christic@labrea.Stanford.EDU (06/15/91)
/* Written 11:24 pm Jun 13, 1991 by econet in cdp:en.alerts */
/* ---------- "DOE Proposed FONSI" ---------- */
Subject: DOE Proposed FONSI
>From gn!nenig Mon Jun 10 17:53 PDT 1991
The US Department of Energy wants to allow 481 shipments of
Highly-Enriched Uranium spent fuel into the US - and there's only
a few days left to object.
---------------
On 23rd May 1991 the US Department of Energy published a proposed
Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) following an
Environmental Assessment(EA) on importing up to 481 shipments
(over 10 years) of Highly-Enriched Uranium spent fuel from
research reactors worldwide and transporting similar fuel from US
research reactors.
The spent fuel would be shipped to both east and west coast ports
and transported by truck to either Savannah River Site or INEL
Idaho. The Environmental Assessment, surprise, surprise, finds
that importing and transporting HEU fuel will have no significant
impact - hence the proposed FONSI.
This will effectively renew the reprocessing/plutonium production
business the US stopped in 1988.
There is only 30 (THIRTY) DAYS FROM 23rd MAY to comment/object to
the FONSI after which the DOE "will make its final determination".
The proposed FONSI was in Federal Register/Vol 56, No 100,
Thursday May 23. Copies from, and enquiries to:
Ms Lynne Wade
DP-143
U.S. Department of Energy 19901 Germantown Road Germantown,
Maryland, 20874 Tel: (301) 353 5193/6828
In 1988 the US imposed a moratorium on importing HEU spent fuel
from research reactors, pending the EA just published, after court
action. This left many research reactors with storage problems -
just when the Dounreay reprocessing plant in Caithness, northern
Scotland, (the UK's second and smaller repro plant after the
notorious Sellafield) was desperate for business after Government
cutbacks.
Dounreay has been marketing itself worldwide to at least 50
operators to take over the former US HEU trade - INCLUDING
supplying new HEU fuel - and has signed contracts with two Germany
reactor operators. First shipment was stopped when dockers at
Rotterdam refused to load the spent fuel into an ordinary cargo
vessel, not a Purpose-Built Vessel designed for nuke shipments.
There has been considerable campaigning on the HEU shipments,
particularly from Scotland and Scandinavia and the European
Parliament last year called for the shipments to stop.
---------------------------------------------------------
* NENIG, the Northern European Nuclear Information Group, works on
reprocessing, radioactive waste and the transportation of
radioactive materials. We have two staff and work mainly with
Scandinavian governments, MPs, and fishing, trades union and
environmental organisations. NENIG, Bain's Beach, Commercial
Street, Lerwick, Shetland, UK, ZE1 OAN. Telephone: +44 (0)595
4099. Fax: +44 (0)595 4082. Greennet: nenig