UNITED STATES 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 

REGION I 

2100 RENAISSANCE BLVD., SUITE 100 

KING OF PRUSSIA, PA 19406-2713 

July 5, 2016 

Sandra Hinkel, Chief Timothy Rice, Chief 

Radiation Control Permit Section Radiological Sties Sections 

Remedial Bureau A Remedial Bureau A 

Division of Environmental Remediation Division of Environmental Remediation 

Department of Environmental Conservation Department of Environmental Conservation 

625 Broadway, 11th Floor 625 Broadway, 11th Floor 

Albany, NY 12233-7255 Albany, NY 12233-7255 

Dear Ms. Hinkel and Mr. Rice: 

A periodic meeting with you and your staff was held on May 4, 2016. The purpose of this 

meeting was to review and discuss the status of the New York Agreement State Program. The 

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) was represented by Joseph Nick, Lisa Dimmick, 

Robin Elliott and me. 

I have completed and enclosed a general meeting summary. If you feel that our conclusions do 

not accurately summarize the meeting discussion, or have any additional remarks about the 

meeting in general, please contact me at (610) 337-5371 or via e-mail at Donna.Janda@nrc.gov

to discuss your concerns. 

 Sincerely, 

 /RA/ 

 Donna M. Janda 

 Regional State Agreements Officer 

 Division of Nuclear Materials Safety 

 

Enclosure: 

Periodic Meeting Summary for Department of Environmental Conservation 

 
July 5, 2016 

Sandra Hinkel, Chief Timothy Rice, Chief 

Radiation Control Permit Section Radiological Sties Sections 

Remedial Bureau A Remedial Bureau A 

Division of Environmental Remediation Division of Environmental Remediation 

Department of Environmental Conservation Department of Environmental Conservation 

625 Broadway, 11th Floor 625 Broadway, 11th Floor 

Albany, NY 12233-7255 Albany, NY 12233-7255 

Dear Ms. Hinkel and Mr. Rice: 

A periodic meeting with you and your staff was held on May 4, 2016. The purpose of this 

meeting was to review and discuss the status of the New York Agreement State Program. The 

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) was represented by Joseph Nick, Lisa Dimmick, 

Robin Elliott and me. 

I have completed and enclosed a general meeting summary. If you feel that our conclusions do 

not accurately summarize the meeting discussion, or have any additional remarks about the 

meeting in general, please contact me at (610) 337-5371 or via e-mail at Donna.Janda@nrc.gov

to discuss your concerns. 

 Sincerely, 

 /RA/ 

 Donna M. Janda 

 Regional State Agreements Officer 

 Division of Nuclear Materials Safety 

 

Enclosure: 

Periodic Meeting Summary for Department of Environmental Conservation 

Distribution: 

L. Dimmick, NMSS D. Collins, NMSS P. Michalak, NMSS 

P. Henderson, NMSS M. Ford, RI DNMS D. Janda, RI DNMS 

J. Trapp, RI DNMS J. Nick, RI DNMS R. Elliott, RI DNMS 

SUNSI Review Complete: DMJ (Reviewer’s Initials) 

\\nrc.gov\nrc\R1\Shared\State Agreement Files\New York\NY DEC May 2016 Periodic Meeting Summary and 

Transmittal Letter.docx ML16194A487 

After declaring this document “An Official Agency Record” it will be released to the Public. 

To receive a copy of this document, indicate in the box: "C" = Copy without attachment/enclosure "E" = Copy 

with attachment/enclosure "N" = No copy 

OFFICE DNMS/RI 

NAME DJanda/dmj 

DATE 07/05/16 
AGREEMENT STATE PERIODIC MEETING SUMMARY FOR 

NEW YORK DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION 

DIVISION OF ENVIRONMENTAL REMEDIATION 

DATE OF MEETING: May 4, 2016 

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (NRC) Attendees 

New York Department of Environmental 

Conservation Attendees 

Donna Janda, State Agreements 

Officer, Region I 

Robert Schick, Director, Division of Environmental 

Remediation 

Joseph Nick, Deputy Director, Division 

of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region I 

Jim Harrington, Director, Bureau A 

Lisa Dimmick, Senior Health Physicist, 

Agreement State Programs Branch, 

Office of Nuclear Material Safety and 

Safeguards 

Sandra Hinkel, Chief, Radiation Control Permit 

Section 

Robin Elliott, Acting State Agreements 

Officer, Division of Nuclear Materials 

Safety, Region I 

Timothy Rice, Chief, Radiological Sites Section 

 Ann Marie Gray, Environmental Radiation 

Specialist, Radiation Control Permit Section 

 Jessie Sangster, Environmental Program Specialist, 

Radiological Sites Section 

DISCUSSION: 

The agencies which comprise the New York Agreement State program (Program) are the New 

York State Department of Health (DOH), which has jurisdiction over industrial uses of 

radioactive material throughout the State as well as medical, academic, and research uses 

outside the five boroughs of New York City; New York State Department of Environmental 

Conservation (DEC), which has jurisdiction over discharges of radioactive material to the 

environment, including releases to the air and water, and the disposal of radioactive waste in 

the ground; and New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC), which has 

jurisdiction over medical, academic, and research uses of radioactive material within the five 

boroughs of New York City. During the March 2014 Integrated Materials Performance 

Evaluation Program (IMPEP) review of the New York Program, the review team found the 

State’s performance satisfactory for five performance indicators; satisfactory, but needs 

improvement, for the performance indicator, Technical Staffing and Training; and unsatisfactory 

for the performance indicator, Compatibility Requirements. The review team found the 

performance indicator, Technical Quality of Licensing Actions, to be satisfactory, but needs 

improvement; however, the Management Review Board (MRB) determined this indicator should 

be found satisfactory. The review team made three recommendations regarding program 

performance in technical staffing, technical quality of licensing, and compatibility requirements, 

and determined that the six recommendations from the 2011 IMPEP review, regarding 

reciprocity inspections, development of an action plan to adopt NRC regulations, and incident 

reporting and incident procedures, should be closed. 

On August 4, 2014, the MRB found the Program to be adequate to protect public health and 

safety and not compatible with NRC’s program. The MRB commended the Program for 

progress made under the indicator, Technical Quality of Incident and Allegation Activities, where 

performance was improved from unsatisfactory to satisfactory during the review period, and for 

the progress made in adopting several overdue rules. As a result, the MRB directed that the 
New York DEC Periodic Meeting Summary 2 

period of Heightened Oversight be discontinued and a period of Monitoring be initiated. The 

MRB directed that quarterly calls be conducted between the New York and NRC staffs. The 

MRB also directed that a Periodic Meeting be conducted in approximately March 2016. This 

report is a summary of the Periodic Meeting held with DEC. 

TOPICS COVERED DURING THE MEETING INCLUDED: 

Program Strengths 

• The DEC Program has an experienced, well-trained staff with few staff losses since the 

2014 IMPEP review. 

Program Challenges 

• Filling vacancies is a challenge due to the State hiring freeze. The Program must 

compete with other programs for the few job openings that are approved to be filled. A 

vacancy waiver is needed to hire new staff. 

• The Program anticipates having two retirements within the next two to three years. 

• Having one new technical staff member stationed in the Buffalo office can be 

challenging at times for training purposes due to travel issues within the State. 

• Getting regulations through the adoption process is a challenge once the regulations 

are out of the Program office and held up by another office. 

Feedback on the NRC’s Program 

The Program managers noted that there is good communication and support from NRC related 

to the Agreement State Program. The Program also appreciates the training courses and 

opportunities provided by NRC. The Program noted that there are concerns related to the 

decrease in NRC’s funding for the Agreement State staff training. Of particular interest to the 

Program is the Environmental Risk Assessment Course (H-420) which is not considered to be a 

core course for qualification training; therefore, NRC does not provide funding for Agreement 

State personnel to attend this course. The DEC Program considers this course to be a core 

course for their environmental staff in the Agreement State Program and would appreciate it if 

NRC reconsiders its decision. 

Organization 

There have been no reorganizations affecting the Program since the 2014 IMPEP review. The 

Program is administered by the Radiation Control Permit Section (the Permit Section) and the 

Radiological Sites Section (the Sites Section) in Remedial Bureau A of the Division of 

Environmental Remediation (the Division), within the DEC. The Program is managed by a 

Section Chief in both the Permit Section and the Sites Section. 

Program Budget/Funding 

THE DEC Program is funded mostly by the State Low Level Waste Fund with some funding 

contribution from FUSRAP. There has been no change in funding since the 2014 IMPEP 

review. 

 
New York DEC Periodic Meeting Summary 3 

Technical Staffing and Training (2014 IMPEP: Satisfactory, but Needs Improvement) 

At the time of the Periodic Meeting, the Program devoted five technical staff to the Permit 

Section, including the Section Chief, and seven technical staff to the Sites Section (six in the 

Central Office and one in the Buffalo office), including the Section Chief, for a total of 8.1 fulltime equivalents to the radioactive materials program. Since the 2014 IMPEP review, one 

technical staff member left the Permit Section. This position has been vacant for approximately 

one year. One additional technical position has been vacant in the Sites Section for 

approximately three years. 

The 2014 IMPEP review team made one recommendation for DEC in this indicator: 

Recommendation: The review team recommends that the DEC continue to pursue vacancy 

waivers and implement a strategy to address current and future staffing vacancies in order to 

maintain effectiveness. 

Status: Since the 2014 IMPEP review, DEC continues to pursue vacancy waivers wherever 

possible. Waiver approvals do not approve backfill of a position, so if a promotion is given, the 

Program would need a waiver to backfill the lower grade position. The Program has managed 

its workload effectively despite the vacancies with all inspections completed timely since the 

2014 IMPEP review and no current overdue inspections. In addition, the Program noted that 

there is no backlog in issuing permits. 

Status of Materials Inspection Program (2014 IMPEP: Satisfactory) 

The Program reported that it completed 37 routine inspections and 1 initial inspection since the 

2014 IMPEP review. As noted above, no inspections were completed overdue according to the 

priorities established in NRC Inspection Manual Chapter 2800. 

Technical Quality of Inspections (2014 IMPEP: Satisfactory) 

The Program has not had any changes to inspection procedures since the 2014 IMPEP review. 

The Sites Section Chief completed two supervisor inspection accompaniments in 2015 and has 

not completed any accompaniments in 2016 as of the Periodic Meeting. The Permit Section 

Chief completed six accompaniments in 2015 and has not completed any accompaniments in 

2016 as of the Periodic Meeting. 

Technical Quality of Licensing Actions (2014 IMPEP: Satisfactory) 

At the time of the Periodic Meeting, the Program reported having 31 permits, including 2 new 

permits since the 2014 IMPEP review. All DEC permittees also possess DOH and/or NYC 

specific radioactive materials licenses. The agencies conduct their permit and license reviews 

in parallel. The Permit Section conducts pre-permit site visits for all new applicants and 

conducts initial inspections within six months after a new permit is issued. The DEC had one 

permit termination, which was completed in 2015. 

Technical Quality of Incidents and Allegation Activities (2014 IMPEP: Satisfactory) 

Since the 2014 IMPEP review, the DEC Permits Section has followed up on one incident 

involving a rejected shipment of regulated medical waste generated by a radiopharmacy and 
New York DEC Periodic Meeting Summary 4 

one allegation, which was referred to DEC from NRC. Both of these cases were investigated 

and closed out by DEC. 

The DEC Sites Section follows up on incidents involving waste facilities alarms within the State 

of New York. DEC will refer incidents involving radioactive material to DOH for follow up. Since 

the 2014 IMPEP review, DEC has followed up on 25 incidents at waste facilities. Nineteen of 

these incidents involved known or suspected iodine-131 (I-131) originating from either 

household waste or hospitals. In addition, since the 2014 IMPEP review, the Sites Section has 

followed up on three allegations, including two that were referred from NRC. All cases were 

investigated and are either closed out or still under investigation by the Program. 

Compatibility Requirements (2014 IMPEP: Unsatisfactory) 

The DEC regulations related to the radioactive materials program are found in 6 NYCRR 

Chapter IV, Subchapter C, Part 380, Prevention and Control of Environmental Pollution by 

Radioactive Materials. The DEC is also drafting new regulations related to cleanup criteria and 

site remediation. These regulations will be promulgated in the planned new Part 384, Cleanup 

Criteria for Remediation of Sites Contaminated with Radioactive Material. The Permit Section is 

responsible for drafting Part 380 regulations and the Sites Section is responsible for drafting 

Part 384 regulations. The DEC rulemaking adoption process takes approximately two years to 

complete if there are no mitigating factors. 

The 2014 IMPEP review team made one recommendation in this indicator: 

Recommendation: The review team recommends that the Program make appropriate 

regulatory changes to resolve NRC-generated comments as noted in regulation review letters, 

and adopt NRC regulations in accordance with the current NRC policy on adequacy and 

compatibility. 

Status: During the Periodic Meeting, the Permit Section Chief noted that the Part 380 

regulation amendment package, which had been with the Governor’s Office for approximately 

one year, has shown some progress with moving forward in the adoption process. The Section 

Chief noted that the regulation package will be sent to the NRC for comment within two months 

of being cleared from the Governor’s Office. This step will be concurrent with a 90-day public 

comment period. Once the public comment period has ended, a public hearing will take place. 

The final rule will be published after comments are addressed. The Permit Section Chief 

anticipates that the earliest date for the final rule to be effective will be in early 2017. 

The Sites Section Chief noted that the draft Regulation Initiation Memo for the new Part 384 has 

been completed by the staff and, at the time of the Periodic Meeting, was under review by the 

Bureau Director. Once the draft regulations are approved by the Bureau Director, the 

rulemaking adoption process will begin. 

Low-Level Radioactive Waste (LLRW) Disposal Program (2014 IMPEP: Satisfactory) 

New York has two former radioactive waste disposal sites: the State-licensed Disposal Area 

(SDA) on the Western New York Nuclear Service Center at West Valley (West Valley Site) and 

the University of Cornell Radiation Disposal Site (RDS) in Lansing. The Sites Section inspects 

both of these sites annually. In addition, each site is issued a permit from the Permit Section for 

monitoring and maintenance activities. The Program noted that the LLRW Disposal Program 

has not had any changes since the 2014 IMPEP review. 
New York DEC Periodic Meeting Summary 5 

Current State Initiatives 

The Sites Section Chief noted that changes to the Solid Waste regulations (Part 360) are 

currently undergoing a public comment period. Once final, these regulations will require 

radiation monitors at all solid waste facilities in New York. The Sites Section Chief anticipates 

that radiation alarms will increase as a result of facilities adding these monitors and anticipates 

that some of that increase will be attributable to I-131 from patient waste. The Section Chief 

noted that there is a need for better information to be provided to patients who receive I-131 

treatment and would like to see an evaluation performed on the unintended consequences 

and/or impacts on municipal waste sites from I-131 in solid waste. 

Large, Complicated, or Unusual Authorizations for Use of Radioactive Material 

The Permit Chief noted that a major university in NYC intends to construct a cyclotron for both 

its own use and for commercial distribution. This application will require review by all three 

Programs (NYC, DOH, and DEC). 

State’s Mechanisms to Evaluate Performance 

All work products receive supervisory review. Standardized work products are used to ensure 

consistency amongst staff. Supervisory inspection accompaniments are performed annually 

and feedback is provided to the inspectors regarding performance. Quarterly staff meetings are 

held to discuss workload and any issues to be addressed. Impromptu summary reviews are 

conducted when needed. 

CONCLUSIONS: 

The DEC Agreement State Program continues to be an effective, well maintained program. At 

the time of the Periodic Meeting, the Program continued to seek waivers for the two vacant 

technical positions, one in the Permit Section and one in the Sites Section. The Program 

continues to address the recommendations made for DEC during the 2014 IMPEP review. The 

Program is effectively managing its permitting and inspection activities and responds to 

incidents and allegations as appropriate. The Program has made some progress in adopting 

NRC regulations. 

NRC staff recommends that the next IMPEP review be conducted as scheduled in March 2018.