[Federal Register: February 12, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 29)]
[Notices]
[Page 7110]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr12fe03-29]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Notice of Revised Scope for the Hanford Site Solid (Radioactive
and Hazardous) Waste Program Environmental Impact Statement, Richland,
WA
AGENCY: Department of Energy.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has decided to revise the
scope of the Hanford Site Solid (Radioactive and Hazardous) Waste
Program Environmental Impact Statement, Richland, Washington. DOE
issued a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Hanford
Site Solid Waste Program in May 2002. Subsequently, DOE issued a Notice
of Intent to prepare a separate EIS, the Tank Waste Remediation System
Supplemental EIS for the Disposal of Immobilized Low-Activity Wastes
from Hanford Tank Waste Processing. DOE now intends to incorporate the
scope of the Supplemental EIS into the scope of the EIS for the Solid
Waste Program. DOE will not issue a separate Supplemental EIS for
immobilized tank waste.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request information about the
revised draft EIS or to be placed on the EIS distribution list,
contact:
Mr. Michael S. Collins, HSW EIS Document Manager, Richland Operations
Office, U.S. Department of Energy, A6-38, Post Office Box 550,
Richland, Washington, 99352-0550, Telephone and voice mail: (509) 376-
6536, Fax: (509) 372-1926, Electronic mail: solid--waste--eis-----
doe@rl.gov.
For general information about the DOE NEPA process, contact:
Ms. Carol M. Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA Policy and Compliance
(EH-42), U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW,
Washington, DC, 20585-0119, Fax: (202) 586-7031, Telephone: (202) 586-
4600, Voice mail: (800) 472-2756.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DOE has decided to revise the scope of the
Hanford Site Solid Waste (Radioactive and Hazardous) Waste Program
Environmental Impact Statement, Richland, Washington. DOE issued a
Draft EIS for the Hanford Site Solid Waste Program in May 2002 (67 FR
36592, May 24, 2002). Subsequently, DOE issued a Notice of Intent (67
FR 45104, July 8, 2002) to prepare a separate EIS, the Tank Waste
Remediation System Supplemental EIS for Disposal of Immobilized Low-
Activity Wastes from Hanford Tank Waste Processing. DOE now intends to
incorporate the scope of the Supplemental EIS into the scope of the EIS
for the Solid Waste Program. In making this decision, DOE considered
comments received on the original Draft EIS for the Solid Waste
Program, and scoping comments for the Supplemental EIS, including the
recommendations of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Washington
State Department of Ecology, and the Hanford Advisory Board.
Accordingly, DOE intends to issue a revised Draft EIS for the Solid
Waste Program that reflects this expanded scope and responds to other
comments on the Draft EIS, in accordance with Council on Environmental
Quality and DOE procedures for implementing the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) (40 CFR parts 1500-1508 and 10 CFR part 1021).
The revised Draft EIS will evaluate the potential environmental
impacts associated with ongoing activities of the Hanford Site Solid
Waste Program, disposal of immobilized low-activity wastes from Hanford
tank waste processing, and reasonably foreseeable treatment, storage
and disposal facilities and activities. The revised Draft EIS also will
contain additional analyses of alternatives for managing both waste
generated at the Hanford Site and waste received from offsite DOE
generators, consistent with decisions resulting from the Department's
Final Waste management Programmatic EIS (DOE/EIS-0200-F, May 1997) for
low-level waste and mixed low-level waste (65 FR 10061, February 25,
2000).
Anticipated changes for the revised draft EIS include:
--The addition of alternatives for the disposal of immobilized low-
activity waste from the tank farms and evaluation of the impacts of
those alternatives.
--The addition of more alternatives for the disposal of low-level waste
and mixed low-level waste and evaluation of the impacts of those
alternatives.
--The addition of alternatives for disposal of different waste types
(immobilized low-activity waste, low-level waste, mixed low-level
waste) together and evaluation of the impacts of those alternatives.
--The addition of information on the impacts of transporting waste
especially as it pertains to the States of Washington and Oregon.
--The addition of DOE responses to major issues from the first draft
EIS.
In addition, DOE recently issued a Notice of Intent to prepare a
separate EIS, Treatment, and Disposal of Tank Waste and Closure of
Single-Shell Tanks at the Hanford Site, Richland, Washington (DOE/EIS-
0356), (68 FR 1052, January 8, 2003). In this new tank waste treatment
and closure EIS, DOE intends to evaluate alternative tank waste
treatment processes for low activity waste. DOE will coordinate this
EIS with the EIS on Hanford's Solid Waste Program, as appropriate.
Issued in Richland, Washington, on this 5th day of February,
2003.
Keith A. Klein,
Manager, Richland Operations Office.
[FR Doc. 03-3482 Filed 2-11-03; 8:45 am]
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