March 1994:

MOAB'S NUCLEAR TAILINGS PILE...

Cap it? Move it? Or put it in lovely figurines?

by Jim Stiles

     The Nuclear Regulatory Commission finally released its Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on the Atlas tailings cleanup proposal near Moab for public comment and review. There were no surprises. As expected, the NRC offered three alternatives: to cap the multi-million ton tailings in place, remove the tailings to another location 30 miles north of Moab, or do nothing.

     While the Grand County Council and federal agencies like the National Park Service strongly support moving the pile to high ground, the Atlas Corporation believes the NRC supports on-site disposal...they're probably right. Since this issue first gained attention, the NRC has been reluctant to even consider other alternatives, and has ignored a volume of work that suggests leaving the materials on-site, on the Colorado River flood plain, in an unlined containment, could have severe long-term consequences for the water table and life as we know it along the Rio Colorado.

     In addition, to cap the tailings pile, the NRC plans to quarry igneous rock from Round Mountain at the head of Castle Valley and haul that rock via Utah Route 128 to the pile. We're talking about thousands and thousands of truckloads of rock rumbling along the river road and competing for space with mountain bikers, jeepers, other tourists, and...not to be forgotten...the people that actually live here in Grand County.

     Critics of the on-site plan, like Moab's Lance Christie, insist the tailings can be moved safely and much more economically than the NRC will admit. And moving the site will eliminate the health risks that leaving ten million tons of radioactive waste a couple hundred yards from the river might create.

           But is there another solution that may have been overlooked? Has the NRC been as creative and imaginative as it could have been? The problem with this tailings pile is the sheer size and concentration of the stuff. But what if it could be dispersed in such a fashion that the quantity in any one location was minuscule? And what if it could be packaged in an attractive container suitable for any knick-knack shelf in America and around the world?

     So here's my idea. We set up a toll plaza of sorts on Highway 191, adjacent to the Atlas site, staffed by members of the Grand County Travel Council and the Chamber of Commerce. But visitors won't pay a toll to get into Moab; we're going to give them something...50 pounds of tailings, hermetically sealed in a lovely figurine shaped like Delicate Arch...you know...the arch on all those license plates.

     Let's say we have a million cars passing through Moab each year. We'd be able to unload 50,000,000 pounds of tailings, just to tourists alone. They'll feel good about helping us out of what seemed to be an almost insurmountable problem, plus they get a lovely gift, and we feel good about dispersing the tailings at no cost to the taxpayers of this fine country.

     But 10,000,000 tons equals 20,000,000,000 pounds. At 50,000,000 pounds a year, it would take us 400 years to remove all the tailings if tourists carried the load alone (so to speak). Since the DOE and the NRC "only" expect the pond to be lethal for a thousand years, something needs to be done to speed up the removal process.

     And the answer is already available...Trucks. We must see at least 200 big trucks a day roar up and down Main Street. If they can roll through town that fast hour after hour, they must not be pulling such a heavy load, that we couldn't add another ton or so to it. If each truck was required to remove one ton of our tailings pond, we could eliminate 266,250,000 pounds a year. Between the tourists and truckers, we could rid ourselves, then, of 316,250,000 pounds every 365 days. Ultimately, at this rate we could have all the radioactive tailings out of Grand County and out of our lives in just a little over 63 years.

     So there you have it, a simple solution to a complex problem. I always feel better about myself when I feel like I'm making a positive contribution to society and today I've never been happier.       

     But seriously, folks. Those interested in obtaining a copy of the "DEIS Related to Reclamation of the Uranium Mill Tailings at the Atlas site, Moab, Utah" (NUREG-1531) and the "Draft Technical Evaluation Report for the Proposed Revised Reclamation Plan for the Atlas Corporation Moab Mill" (NUREG-1532) can write the NRC Publications Section, Attn: Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office. P.O. Box 37082, Washington, D.C. 20013-7082.