DRC-2020-020539 - 0901a06880dbdf0b

DRC-2020-010622 195 North 1950 West • Salt Lake City, UT
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 144880 • Salt Lake City, UT 84114-4880 Telephone [phone] • Fax [phone] • T.D.D. [phone] www.deq.utah.gov
Printed on 100% recycled paper
State of Utah
GARY R. HERBERT Governor SPENCER J. COX Lieutenant Governor
Department of Environmental Quality
L. Scott Baird Executive Director
DIVISION OF WASTE MANAGEMENT AND RADIATION CONTROL Ty L. Howard Director

May 29, 2020
Manuel Heart, Tribal Chairman
Ute Mountain Ute Tribe
P.O. Box 248 Towaoc, CO 01334-0240 RE: Response to Letter Dated May 20, 2020 Request for Extension of Time Period for Submittal of Public Comments
White Mesa Mill License Amendment #10 of Radioactive Materials License UT 1900479
Honorable Chairman Heart: The Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control (DWMRC) has reviewed your letter dated May 20, 2020 (received May 26, 2020) requesting the extension of the public comment period for Amendment #10 of the Radioactive Material License (RML) UT 1900479 and the modifications to
Groundwater Quality Discharge Permit UGW370004. The DWMRC followed Utah Administrative Code R313-17-2 and R313-17-4 in planning the public comment period that is currently under way. Below and continuing to the back of this page is a table of
the requirements and how the DWMRC met the requirements.

Requirement DWMRC Actions
R313-17-2(1)(a)(J) the renewal of RML
UT 1900479 is a major amendment and requires
an opportunity for public comment
Prepared a public notice
R313-17-2(3) requires that the public comment
period to be at least 30 days
The DWMRC public comment period is for
45 days: Starting April 20, 2020 and Ending
June 5, 2020

(Over)

R313-17-2(5) requires that the public notice for the public comment period to be published in a newspaper and/or placed on the DWMRC web page
It was placed on the DWMRC webpage on April 15, 2020
R313-17-4(3) requires the opportunity for a question and answer hearing for major RML
amendments for uranium mill facilities
The notice documents that the hearing will be held on May 20, 2020 from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.
R313-17-4(4)(a) notice of question and answer hearing at least 30 days prior to hearing Noticed posted on the DWMRC webpage April 15, 2020, and hearing scheduled for
May 20, 2020
The rule requires a minimum public comment period of 30 days. In this matter, the DWMRC
anticipated that there would be significant interest in Amendment #10 of the White Mesa Uranium Mill’s RML. Therefore, the DWMRC adopted a 45-day comment period to accommodate that significant interest. The radiation control rules also require a public meeting and a formal transcript. The DWMRC believes that the procedures employed meet the purposes of public comment in the rules.
Nevertheless, I am willing to grant the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe an accommodation in this matter by
extending the public comment period from June 5 to July 10, 2020. As a result, public comments will be accepted by the DWMRC until the close of business on July10, 2020. These procedures meet the applicable rules and provide the public an increased opportunity to develop and submit comments regarding this matter. We appreciate the opportunity of working with the Tribe as an important and valuable stakeholder.
If you have any questions, please call Ryan Johnson at [phone]. Sincerely,

Ty L. Howard, Director Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control
TLH/RMJ/as c: Kirk Benge, Health Officer, San Juan Public Health Department Rick Meyer, Environmental Health Director, San Juan Public Health Department
Russell Seeley, UDEQ District Engineer