United Nuclear applied to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for a license amendment authorizing it to dispose of approximately 1 million cubic yards of uranium mine waste from the Northeast Church Rock mine site at the company’s nearby uranium mill tailings site.
The proposal is part of a longstanding U.S. Environmental Protection Agency effort to clean up the Church Rock mine site, which was contaminated during mine operations from 1967 to 1982.
UNC’s license amendment request requests authorization to place mine waste on top of the existing mill tailings impoundment at the Church Rock site.
The NRC staff published a draft EIS for public comment in November 2020 and held three virtual public meetings. The public comment period was extended several times to 353 days, ultimately closing on Nov. 1, 2021. The staff received approximately 100 unique comment submittals and identified approximately 1,300 unique comments. The final EIS includes a summary of the comments and the staff’s responses.
Under NRC regulations, the staff must wait at least 30 days following publication of the final EIS before issuing its record of decision on the request. More information on the Church Rock proposal is available on the NRC website.