West Valley decision could be delayed 30 years, Buffalo News, 11-27-08

Updated: 11/27/08 07:09 AM
West Valley cleanup could take 30 years
Phased shutdown is one of four alternatives unveiled in Department of Energy report
By Douglas Turner
BUFFALO NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON — State and federal agencies are recommending a phased shutdown of the West Valley Nuclear Demonstration Project, a process that will take 30 more years. Their report leaves many crucial issues unsettled, including which level of government is ultimately responsible for cleaning up the site and where radioactive waste would be shipped. In a sense, the report punts to the incoming administration of President- elect Barack Obama questions about cost, responsibility and waste disposal that have been argued for decades.
The proposal comes in what the U. S. Department of Energy calls a Draft Environmental Impact Statement, the DOE’s first such report on West Valley in 12 years. About 300 persons are employed at the facility.
Four possible scenarios for the site 30 miles south of Buffalo are recommended:
• Complete removal of all radioactive waste, including debris from decommissioned and razed buildings, a job taking 64 years. This solution is blocked by the absence of a national nuclear disposal facility.
• Doing nothing, an alternative that the report says is unacceptable, but is required by federal regulations.
• Burying the nuclear waste and debris where it is, which is unacceptable to local residents, New York State, and many authorities in Canada who fear the leaching of radioactivity into creeks, Lake Erie and the Niagara River and related water supplies.
• The 30-year “phased decision-making” alternative, which the report says is preferred by DOE and the New York State Energy and Research Authority.
“Phase 1 [of this alternative] would remove major facilities such as the Main Plant Process Building and lagoons,” the report says. “It would reduce or eliminate human health impacts while introducing minimal potential for generation of new orphan [radioactive] waste — waste for which there is no clear disposition path at this time.” This “would remove the source area for the North Plateau Groundwater Plume, thereby reducing a source of radionuclides that is a potentially significant contributor to human health impacts,” the statement says. It also means a source of contamination of groundwater.
That plan would allow up to 30 years for collection and analysis of data and information, with the goal of reducing the technical risks associated with decisions that must be made about West Valley facilities that would remain after the completion of the project. The environmental statement also could spell defeat for efforts led by retiring Rep. Thomas M. Reynolds, R-Clarence, who wanted the Bush administration to agree that the cleanup and control for the waste center are federal responsibilities. Despite efforts by Reynolds, and two New York governors, the statement says the federal government will continue to pay 90 percent of the cleanup cost, with the state paying the remaining 10 percent. The text of the report will be available at a time to be announced at the Town of Concord public library, and at DOE reading rooms.
Three public hearings will be held: March 31, at the Seneca Nation of Indians, William Seneca Building, 12837 Route 438, Irving; April 1, Ashford Office Complex, 9030 Route 219, West Valley; and April 2, Clarion Hotel — McKinley Banquet and Conference Center, S3950 McKinley Parkway, Blasdell.
Times will be announced. The comment period on the environmental statement will last six months, ending in June, after which a final decision will be announced.
dturner@buffnews.com
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