, 2004.
for Review of a Reclamation Plan for Mill
Tailings Sites Under Title II of the Uranium
Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act of
1978,'' Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC.
Rio Algom Mining LLC, 2004, ``Closure Plan- ML050240058 November 1, 2004.
Lined Evaporation Ponds''.
Rio Algom, 2005; Reclamation Plan for ML051290050 April 30, 2005.
Disposal of Pond Sediments and Ancillary
Materials, Tailings Cell 2 Expansion.
Rio Algom 2007; Reclamation Plan for Disposal ML071790245 May 31, 2007.
of Pond Sediments and Ancillary Materials, ML071790250
Tailings Cell 2 Expansion, Revision 1.
Environmental Assessment for the Tailings ML072670278 September, 2007.
Cell 2 Expansion Reclamation Plan, Rio Algom
Mining LLC's Uranium Mill Facility, Ambrosia
Lake, New Mexico, Final Report.
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If you do not have access to ADAMS or if there are problems in
accessing the documents located in ADAMS, contact the NRC's Public
Document Room (PDR) Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or
by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov.
These documents may also be viewed electronically on the public
computers located at the NRC's PDR, O1 F21, One White Flint North,
11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The PDR reproduction
contractor will copy documents for a fee.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 2nd day of November, 2007.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Keith I. McConnell,
Deputy Director, Decommissioning and Uranium Recovery Licensing
Directorate, Division of Waste Management and Environmental Protection,
Office of Federal and State Materials and Environmental Management
Programs.
[FR Doc. E7-22114 Filed 11-9-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P