United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Office of Public Affairs

Washington, DC 20555

Phone 301-415-8200 Fax 301-415-2234

Internet:opa@nrc.gov

No. 96-151 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Tuesday, October 22, 1996

NRC ANNOUNCES AGREEMENT WITH WYOMING ON CLEANUP

OF ANC URANIUM MILL SITE

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has announced that the

State of Wyoming has agreed to complete cleanup of the American

Nuclear Corporation’s (ANC’s) Gas Hills uranium mill site,

located about 85 miles west of Casper.

The site, currently licensed by the NRC, includes

approximately 550 acres of land. About 140 acres of this tract

contain the decommissioned mill site and two uranium mill

tailings ponds that are undergoing reclamation. The remainder of

the site is semi-arid land that has minimal value for livestock

grazing.

A license to conduct uranium milling operations on the tract

was originally issued in 1971 to Federal American Partners by the

former Atomic Energy Commission. The current licensee and site

owner, ANC, announced in May 1994 that it was discontinuing

operations and going out of business.

Later that year, the Wyoming Department of Environmental

Quality told the NRC that it was prepared to complete reclamation

of the site and had taken the proceeds of ANC’s reclamation bond.

Since then, the Wyoming agency has been reclaiming the site,

financing the work with reclamation bond funds. As the clean-up

proceeds, Wyoming is expected to be entitled to reimbursement

from the Department of Energy (DOE) under Title X of the Energy

Policy Act.

Under a confirmatory order issued by NRC earlier this month,

the NRC will not require the state to perform or pay for any

reclamation or monitoring of the ANC Gas Hills site that would

exceed funds available either from ANC’s forfeited performance

bond or from any subsequent reimbursements from DOE, unless

Wyoming agrees. If the state notifies NRC that all bond funds

and DOE funds have been exhausted, NRC will terminate the

confirmatory order.

Wyoming will remediate the site in accordance with an

approved reclamation plan. Additional requirements detailed in

the confirmatory order include a 6-foot radon barrier cover on
top of the tailings piles; radiation monitoring at the perimeter;

an interim stabilization program to prevent dispersal of blowing

tailings to the extent possible; and monitoring of groundwater.

NRC will continue to inspect the site periodically during

remediation.

At the end of satisfactory reclamation, the site will be

transferred to the Department of Energy for permanent custody.

Any person adversely affected by the confirmatory order,

other than the Wyoming agency, may request by October 28 a

hearing on whether it should be sustained. Requests should be

addressed to the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,

Attention: Chief, Docketing and Service Section, Washington, DC

20555-0001. The NRC will consider extending the time to request

a hearing. Such requests should be made to the Director, Office

of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear

Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, and explain why

an extension is requested.

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