Press Release-IV-11-032, NRC Proposes $8,500 Fine for Luzenac America, Inc

Press Release-IV-11-032: NRC Proposes $8,500 Fine for Luzenac America, Inc

ML11192A061
Person / Time
Issue date:	07/11/2011
From:	Office of Public Affairs Region IV
To:
Category:Press Release
References
Press Release-IV-11-032
Download: ML11192A061 (1)

Text

NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs Region IV 612 E. Lamar Blvd., Suite 400 Arlington, TX 76011-4125 Telephone: (817) 860-8128 Site: www.nrc.gov Blog: http://public-blog.nrc-gateway.gov No. IV-11-032 July 11, 2011

Contact:

Victor Dricks (817) 860-8128 E-Mail: OPA4.Resource@nrc.gov Lara Uselding (817) 276-6519 NRC PROPOSES $8,500 FINE FOR LUZENAC AMERICA, INC.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has proposed an $8,500 fine against Luzenac America, Inc., of Three Forks, Mont., for inadvertently transferring a gauge containing radioactive material to a recycling center that was not authorized to receive it.

The company has an NRC license authorizing it to use gauges containing radioactive material in mining operations.

Employees of a recycling center in Bozeman, Mont. notified the NRC after discovering the gauge in their scrap yard last December, and secured the device. No members of the public received radiation doses in excess of NRC limits.

Nevertheless, the NRC considers loss of control of licensed radioactive material a significant regulatory and security concern because of the potential for unauthorized possession, use, or exposure to unnecessary radiation to members of the public. NRC Region IV Administrator Elmo E. Collins told the company in a letter announcing the proposed fine.

The company took prompt and comprehensive corrective actions to address the cause of the violation following its investigation. This included purchase of hand-held scanners for sampling scrap metal for radioactive materials prior to recycling and special training for employees.

The company has 30 days to pay the proposed fine or challenge it.

The NRCs letter, its enclosures and the licensees response will be made available to the public through the agencys electronic reading room at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/html. Help in finding these documents is available from the NRC Public Document Room at1-800-397-4209.

News releases are available through a free listserv subscription at the following Web address:

http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/listserver.html. The NRC homepage at www.nrc.gov also offers a SUBSCRIBE link. E-mail notifications are sent to subscribers when news releases are posted to NRC's website.