EPAWATCH Radioactive waste dump receives green light EPA has tentatively decided that the nation's first permanent storage facility for transuranic radioactive waste is safe for use. Once EPA's certification is final, officials with the Department of Energy (DOE) say they plan to begin storing defenserelated plutonium-contaminated waste there in May. The agency based its proposed certification of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), located near Carlsbad, N.M., on a May 1997 DOE application, which was scrutinized by the National Academy of Sciences, the International Atomic Energy Agency, and other independent scientists. Once the facility opens, transuranic waste such as sludges, tools, rags, glassware, and protective clothing contaminated with plutonium will be stored in natural salt caverns 2150 feet underground. The first deliveries of waste are scheduled to come from DOE's Idaho National Environment and Energy Lab, where it is stored in drums that are beginning to rust, said Dennis Hurtt, a spokesperson for DOE's Carlsbad area office. The waste W3S generflted from nuclccir weapons production during the Cold War Hurtt said. Under the 1992 WIPP Land Withdrawal Act, EPA's certification must become final by May 1998. Then DOE will determine whether it is safe to open the site. Although New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson is eager to open WIPP, the state's Attorney General, Tom Udall, has taken steps to block the move. In 1991 Udall filed a lawsuit to prevent the WIPP from opening on the grounds that the facility could not open without a permit issued under the Resource, Conservation, and Recovery Act (RCRA). The New Mexico Environmental Department has not yet approved a RCRA permit for the site. The Southwest Research and
High-risk drinking water contaminants identified Next month EPA will publish a list of 71 contaminants it is considering regulating under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). The contaminants are suspected of presenting a public health risk, especially to infants, the elderly, and anyone with serious illness. Under new provisions in the 1996 SDWA, by 2001 EPA must select five or more contaminants from the list that it will consider for regulation. The contaminants were selected by EPA with the help of the National Drinking Water Advisory Committee, a group of representatives from public water utilities, environmental and public health groups, and state agencies. On the list are 13 microbiological contaminants, 24 pesticides, 8 inorganic contaminants, and 26 synthetic organics, including the fuel additive methyl-ferf-butyl ether. EPA began with a list of 391 contaminants. Among those deferred are 35 pesticides and 21 suspected of endocrine disruption. The endocrine disrupters were eliminated because Congress, in passing the SDWA, explicitly directed the agency to research them further, said Bill Diamond, director of the Standards and Risk Management Division. The pesticides were removed after a panel of experts determined they were lower risk, he said. A 90-day public comment period on the 71 contaminants ended in December. The final list is due for publication in February. A selection process will follow to categorize them according to which require more research to determine health effects, how often the contaminants occur in drinking water, and which demand regulation, Diamond said.
Information Center, an activist group, has promised to sue if DOE tries to open the WIPP without a RCRA permit. Hurtt said a RCRA permit is not necessary because of the kind of waste WIPP would accept upon opening. A RCRA permit is necessary only if mixed waste that includes hazardous chemicals is accepted at the site, he said. EPA will seek public comment on its certification through Feb. 27.
Alternative multimedia monitoring plan floated EPA has been flooded with support for an initiative that would allow companies to use alternative monitoring methods and take advantage of the most up-to-date technology to comply with regulations. The initiative, which could be used in programs that require companies to measure air, water, or waste for compliance purposes, could help
0013-936X/98/0932-15A$15.00/0 © 1997 American Chemical Society
companies achieve higher levels of environmental protection at lower costs, according to Ivan DeLoatch, special assistant to EPA Deputy Administrator Fred Hansen. In the Oct. 6 Federal Register, EPA published a notice of intent to begin using the Performance-Based Measurement System (PBMS) for environmental monitoring. The system places emphasis on test results rather than on the methods used to achieve the results. For example, water utilities could implement the alternative method solid-phase microextraction to analyze drinking water organics, said Steve Via of the American Water Works Association. This method would allow the use of a smaller volume of water and is a more rapid technique in some instances for determining contaminants The proposal, endorsed by EPA officials last spring, would reduce to a few months the amount of time it would take to gain approval to use an alternative monitoring method.
JAN. 1, 1998 / ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY / NEWS • 1 5 A
