ML19312E535
| ML19312E535 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 05/07/1980 |
| From: | Rothfleisch J NRC OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY & SAFEGUARDS (NMSS) |
| To: | Scarano R NRC OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY & SAFEGUARDS (NMSS) |
| References | |
| REF-WM-30 NUDOCS 8006050207 | |
| Download: ML19312E535 (4) | |
Text
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MAY 7 1980
!!EMORANDUM FOR:
Ross A. Scarano, Chief Uranium Recovery Licensing Branch FROM:
Jack E. Rothfleisch Uranium Recovery Licensing Branch
SUBJECT:
TRIP REPORT C0VERING INSPECTION OF COTTER CORPORATION SCHWARTZHALDER ORE SORTER FACILITY SITE AND MEETING REGARDING CONTENTS OF AMENDED RADI0 ACTIVE MATERIALS LICENSE APPLICATION I
Place and Date
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April 9 and 10,1980; Jefferson County (Golden) and Denver, Colorado.
Purpose To provide an opportunity for the NRC project manager to inspect the ore sorter site and to discuss with the applicant and Colorado Depart.nent of Health (CDH-) personnel the required contents of an amended license application to operate the ore sorter.
Inspection / Meeting Attendees NRC -
J. E. Rothfleisch CDH -
Michael Brown Cotter Corp. -
Tim Smith, Environmental Engineer E. J. McGrath, Attorney C. Palmer, Ore Sorter Manager (Inspection)
Discussion The Cotter Corporation Schwartwalder Ore Sorter facility located adjacent to the Schwartzwalder Mine in Jefferson County near Golden, Colorado was visited on April 9,1980.
The plant was inspected in company with CDH and Cotter Corp. personnel and operation of one of the ore sorter units was demonstrated.
Prior to reaching the plant, the area below the site e
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A Ross A. Scarano ggy 7 ;ggg was inspected including the ore shipment staging area where ore product is stored prior to being loaded for shipment to the Canon City mill.
In addition, an inspection was made of Ralston Creek below the mine and ore sorter facility.
Following the plant tour, an inspection was made of the combined mine waste-ore sorter reject pile adjacent to Ralston Creek upstream from the ore sorter building.
It was observed that a complication existed with regard to obtaining samples from Ralston Creek for Ra-226 analyses that could be attributed solely to operation of the ore sorter.
It was agreed, however that collecting samples both upstream of the waste pile and downstream ahead of the mine water treaaient plant discharge should reflect leaching of radium from the combined waste pile.
Since the applicant has indicated that the mine waste is substantially barren with respect to containing radionuclides, any difference in radionuclide content between the upstream and the downstream sample can be attributed to leaching from the ore sorter waste material.
On April 10, 1980, J. Rothfleisch met with Messrs. M. Brown, CDH and s
T. Smith and E. McGrath at the Colorado Department of Health offices in Denver, Colorado to discuss the content and issues to be addressed in the amended radioactive materials license application to be submitted to CDH by Cotter Corporation.
As a result of a major modification in the ore sorter circuit'which has eliminated the discharge of liquid wastes since submittal of the original license application in August,1978, Cotter Corporation plans to resubmit an amended application which will consider only thow potential impacts directly attributable to operation of the ore sorter facility.
Specific items agreed upon by the meeting participants to be addressed in the amended application included the following:
(1) A history of the operation of the ore sorter including reference to the decision by CDH to require a radioactive materials license for the facility.
(2) A proposed study program to determine whether the percolation of precipitation through the combined mine waste-ore sorter reject pile produces a measurable leaching of radionuclides from the waste.
This study will entail a review of the literature on pertinent subjects, laboratory percolation studies simulating field conditions and a field sampling
- program 'following substantial precipitation events with upstream and downstream Ralston Creek samples analyzed for both total and soluble uranium and radium-226.
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5 Ross A. Scarano g 7
(3) A detailed in-plant radiological safety program containing those items normally addressed in safety evaluation reports prepared by USNRC for conventional uranium mills. Cotter indicated plans to use material from the Canon City mill SAR and to follow the format used for the White Water sampling plant in the amended application.
(4) A detailed environmental monitoring program which will include:
(a) High-volume air sampling for determination of particulates and radionuclides at a minimum of two site locations.
(b)
Radon sampling using passive environmental radon monitors (PERM) at a minimum of three locations (two on-site and one perimeter background station).
(c) Monthly water sampling of Ralston Creek for at least one year upstream and downstream of the mine waste and sorter reject storage area with analyses for both total and soluble uranium and radium-226.
(d) Semiannual sampling of soil and vegetation at locations close to th.e.RA ston Creek water sampling points with soil samples subjected to analyses for total and insoluble radium-226 and determination of radium-226 on both washed and unwashed vegetation samples. Vegetation samples collected will be forage species only.
l (5) The amended application will provide a broader treatment of the design flood calculations and discussion contained in the original, license application by ' including the basis for using '
the 100 year flood rather than the Probable Maximum Flood (PMF) and adding an assessment of the consequences of a PMF-.
(6) Responses to pertinent comments and questions contained in enclosures to CDH letters of January 26, 1979, and March 23, 1979 as well as inquiries made in CDH letters of December 18, 1979 and February 11, 1980, will be included in the body of the amended application. An index will be provided for locating these responses.
.v Ross A. Scarano gy 7jg (7) Cotter Corporation committed to filing the amended application within sixty days from April 10, 1980.
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ck E. Rothfle sch Uranium Recovery Licensing Branch Division of Waste Managment cc: Mr. E. J. McGrath, Cotter Corporation Mr. Mich3el Brown, CDH h
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