blast could disrupt radioactive particles from previous tests
The Spectrum, St. George - www.thespectrum.com -: "
Nevada seeking more info on blast
# DOE has not yet provided necessary information for state air-quality permit
By BRIAN PASSEY
bpassey@thespectrum.com
ST. GEORGE - Nevada state officials said the large non-nuclear blast planned for June 2 at the Nevada Test Site could be delayed if federal officials do not provide information the state requested last year.
"They are prohibited from moving forward until they have the authorization from us," said Dante Pistone, public information officer for the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection. "We're just mainly concerned with ensuring the test is done according to our rules and regulations and that all of those specifications are met."
Pistone said the state asked the U.S. Department of Energy last year for additional information required for an air quality permit. It still has not received that information. On April 7 it sent another letter to the DOE indicating it could not proceed with the test until the information is received.
He said Nevada does have the power to block the test, code-named "Divine Strake," until the requirements are satisfied. The length of time will depend on how long it takes for the Department of Environmental Protection to receive the information, review it for compatibility with the state's criteria and give approval.
Steve Robinson, deputy chief of staff for Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn, said the DOE has contacted the governor's office and the department plans to comply with the request. Robinson said the state is requiring the permit because state agencies have a responsibility to protect the public.
"We've got a state permitting process that everybody has to abide by," he said.
Once the state receives the required information, regulators will make sure there are no adverse effects from the blast. As long as no problems are identified, the state will allow the blast to go forward.
A spokeswoman for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, the military division in charge of the test, confirmed that plans still are moving forward for the June 2 blast.
"It's not halted, it's not been postponed, it's not stopped," said Irene Smith, public affairs spokeswoman for DTRA.
Smith said the National Nuclear Security Administration's Nevada Site Office told the state it expects any emissions from the blast to meet standards from an air quality permit granted in 2004. Those calculations were originally for an explosion of 940 tons of ammonium nitrate-fuel oil. Since then the size was reduced to 700 tons.
She said the Nevada Test Site is preparing additional documentation for the state. Those results should be sent within two weeks.
Federal officials already planned to track any particles from the explosion with air monitors. The blast will take place about 150 miles west of St. George above a limestone tunnel on the site.
The federal government used the site for above-ground nuclear testing until 1961 and below-ground testing through the early 1990s. The blast site is about 1 1/2 miles from the nearest tunnel used for underground nuclear testing and possibly as close as three miles from an above-ground testing location.
Members of Congress from Nevada and Utah and groups like the Downwinders and the Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah have expressed concerns about the blast, which will reportedly send up a dust cloud nearly two miles high. Among the concerns is the possibility that the blast could disrupt radioactive particles from previous tests, sending them downwind of the test site.
Smith said an environmental assessment of the blast made predictions about how far the dust cloud would rise and how far it could travel before falling. She said the paths and dimensions of the dust cloud are the product of meteorological conditions. With the height of the cloud likely to only reach 8,500 feet, Smith said it is "very unlikely" for the cloud to stray off range.
Utah connection
Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, has been among the most vocal in questioning the parameters of the blast. He said Wednesday that he hopes the federal government will comply with the state of Nevada's request.
"We want everybody to be held accountable by the rules," he said. "One would hope that if the state of Nevada was requesting information, that would be available before a permit was issued."
Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said he has concerns for the welfare of Utahns but this is not a nuclear blast like those of the 1950s. His legislation, the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, has been instrumental in compensating downwinder victims of those above-ground atomic tests at the site.
"I always have concerns for the health and well-being of all Utahns," he said Tuesday. "Hopefully we can watch this very, very carefully. I have made a commitment to the people of the state of Utah and the other Western states that I will never support the resumption of nuclear tests that could harm a human being."
Vanessa Pierce, program director for the Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah, said her organization supports the Nevada Department of Environmental Protection in requiring more information from the federal government. She said the downwinders of the past are part of why the government should be placed under high scrutiny for any major blasts at the Nevada Test Site.
"We absolutely support the highest level of scrutiny possible, given that Utahns and Nevadans and literally thousands of Americans were put in harm's way in past nuclear testing," she said.
Pierce said HEAL Utah also would like to see a complete environmental impact statement for the planned blast. The DOE only completed a less-comprehensive environmental assessment of the site, which determined there would be no "adverse impact" on the environment from the blast.
In the assessment, the DOE determined there is no radioactively contaminated soil near the detonation site. The tunnel itself has never been used for nuclear testing.
Matheson did not say if he believes a complete EIS is necessary but only that a determination was made at the beginning of the project that an environmental assessment would be completed.
Pistone, of Nevada's Department of Environmental Protection, said a complete EIS would depend on what is in the information requested from the DOE. If the parameters of the blast go beyond a certain threshold as far as air pollution, Pistone said the government may have to go back for more information.
"It really depends on what they come back to us with," he said."
Nevada seeking more info on blast
# DOE has not yet provided necessary information for state air-quality permit
By BRIAN PASSEY
bpassey@thespectrum.com
ST. GEORGE - Nevada state officials said the large non-nuclear blast planned for June 2 at the Nevada Test Site could be delayed if federal officials do not provide information the state requested last year.
"They are prohibited from moving forward until they have the authorization from us," said Dante Pistone, public information officer for the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection. "We're just mainly concerned with ensuring the test is done according to our rules and regulations and that all of those specifications are met."
Pistone said the state asked the U.S. Department of Energy last year for additional information required for an air quality permit. It still has not received that information. On April 7 it sent another letter to the DOE indicating it could not proceed with the test until the information is received.
He said Nevada does have the power to block the test, code-named "Divine Strake," until the requirements are satisfied. The length of time will depend on how long it takes for the Department of Environmental Protection to receive the information, review it for compatibility with the state's criteria and give approval.
Steve Robinson, deputy chief of staff for Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn, said the DOE has contacted the governor's office and the department plans to comply with the request. Robinson said the state is requiring the permit because state agencies have a responsibility to protect the public.
"We've got a state permitting process that everybody has to abide by," he said.
Once the state receives the required information, regulators will make sure there are no adverse effects from the blast. As long as no problems are identified, the state will allow the blast to go forward.
A spokeswoman for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, the military division in charge of the test, confirmed that plans still are moving forward for the June 2 blast.
"It's not halted, it's not been postponed, it's not stopped," said Irene Smith, public affairs spokeswoman for DTRA.
Smith said the National Nuclear Security Administration's Nevada Site Office told the state it expects any emissions from the blast to meet standards from an air quality permit granted in 2004. Those calculations were originally for an explosion of 940 tons of ammonium nitrate-fuel oil. Since then the size was reduced to 700 tons.
She said the Nevada Test Site is preparing additional documentation for the state. Those results should be sent within two weeks.
Federal officials already planned to track any particles from the explosion with air monitors. The blast will take place about 150 miles west of St. George above a limestone tunnel on the site.
The federal government used the site for above-ground nuclear testing until 1961 and below-ground testing through the early 1990s. The blast site is about 1 1/2 miles from the nearest tunnel used for underground nuclear testing and possibly as close as three miles from an above-ground testing location.
Members of Congress from Nevada and Utah and groups like the Downwinders and the Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah have expressed concerns about the blast, which will reportedly send up a dust cloud nearly two miles high. Among the concerns is the possibility that the blast could disrupt radioactive particles from previous tests, sending them downwind of the test site.
Smith said an environmental assessment of the blast made predictions about how far the dust cloud would rise and how far it could travel before falling. She said the paths and dimensions of the dust cloud are the product of meteorological conditions. With the height of the cloud likely to only reach 8,500 feet, Smith said it is "very unlikely" for the cloud to stray off range.
Utah connection
Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, has been among the most vocal in questioning the parameters of the blast. He said Wednesday that he hopes the federal government will comply with the state of Nevada's request.
"We want everybody to be held accountable by the rules," he said. "One would hope that if the state of Nevada was requesting information, that would be available before a permit was issued."
Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said he has concerns for the welfare of Utahns but this is not a nuclear blast like those of the 1950s. His legislation, the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, has been instrumental in compensating downwinder victims of those above-ground atomic tests at the site.
"I always have concerns for the health and well-being of all Utahns," he said Tuesday. "Hopefully we can watch this very, very carefully. I have made a commitment to the people of the state of Utah and the other Western states that I will never support the resumption of nuclear tests that could harm a human being."
Vanessa Pierce, program director for the Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah, said her organization supports the Nevada Department of Environmental Protection in requiring more information from the federal government. She said the downwinders of the past are part of why the government should be placed under high scrutiny for any major blasts at the Nevada Test Site.
"We absolutely support the highest level of scrutiny possible, given that Utahns and Nevadans and literally thousands of Americans were put in harm's way in past nuclear testing," she said.
Pierce said HEAL Utah also would like to see a complete environmental impact statement for the planned blast. The DOE only completed a less-comprehensive environmental assessment of the site, which determined there would be no "adverse impact" on the environment from the blast.
In the assessment, the DOE determined there is no radioactively contaminated soil near the detonation site. The tunnel itself has never been used for nuclear testing.
Matheson did not say if he believes a complete EIS is necessary but only that a determination was made at the beginning of the project that an environmental assessment would be completed.
Pistone, of Nevada's Department of Environmental Protection, said a complete EIS would depend on what is in the information requested from the DOE. If the parameters of the blast go beyond a certain threshold as far as air pollution, Pistone said the government may have to go back for more information.
"It really depends on what they come back to us with," he said."
posted by Greta Jane at Friday, April 14, 2006
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