Preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement for the Nevada Test Site and Other Off-Site Test Locations Within the State of Nevada

Federal RegisterAug 10, 1994

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement for the Nevada

Test Site and Other Off-Site Test Locations Within the State of Nevada

AGENCY: U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

ACTION: Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act

(NEPA) of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Council on Environmental

Quality regulations for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of NEPA

(40 CFR Parts 1500-1508), and the Department's Implementing Procedures

(10 CFR Part 1021), the DOE announces its intent to prepare a Site-wide

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Nevada Test Site and other

off-site test locations within the State of Nevada. The purpose of this

Notice is to invite the participation of Federal, state, and local

agencies, affected Indian tribes, and other interested persons in the

process that DOE will follow to comply with NEPA, and to solicit public

comments on the proposed scope and content of the Nevada Test Site EIS.

In order to meet present and potential future mission

responsibilities at the Nevada Test Site, the Department proposes to

evaluate resource management alternatives for the Nevada Test Site

which would support current and future defense related missions,

research and development, waste management, environmental restoration,

infrastructure maintenance, and facility upgrades and alternative uses

over the next 5-10 years. This Site-wide EIS will address numerous

issues, including, without limitation: (1) environmental restoration

and other Departmental activities at the Nevada Test Site and at off-

site locations in the State of Nevada where DOE conducted nuclear

experiments, which include the Project Shoal Area, Central Nevada Test

Area, Tonopah Test Range, and portions of the Nellis Air Force Range;

and (2) transportation and disposal of wastes, which are generated on

and off-site of the Nevada Test Site.

DATES: DOE invites and encourages the general public, other government

agencies, and all other interested parties to comment on the

appropriate scope and content of the EIS for the Nevada Test Site and

off-site locations within the State of Nevada to ensure that all

relevant environmental issues and alternatives are addressed. Public

scoping meetings are discussed below in the Supplementary Information

section. The public scoping period will continue until September 30,

1994. All comments and suggestions received or postmarked by that date,

whether written, oral, submitted directly to the Department, or

presented during a scoping meeting, will be given equal consideration

in defining the scope of this Site-wide EIS and the issues to be

discussed. Comments received or postmarked after September 30, 1994,

will be considered to the extent practicable. In addition, the

Department is committed to providing opportunities for the involvement

of interested individuals and groups in this and other Department

planning activities outside of the formal scoping process on this EIS.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the scope of the Site-wide EIS should be

directed to: Donald R. Elle, Director, Environmental Protection

Division, U.S. Department of Energy, Nevada Operations Office, P.O. Box

14459, Las Vegas, NV 89114.

Copies of written comments, transcripts of oral comments, and

copies of the EIS Implementation Plan will be prepared and retained by

the Department for inspection by the public at the following locations:

1. DOE Public Reading Room, 2753 S. Highland Ave., Las Vegas, NV

89109

2. Las Vegas Public Library, 833 N. Las Vegas Blvd., Las Vegas, NV

89101

3. Carson City Public Library, 900 N. Roop St., Carson City, NV

89701

4. Tonopah Public Library, 171 Central Street, Tonopah, NV 89049

5. Doris Shirkey Library, 2101 E. Calvada Blvd., Pahrump, NV 89041

6. Caliente Branch Library, 100 Depot Avenue, Caliente, NV 89008

7. University of Nevada, Reno, Noble H. Getchell Library, Reno, NV

89557

8. University of Nevada, Las Vegas, James Dickenson Library, 4505 S.

Maryland Parkway, Las Vegas, NV 89154

9. Freedom of Information Reading Room, Forrestal Bldg, 1000

Independence Ave, S.W., Washington, DC 20585

10. Fallon Public Library, Churchill County Library, 553 S. Main,

Fallon, NV 89406-3387

11. Washington County Library, 50 S. Main, St. George, UT 84770

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information please

contact: Donald R. Elle, Director, Environmental Protection Division,

U.S. Department of Energy, P.O. Box 14459, Las Vegas, Nevada 89114,

(702) 794-1550.

For information on the Department's NEPA process, please contact:

Ms. Carol Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA Oversight, U.S.

Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, DC

20585, (202) 586-4600 or leave a message at (800) 472-2756.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The Nevada Test Site, near Las Vegas, Nevada, is the site at which

the Department's Nevada Operations Office fulfills its primary

responsibilities to:

* Maintain a state of readiness to conduct underground nuclear

testing.

* Fulfill those activities to maintain the nation's stockpile of

nuclear weapons in a safe and secure manner and fulfill other national

security related missions.

* Provide an ongoing waste management program covering all wastes

generated both on-site and from other DOE-approved facilities across

the U.S.

* Perform site characterization and environmental restoration

activities required to minimize or eliminate the impacts of past

operations.

* Supervise operations of non-DOE entities at the Liquefied Gaseous

Fuels Spill Test Facility to perform research and demonstrations

related to the safety aspects of hazardous chemicals and liquefied

gaseous fuels.

* Serve as an outdoor laboratory where scientists and students can

conduct research on environmental issues as part of the DOE National

Environmental Research Park Network.

* Support the Threshold Test Ban Treaty and the Peaceful Nuclear

Explosives Treaty verification mission along with an expanding role in

supporting the ongoing Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty negotiations.

* Provide the capability to respond to nuclear emergencies,

including use of radiation detection systems for search and

identification of lost or stolen nuclear weapons and special nuclear

materials; exercises related to nuclear bomb threats and to radiation

dispersal threats.

* Demonstrate the capability to provide alternative energy sources

to meet power needs for the Southwestern United States. This would

include research activities in solar and other alternative energy

source technologies.

The Department's responsibilities are mandated by statute,

Presidential direction, and Congressional authorization and

appropriation. Other activities may be directed by regulatory mandates

identified in compliance agreements or orders or other enforceable

documents.

The Nevada Test Site occupies 1,350 square miles in southern

Nevada, and is located approximately 65 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

The Nevada Test Site is bordered to the north, west, and east by the

Nellis Air Force Range, and on the south by Bureau of Land Management-

administered lands. To the east, the Nevada Test Site shares a nearly

contiguous border with lands managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service for the Desert Game Range. The western half of the Game Range

is also used by the U.S. Air Force, which shares a contiguous boundary

with the Nevada Test Site. The Nevada Test Site is a remote, secure

facility for conducting underground testing of nuclear weapons and for

evaluating the effects of nuclear weapons on military communications

systems, electronics, satellites, sensors, and other materials. Since

the signing of the Threshold Test Ban Treaty in 1974, it has been the

only site used by the United States for underground nuclear weapons

testing. In September 1992, Congress, within the framework of the

Threshold Test Ban Treaty, imposed a nine-month moratorium on

underground nuclear testing. President Clinton extended the moratorium

in July 1993 for an additional 15 months and subsequently, in March

1994, extended the moratorium through September 1995.

Existing land use on the Nevada Test Site falls into four general

categories: Testing Areas; Reserved Areas; Industrial/Research Areas;

and Waste Management Areas. Most of the work on the Nevada Test Site

has been and continues to be related to national defense, with a

growing emphasis on environmental restoration and waste management

programs. Changing world conditions and national policies have reduced

the need for testing programs, and other DOE and non-DOE activities are

now being considered for siting at the Nevada Test Site. A map showing

existing land use at the Nevada Test Site and the locations of the off-

site tests is available on request to Donald R. Elle at the above

address.

The Nevada Test Site is a unique facility. It is a large remote

area with tightly controlled access, with a substantial infrastructure,

and the capability to conduct tests with hazardous and radioactive

materials. The southwest region of the Nevada Test Site provides

support for nonweapons and nonnuclear weapons programs and for short

term activities such as the nuclear weapons accident exercises

conducted by the Nuclear Emergency Search Team. In 1993, DOE designated

the Nevada Test Site as a National Environmental Research Park. The

Research Park is available for use by the scientific community as an

outdoor laboratory for research on the effects of human activities on

the desert ecosystem. Land not used for mission or other purposes has

been designated as reserved areas, available for future development.

The northern part of the Nevada Test Site is reserved as an underground

nuclear weapons testing area. Nuclear test locations are at Yucca Flat,

Pahute Mesa, Rainer Mesa, and Buckboard Mesa.

Waste management activities have been ongoing at the Nevada Test

Site since 1952. For ease of identification, the Nevada Test Site has

been divided into numbered geographic ``Areas''. Waste Operations are

conducted in several areas. Sanitary and solid waste are disposed of in

Areas 23 and 9. Hydrocarbon-contaminated soils are disposed of in a

permitted landfill in Area 6. Radioactive waste management sites are

located in Areas 3 and 5. Area 5 is also the location of a 90-day

hazardous waste accumulation site. Waste streams continue to be

generated, stored, and disposed of at the Nevada Test Site. Radioactive

wastes are also shipped to the Nevada Test Site for disposal from other

Department and Department-authorized sites. Waste management operations

at Nevada Test Site include: Accumulation of hazardous waste; disposal

of low-level radioactive waste including some classified waste;

management of mixed radioactive and hazardous waste; storage of mixed

transuranic waste; and disposal of sanitary waste.

Mixed transuranic waste is stored on a pad at Area 5 under

conditions set forth in the July 1992 Settlement Agreement between DOE

and the State of Nevada. A consent agreement signed by DOE and the

Nevada Division of Environmental Protection in 1994 allows storage at

Area 5 of mixed waste generated during characterization activities.

Through 1994 there have been 1054 nuclear tests conducted by the

United States, 928 of which were conducted on the Nevada Test Site.

Defense research and weapons test verification activities were

conducted at other test locations in Nevada. Nuclear devices were

detonated underground at the Project Shoal Area and the Central Nevada

Test Area. From 1957 to 1963, many safety tests using special nuclear

materials and chemical explosives were conducted at sites on the Nevada

Test Site, Nellis Air Force Range, and Tonopah Test Range to test the

safety of nuclear weapons in accident situations. These tests have

resulted in the release of radioactive materials and surface

contamination over large areas.

The Yucca Mountain site is located on the southwestern boundary of

the Nevada Test Site. In the 1987 amendments to the Nuclear Waste

Policy Act (NWPA), Congress directed DOE to characterize the Yucca

Mountain site for possible development of a geologic repository for

disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high level nuclear waste. Prior to

passage of the 1987 amendments, DOE had prepared an environmental

assessment (EA) which included an analysis of the effects of site

characterization activities at Yucca Mountain (DOE/RW-0073, May 1986).

If DOE ultimately recommends approval of the Yucca Mountain site to the

President, that recommendation must be accompanied by an EIS prepared

under the specific provisions of the NWPA. All activities regarding the

characterization of the Yucca Mountain site, and any eventual

construction and operation of a repository, including environmental

review, are regulated by the process prescribed in the NWPA. Therefore,

the Nevada Test Site EIS will address ongoing Yucca Mountain site

characterization activities only as they relate to the cumulative

impacts of activities on the Nevada Test Site during the period covered

by the EIS, using the Yucca Mountain EA as a baseline.

Public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management surround

the Nevada Test Site and Nellis Air Force Range on all sides. The

Tonopah Test Range is located in the northwestern portion of the Nellis

Air Force Range, and is operated by Sandia National Laboratories, under

contract with the DOE Albuquerque Operations Office, and through a

Memorandum of Agreement between the Department of Energy's Albuquerque

and Nevada Operations Offices. The Central Nevada Test Area is located

approximately 60 miles east of Tonopah between Warm Springs and Currant

(approximately 160 miles north of Las Vegas), and the Project Shoal

Area is located approximately 30 miles southeast of Fallon

(approximately 90 miles east of Reno and 285 miles northwest of Las

Vegas).

The Nevada Test Site, Nellis Air Force Range, and Tonopah Test

Range each have restricted-access areas that are not open to the public

for purposes such as agriculture, mining, land disposal of wastes, or

mineral leasing. With the exception of very limited special hunting

access to a portion of the Nellis Air Force Range, these sites are not

open for recreational use. The Project Shoal Area and the Central

Nevada Test Area are not restricted-access areas and are open for

general public uses including grazing and recreation, but not to

mining.

Public roads link the Project Shoal Area and the Central Nevada

Test Area with the Nevada Test Site and these may be used to ship

wastes to the Nevada Test Site. In addition, some public roads may be

used to transport waste from Nellis Air Force Range and Tonopah Test

Range to the waste management locations on the Nevada Test Site or

elsewhere. Public roads are also used to ship low level radioactive

waste from other DOE sites to the Nevada Test Site and to ship

hazardous waste from the Nevada Test Site to permitted disposal

facilities.

Preliminary Identification of Alternatives

The proposed action is to develop a resource management plan for

the Nevada Test Site. The Department of Energy needs a site resource

management plan that would allow it to continue its missions in a way

that minimizes or avoids environmental impacts. A preliminary set of

resource management alternatives for evaluation in the EIS has been

identified below. The final set of alternatives and issues to be

considered in the EIS will reflect consideration of the public input

received during the scoping period.

No Action

Under the no action alternative, existing missions and operations

would continue at the present level. Environmental restoration

activities would continue at the Nevada Test Site and at off-site test

locations within the State of Nevada. Off-site test location activities

would be consistent with the applicable land use plans of the

controlling agency. This alternative includes the potential to resume

underground nuclear testing and conducting other nuclear weapon related

experiments at the Nevada Test Site. Expanded use of the Nevada Test

Site for defense-related experiments, alternative energy source

technology development, non- or counter-proliferation research and

development and environmental technology development would not be

pursued. Waste management activities would continue to support existing

DOE missions and operations in the same manner and degree as at present

and in the recent past. Continuing activities at the Area 3 and 5

radioactive waste management sites include: the disposal of low-level

radioactive wastes generated from both on-site activities and off-site

DOE and Department of Defense facilities such as the Fernald Field

Office near Cincinnati, Ohio; the Rocky Flats Environmental Technology

Site (formerly the Rocky Flats Plant), Golden, Colorado; the Amarillo

Area Office (Pantex), Amarillo, Texas; and the Aberdeen Proving

Grounds, Aberdeen, Maryland. Other continuing activities include

storage of transuranic and other wastes, accumulation of hazardous

wastes prior to off-site shipment for disposal, and disposal of on-site

generated mixed waste that meets the Resource Conservation and Recovery

Act (RCRA) land disposal restriction criteria. Groundwater

characterization would continue with the associated waste management

activities. This alternative is intended to encompass current

operations, including waste management and technology development

operations without the improvements or expansion which would occur

under the expanded use alternative.

Expanded Use

Under this alternative, maximum use would be made of the Nevada

Test Site in support of national programs of both a defense and non-

defense nature. National Defense activities could include a resumption

of underground nuclear testing with the required support activities;

conducting other nuclear weapons related experiments; the construction

and operation of various types of simulator facilities and other

experimental test facilities; tritium production; plutonium storage and

disposition; nuclear weapons storage and disassembly and similar

activities that could be best conducted at a remote site. The site

could also be used for various exercises and technology development

aimed at countering nuclear terrorism or proliferation activities. Non-

defense programs could include the study of alternative energy sources

including the construction and operation of various solar energy

facilities that would demonstrate the effectiveness of the

technologies; expanded use of the Liquefied Gaseous Fuels Spill Test

Facility; and increased use of the site as an Environmental Research

Park.

This alternative would include continuation of on-going waste

management activities, planned waste management and environmental

restoration activities, and enhanced usage of the Site for waste

management activities. In addition to on-going activities, planned

waste management activities proposed for the Area 5 radioactive waste

management site include construction and operation of: certification

facilities for various types of waste, expanded mixed waste disposal

facilities for on- and off-site generated mixed waste, increased

capacity for hazardous and mixed waste storage, waste treatment

facilities, closure barriers or caps, and infrastructure improvements.

Enhanced usage would include, for example, options to utilize the

Nevada Test Site as specified in other DOE and Department of Defense

NEPA documents (such as the Environmental Restoration and Waste

Management Programmatic EIS which, among other things, addresses a

programmatic alternative under which all DOE low-level radioactive

wastes would be disposed of at the Nevada Test Site); regional

treatment of mixed waste in accordance with the Federal Facility

Compliance Act; and disposal of mixed and transuranic wastes.

Other Alternatives

The Department will consider other resource management

alternatives, i.e., variations of the no action alternative that would

involve no new projects or a phased reduction in current operations,

and no shipments or reduced shipments of off-site waste to the Nevada

Test Site. The Department invites public comment on the above, and

suggestions regarding other resource management alternatives that

should be considered.

Preliminary Identification of Environmental Issues

The following issues have been tentatively identified for analysis

in this EIS. This list is intended to facilitate public comment on the

scope of the EIS. It is not intended to be all-inclusive, nor is it

intended to be a predetermination of impacts.

1. Potential effects on the public and on-site workers from

releases of radiological and hazardous materials during normal

operations and from reasonably foreseeable accidents.

2. Potential effects on air and water quality and other

environmental consequences of normal operations and reasonable

foreseeable accidents.

3. Potential cumulative effects from proposed actions and other

past, present and reasonably foreseeable future actions.

4. Potential environmental effects, including human health,

economic and social effects on surrounding communities, including

minority communities and low-income communities.

5. Potential effects on sensitive species, economically and

recreationally important species, floodplains, wetlands, and historic

and archaeological resources, including paleontological sites and

Native American resources.

6. Potential environmental effects of future Nevada Test Site

facility decontamination and decommissioning activities.

7. Potential effects of near- and long-term waste management of

off-site generated waste, and environmental restoration activities.

8. Potential unavoidable adverse environmental impacts.

9. Short-term uses of the environment versus long-term

productivity.

10. Potential irretrievable and irreversible commitments of

resources.