Press Release-I-06-061, NRC to Hold Public Meetings on Dec. 5 and 12 Regarding Decommissioning Plan for Newfield, N.J., Facility

Press Release-I-06-061: NRC to Hold Public Meetings on Dec. 5 and 12 Regarding Decommissioning Plan for Newfield, N.J., Facility

ML063330107
Person / Time
Issue date:	11/28/2006
From:	Office of Public Affairs Region I
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Category:Press Release
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Press Release-I-06-061
Download: ML063330107 (2)

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NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs, Region I 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pa.www.nrc.gov No. I-06-061 Nov ember 28, 2006Contact:Diane Screnci, 610/337-5330 E-mail: opa1@nrc.gov Neil Sheehan, 610/337-5331NRC TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETINGS ON DEC. 5 AND 12REGARDING DECOMMISSIONING PLAN FOR NEWFIELD, N.J., FACILITYNuclear Regulatory Commission staff will hold public meetings on Tuesday, Dec. 5, andTuesday, Dec. 12, to discuss the decommissioning plan submitted by the Shieldalloy MetallurgicalCorp. for its facility in Newfield (Gloucester County), N.J. The NRC notified the company on Oct. 18that it had sufficient information to begi n its technical review of the proposal.Both of the public meetings will begin at 7 p.m. at Edgarton Memorial Elementary School, at 212 Catawba Ave. in Newfield. At the Dec. 5 th session, NRC staff will provi de an overview of the review process for the plan and field que stions from the public. At the Dec. 12 th session, NRC staffwill offer details about the agency's environmenta l review for the plan and solicit public comments on possible environmental impacts a ssociated with the proposal.The Shieldalloy facility, located at 35 South West Blvd., conducted smelting and alloyproduction from 1940 through 2001. One of the raw materials used by the company was a niobium orecalled pyrochlore, which contains uranium and thorium and is subject to NRC licensing requirements. The majority of the radioactive material remaining at the site consists of slag generated during

production operations and dust from baghouses, which are devices used to filter dust from airexhausted during the manufacturing process.Under its decommissioning plan, Shieldalloy has proposed consolidating all of the materialscontaining uranium and thorium into a single pile on a portion of the site's storage yard, and thenshaping, grading and covering it with an engineer ed barrier. A fence would be installed around the material. The pile would then be subjected to long-term maintenance and monitoring, and use of thatsection of the property would be restricted. The focus of the NRC review is to determine if theproposed decommissioning plan meets the agency's requirements for protecting public health andsafety and the environment. That would include ensuring that no member of the public would receive exposure to radiation from the material in excess of allowable regulatory limits.

The remainder of the site could be released for unrestricted use, provided that the company could demonstrate there was no residual contamination above allowable levels.

On Nov. 17, the NRC announced an opportunity for interested organizations or individuals toseek a hearing on the decommissioning plan. The deadline for submitting such requests is Jan. 16. Petitions may be filed by anyone whose interest may be affected by the plan and who wishes to participate as a party in the proceeding. Shieldalloy's decommissioning plan is available on the NRC web site through its ADAMSdocument system, at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/web-based.html , using docket number 04007102. ###News releases are available through a free list serve 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 Web site.