ML20033D975

Forwards List of Contaminated Facilities & Submits Relevant Background Info Re NRC Decommissioning Program,Per Commission Request

ML20033D975
Person / Time
Issue date:	10/31/1988
From:	Stello V NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO)
To:
References
TASK-PII, TASK-SE SECY-88-308, NUDOCS 8811170014
Download: ML20033D975 (10)

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date October 31, 1988 SECY-88-308 For:

The Commissioners (Inform 8 tion)

From:

Victor Stello, Jr.

Executive Director for Operations

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Subject:

CONTAMINATED MATERIAL L?CENSEE FACILITIES

Purpose:

To respond to the Commission request for a list of cnntaminated facilities, and to provide relevant background

.aformation on the staff's decommissioning program.

Background:

-In a Staff Requirements Memorandum dated July 28 1988, the unsnission requested a list of contaminated facilities u'aich fall beyond the NRC's release limits and will require decontamination. This request followed a Consnission meeting on July 13, 1988, when the staff discussed contamination problems at Safety Light Corporation in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania.

Discussion:

We have enclosed a lis' ~i non-reactor facilities which have a sufficient levei,' c +. amination to require special attention from the stC )

sre providing additional information in order to ;

n. 'the enclosed list in perspective.

1.

Current License Termination Procedures Thousands of NRC licensees possess unsealed radioactive material, and therefore could have contaminated facilities. When a licensee requests license termination, it must provide documentation to demonstrate that all facilities have been properly decontaminated, and that all sealed radiation-sources and radioactive waste have been transferred to authorized recipients. Where appropriate, NRC inspectors inspect decommissioned sites to verify the absence of excess residual contamination prior to license termination. We also have conducted our own independent surveys at the larger facilities through the use of a teem from the Oak Ridge Associated Universities.

In 1987, about 400 licenses were term W teu, and about 150 closecut surveys were performed by inspectors.

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2.

Rulemaking on-Financial Assurance for Decommissioning f

In the past, the potential lack of-adequate licensee funds I

to pay for decomissioning has been a concern.

The o

Commission recently addressed this problem with a new -

1 decomissioning rule (53 FR 24018, June-27,1988).

The rule requires licensees'who possess specified large_quan-tities of unsealed radioactive material to submit decom--

missioning funding plans.

Licensees who possess intermediate amounts of radioactive material must either provide a funding-plan or provide financial assurance in fixed amounts ranging from $75,000'to-$750,000.-- Licensees-who possess small amounts of radioactive material are exempt from the financial requirements of: the rde.

The rule was effective for new licensees on July 27, 1988, and existing licensees must provide financial assurances.

by July 27, 1990.

It is anticipated that the rule will reduce future decommissioning problems related to lack of-i licensee funds.

3.

Ceneral Accounting Office Audits In 1976, the General Accounting Office (GAO)' expressed

.;oncern to NRC that files for licenses terminated by the-Atomic Energy Commission before 1965 did.not contain adequate documentation of decontamination.

In resaonse, NRC arranged for a contractor (Oak Ridge National.aboratory) to review over 16,000 terminated license files.

Twelve 3

contaminated sites were eventually identified.

For seven sites, the NRC staff arranged for the responsible' parties 3

to either decontaminate.the site or stabilize and restrict access to the contaminated areas.

The Department of 4

Energy (00E) accepted responsibility for the other five '

sites under the Formerly Utilized Site Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP).

For over a year, the GA0 has been conducting another audit of the NRC decommissioning programs. The GA0 has not yet informed us of its findings.-

4.

Current Special Cases In the enclosed list, the staff has identified 31 non-routine cases for which considerable staff effort has been, or will be, expended to ensure proper decommissioning of the sites.

None o'f the contaminated sites appears to present an imediate health hazard. However, all sites have significant contamination which must be removed before the sites can be released for unrestricted use, or stabilized in place, m

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_a-_J u _ L'l The Commissioners.

About 20 sites on the list involve.large piles of tailings--

4 or soil contaminated with low levels of source material

' (uranium and thorium). Most of the processing facilities t

which generated the waste are now shut down.

Both the licensees and the staff have had difficulty in determining the best option for decommissioning these sites. The l1 staff has specifically budgeted resources to cover decomissioning of these types of sites. -

A preliminary review indicates that the new decommission-ing rule will require funding plans to be submitted for.

28 cases.

(The other three sites are unlicensed.)'

However, it is anticipated that some licensees 'may not have adequate financial resources to provide for decom-missioning.

In any event, the staff will continue.to work to ensure adequate decomissioning at all sites, including the three unlicensed sites.

For cases where there L

is a question of Department of Energy or Department of Defense responsibility, the staff will pursue the matter as appropriate.

It may also be eventually necessary to seek assistance from the Environmental Protection Agency for use of the Superfund,-if other approaches are not successful.

It is the staff's goal to eventually eliminate all cases where there are inadequate decommissioning plans or funding arrangements.

Although the problem cases will not be resolved easily, we expect that the situation will steadily improve, and that implementation of the new decommissioning rule will substantially reduce the number of new problem cases in the future.

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, a c/4 ctor Stello Jr./

Executive'Directo(

for Operations '

Enclosure:

List of' Contaminated Sites DISTRIBUTION:

Commissioners OGC OI OIA-GPA REGIONAL OFFICES EDO ACRS ACNU ASLBP ASLAP SECY w

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I LIST LF LuNTANINATED NON-REACTOR FACILITIES

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1.

. Advanced Medical' Systems. - Inc.

Cleveland, OH Docket No.:- 030-16055 Remarks:

Active manufacturer of cobalt-60 sealed sources.

Contaminated hot cell, duct work, and waste storage areas. Licensee contractor decontaminating according -

to=NRC-approved plan.

1 2.

Allied Signal Aerospace-Bendix Division Teterboro, NJ t

Docket No.: 040-00772 Remarks:

Magnesium-thorium foundry until 1964.

Soil contamination, 15-20 drums of waste. Da 8/31/88, Bendix and two other owners agreed to submit plan for evaluation and decomissioning.

3.

Amax Wooo County, WV Docket No.:

040-08820 l-Remarks:

1 Inactive site. Large volume of thorium and uranium waste in storage.

l Amax has requested that the site be transferred to DOE under Section 151(c) of NWPA.

4.

Army, Department of I

Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD Docket Nos.: 040-06394, 040-07354 Remarks:

L Active facility contaminated by test firing of depleted uranium amunition.

l Licensee will be requested to submit decommissioning plan during license renewal.

5.

Babcock and Wilcox Apollo, PA Docket No.: 070-00135

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Remarks:

Active facility performing nuclear reactor service operations.

One large building contaminated.

Several hundred thousand cubic feet of uranium-contaminateo soil. Approved decommissioning plan.

Enclosure

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Babcock and Wilcox

-Parks Township, PA Docket No.:

070-00364 Remarks:

Active nuclear service operations. Buried uranium waste. Approved decommissioning plan for building with plutonium contamination.

7.

BP Chemicals America Inc.

4 Lima, OH-Docket No.: 040-07604 Remarks:

Inactive uranium processor.

Contaminated buildings, soil,-and ponds..

Deconnissioning plan approved.

Decommissioning underway.

8.

Budd Co.

Philadelphia, PA Docket No.: 030-19963 Remarks:

Formerly a het cell operation. About 0.5 C1 cobalt-60 remaining.

Licensee has recently made inquiries about possible decontamination, 9.

Cabot Corporation Boyertown, PA and i

Reading, PA Docket No.:

040-06940 l

Remarks:

Active rare earth processor.

Large volume of uranium / thorium waste.

Decontamination plan being reviewed by NRC staff.

10. _Chemetron Corp.

Cleveland, OH Docket No.: 040-08724 Remarks:

Inactive uranium processor. Large volumes of contaminated soil in two i

locations.

Licensee recently amended decommissioning plan.

Delays in decommissioning due to financial problems; parent company is in bank-ruptcy.

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11. Dow Chemical Co.

Midland, MI

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Docket No.:

040-00017 Remarks:

1-Inactive.

Large volume of thorium waste in storage in Midland and Bay City. Decontamination plan being prepared by licensee based on -

discussions with staff.

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12. Fansteel. Inc.

Muskogee, OK Docket No.:

040-07580 Remarks:

Currently. extracts tantalum and columbium from slags and ores.

Large volume of uranium / thorium waste in sludge ponds.

Staff has requested licensee to provide a decommissioning plan.

13. General Services Administration Watertown Arsenal Site Watertown, MA Docket No.:

NONE L

Remarks:-

Former Manhattan Engineering District site.

Soil contaminated with

-depleted uranium. GSA contractor expects to begin decontamination in October 1988.

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14.

Kerr-McGee Cimarron Plant L

Crescent, OK

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Docket No.:

070-01193 Remarks:

L Produced. fuel for 00E reactors.

Several hundred thousand cubic feet of b

uranium-contaminated soil. Buildings being decontaminated.

Final i

deconmissioning plan being negotiated by licensee, NRC, and the State of 4

Oklahoma.

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15. Kerr-McGee. Chemical Corp.

1 West Chicago.-IL i

Docket No.: 040-02061 Remarks:

Produced thorium for AEC and produced rare earths connercially. Large volume of thorium tailings.

Submitted decontamination plan. Supplemental FES to be_ issued by end of 1988.

Involved in ASLB proceedings.

16.. Kawkawlin Landfill i

. Bay City, MI

' Docket No.:

NONE' Remarks:

Thorium-magnesium waste transferred to hazardous waste disposal-cells from li.ansed Wellman-Dynamics site in Bay City.

It is believed that tnere is' no current radiological hazard, and the State is performing radio-logical monitoring.

17. Mallinckrodt, 'Inc. -

St. Louis, M0 Docket No.:

040-06563 Rema rks: -

Active columbium / tantalum processor.

Large volume of thorium-contaminated waste. All-newly generated waste shipped off site.

DOE has taken

. responsibility for old waste under FUSRAP.

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18. MolyCorp 3

Washington, PA Docket No.:- 040-08778 Remarks:

L Produced 'ferro-columbium alloy from ores containing thorium; currently shutdown.

Large contaminated slag-pile; low-level contamination on and off site.

NRC staff reviewing licensee-proposed cleanup plan.

~ 19. MolyCorp l-York, PA Docket No.:

040-08794 Remarks:

Processes ores containing uranium and thorium to extract rare earths. Has 15,000, 55-gallon drums of licensable waste; already shipped 10,000 to California plant.

Some contaminated soil and other waste on site.

Decommissiening scheduled by 1991.

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i 5-120. Permagrain Products, Inc.

Karthaus, PA j

Docket No.:

030-13573 e

Renerks:

Active-irradiator.

Other inactive facilities, including storage tanks and drainage systems, are contaminated, primarily with strontium-90. State of Pennsylvania owns the property, has agreed to-fund cleanup..

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21. Radiation Technology, Inc.

Rockaway, NJ Docket No.:

030-07022 Remarks:

Active irradiator.

Damaged sealed sources stored on site.- Low-level soil contamination.

Staff is requiring licensee to submit decontamination and source disposal plans by March 1989.

22. 'Remington Arms Co.

Independence, MO Docket.: 040-08767 Remarkt:

Inactive uranium munitions facility. Army has taken responsibility for decontamination.

23.

Safety Light Corporation Bloomsburg, PA Docket No.: 030-05980 Remarks:

Manufacturer of luminescent devices, currently with tritium..

Buildings, soil, and grounawater contaminated with tritium, strontium-90, cesium-137, and radium-226.

Region I taking action to require decontamination plan.

24. Schott Glass Technolugies, Inc.

Duryea, PA Docket No.: 040-07924 Remarks:

Production of thorium glass ended in 1980.

Less than 500kg source material in scrap glass at landfill on site. HRC is reviewing decommissioning plan.

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25. Shieldalloy Metallurgical Corp.

Cambridge, OH

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Docket No.: '040-08948 l

Remarks:

i Processed ferro-columbium metals in the past. Large volume-of thorium waste. Decomissioning plan under revision based on staff comments.

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26.. Shieldalloy Metallurgical Corporation Newfield, NJ Docket No.: 040-07102 Remarks:

Processing ores containing thorium and uranium for' production of ferro-columbian and ferro-vanadium.

Large volume of thorium waste in slag piles.

Decommissioning plan submitted as part of license renewal application.

27.

Texas Instruments Attleboro, MA Docket No.: 070-00033 i

Remarks:

L Made fuel for. DOE reactors. Possible buried uranium wastes.

Being decommissioned.

-28.

UNC Recovery-Systems l-Wood River Junction, RI l

Docket No.: 070-00820 i

Remarks:

l Performed uranium scrap recovery, some Navy fuel processing.

Decontamination 1-complete. Awaiting results of confirmatory survey to complete decommissioning.

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29. West Lake Landfill St.- Louis County, M0 l

Docket No.: 040-08801 l

Remarks:

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Uranium wastes from Manhattan Project.

Not part of FUSRAP program.

Disposal options still being considered.

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30. Westinghouse Electric Corp.

Walt: Mill Site

. Madison, PA l-Docket No.: 070-00698 1

Remarks:

Defueled test reactor (shutdown) and contaminated hot cells.

Other

. active nuclear service operations.

Decontamination will bc addressed as part of license renewal process.

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-31.

Whittaker_ Corp.

i Greenville, PA Docket No.:' 040-07455 Remarks:

Prior to 1974, produced ferro-columbium from cres containing source

. material.

Part of site decontaminated.

Final decomissioning plan being reviewed as part of license renewal process.

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