ML25248A089
| ML25248A089 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 09/26/2025 |
| From: | Dafna Silberfeld Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards |
| To: | Wingate A State of UT, Dept of Environmental Quality, State of UT, Div of Waste Management and Radiation Control |
| Shared Package | |
| ML25248A106 | List: |
| References | |
| UR-2025-007 | |
| Download: ML25248A089 (0) | |
Text
Mr. Adam Wingate Uranium Recovery Section Manager Utah Department of Environmental Quality Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control 195 North 1950 West Salt Lake City, UT 84114-4880
SUBJECT:
STATE OF UTAH REQUEST FOR TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, PROJECT NUMBER UR-2025-007
Dear Adam Wingate:
By letter dated June 27, 2025, the Utah Department of Environmental Quality, Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control (UDEQ, DWMRC) requested technical assistance regarding the definition of 11e.(2) byproduct material in the Atomic Energy Act (AEA) of 1954, as amended (Agencywide Document Access and Management System [ADAMS] No.
ML25248A086). Specifically, DWMRC is seeking NRC input on whether waste material generated during the extraction or processing of rare earths or radium in certain circumstances would meet the definition of 11e.(2) byproduct material in the AEA.
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff understands that DWMRC is anticipating submission of a license amendment request that, if approved, would allow a licensee to process and extract rare earth minerals and radium-226 from ore that is also processed for its source material content. Additionally, the NRC staff understands that the license amendment request would seek to dispose of wastes from these processes in an existing 11e.(2) mill tailings impoundment.
The AEA defines 11e.(2) byproduct material as: the tailings or wastes produced by the extraction or concentration of uranium or thorium from any ore processed primarily for its source material content. Under this statutory definition, whether material is 11.e(2) byproduct material is not based on the materials composition, form, or hazards, but rather on how the material came to be. In Kerr-McGee Chemical Corp. v. US NRC, 903 F.2d 1 (D.C. Cir. 1990),
the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia addressed this question; the regulatory treatment of waste where ore is processed for both its source material content and other constituents. If ore is processed for both its source material and other constituents (rare earths, radium, or otherwise), the wastes from that processing and extraction will generally be 11e.(2) byproduct material. Neither the order in which the material was processed nor the quantity of source material extracted impacts this determination.
If ore is only processed for its rare earth content, or only its radium-226 content (that is, no processing for source material content occurs), then 11e.(2) byproduct material is not generated. In this case, a licensee could nevertheless seek approval for disposal of such wastes in a licensed tailings impoundment by following the guidance in NUREG 1620, September 26, 2025
A. Wingate 2
Appendix I. Note that the State of Utah would need to develop a process for the review and approval of such requests.
From a technical perspective, the NRC staff offers two additional observations. First, it is common for ore deposits containing rare earths to also contain relatively significant amounts of thorium. Since thorium isotopes have lower annual limits of intakes than uranium, processing of this material may warrant different monitoring procedures within a facility to maintain protection of worker health and safety. Second, for 11e.2 byproduct material (or other material) that was processed for its rare earth or radium content, the wastes should be well understood so that their addition to an existing tailings impoundment does not compromise the integrity of the liner system designed for uranium mill tailings. Both of these issues could be addressed in a license amendment request review.
Finally, while the processing of ore for both its source material and rare earth content generally creates 11e.(2) byproduct material, it may still be prudent to engage with the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Legacy Management to make them aware of DWMRCs plans. The NRC staff can facilitate such a discussion.
A copy of this letter will be available electronically for public inspection in the NRC Public Document Room or from the Publicly Available Records System component of the NRC's ADAMS. ADAMS is accessible from the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html.
If you have any questions regarding this letter, please contact Douglas Mandeville at (301) 415-0724, or douglas.mandeville@nrc.gov or Duncan White at 301-415-2598 or duncan.white@nrc.gov.
Sincerely, Dafna Silberfeld Acting Director Division of Materials Safety, Security, State, and Tribal Programs Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards cc: Stevie Norcross, Utah DEQ Doug Hansen, Utah DEQ Signed by Silberfeld, Dafna on 09/26/25
ML25248A106; Ltr ML25248A089 OFFICE NMSS/MSST/SLPB NMSS/DUWP
/URMDB NMSS/DUWP
/URMDB NMSS/MSST
/SMPB NAME AWhite DMandeville RVonTill AGiantelli DATE Sep 5, 2025 Sep 5, 2025 Sep 15, 2025 Sep 11, 2025 OFFICE OGC/GCRPS/RMR
/NLO*
NMSS/DUWP NMSS NAME AGendelman JMarshall DSilberfeld DATE Sep 17, 2025 Sep 26, 2025 Sep 26, 2025