Sierra Club Urges Public Comment on Proposals
The Texas Commission
on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has already begun the process by which HB 1567,
authorizing the creation of multiple radioactive waste dumps in West Texas,
will be implemented. Despite all the
efforts of the environmental and public interest communities, over many years
and several legislative sessions, this spring the special interests eager to make
profits from turning Texas into the recipient of millions of cubic yards of
“low-level” radioactive waste (LLRW) prevailed. They were able to win a change in state law that will allow a
private company to seek a license from the state to dispose of these so-called
“low-level” wastes (more or less anything that’s not defined as “high-level” or
other wastes). Now the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club and others are
preparing for the arduous task of overseeing the creation of the rules that
will govern the locating and permitting of these dumps.
Huge Volumes of Waste Headed to Texas?
While repeated claims
have been made over the past decade or so that Texas needed to have a LLRW dump
to fulfill its responsibilities under the compact with Maine and Vermont, the
new law enacted this spring by the Texas Legislature actually allows an
additional, separate dump for “federal facility waste,” as in radioactive waste
from nuclear weapons facilities. These
wastes are under the authority of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).
DOE has the power to
contract with a private company to have that company dispose of such wastes,
and the change in Texas law that allows a private company to receive a license
from the State of Texas to dispose of LLRW opens the door for this state to
become the dumping ground for all of these DOE wastes. Since most of the
numerous amendments aiming to limit the volume of waste or control how it will
be disposed of failed, millions of cubic feet of this dangerous material (up to
162 million cubic feet of waste from DOE) could end up dumped into dirt
trenches, without containerization or means to check for leakage or groundwater
pollution.
Draft Rules
The TCEQ staff has developed draft rules to govern the
licensing of LLRW dumps in Texas. These
proposed rules have been published in the Texas Register. Under a stringent timeline set out in the
legislation, the public now has until September 22 to comment on
proposals. The only opportunity for
in-person commentary will be a public hearing in Austin on September 16. The draft rules are posted on the TCEQ
website at the following address:
http://www.tnrcc.state.tx.us/permitting/wasteperm/stakeholdergroup/llrw.html.
The Sierra Club and
other groups involved with fighting this are currently analyzing the proposed
rules. A summary and points of concern
will be distributed through an e-mail alert and posted to the Chapter website
in early September at http://www.texas.sierraclub.org
Public Support Needed
Texas really needs the
help of its concerned citizens to force TCEQ to be as careful and forward-thinking
as possible in carrying out its authority to regulate LLRW. Comments on the proposed rules from as many
citizens as possible are needed.
Anyone interested in supporting the efforts to monitor and shape the development of these
radioactive waste rules may make a tax-deductible contribution (since
this is not a legislative lobbying or political activity) to “The Sierra Club
Foundation, Lone Star Chapter Fund.” Checks may be mailed to the Lone Star Chapter office, P.O. Box 1931,
Austin, TX 78767.