4. AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT
This chapter contains overviews of the potentially affected environments at and around the existing
and potential sites under consideration for management of SNF within the various alternatives addressed in
the EIS. Because of the large amount of information necessary to adequately characterize the affected
environments at these sites, the space available in this chapter limits the presentations to summaries of the
relevant key site characterization information. Consequently, the detailed descriptions of the affected
environments are presented under separate cover as self-contained appendices to Volume 1. This approach
allows the reader to compare the relative similarities and differences among the sites without having to review
thousands of pages of text. These separate site-specific appendices also contain the detailed analyses of
environmental impacts associated with each alternative that are rolled up and summarized in Chapter 5.
The site-specific appendices under separate cover are organized as follows:
Appendix Focus of appendix
______________________________________________________
A Hanford Site
B Idaho National Engineering Laboratory
C Savannah River Site
D Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program
E Other Generator/Storage Locations
F Nevada Test Site and Oak Ridge Reservation
______________________________________________________
This chapter focuses on details about resources most likely to be affected by the actions evaluated
under the various alternatives. Consequently, not every category of information addressed in the site-specific
appendices is rolled up for presentation here.
4.1 Hanford Site
This section summarizes the environmental characterization information on the Hanford Site,
Richland, Washington. This information has been used in evaluating environmental impacts that might result
from implementing the various alternatives for management of SNF at the Hanford Site. More detailed
information characterizing the affected environment of the Hanford Site is presented in Appendix A, under
separate cover.
The Hanford Site covers about 1,450 square kilometers (560 square miles) of the southeastern part
of the State of Washington (see Figure 4-1). It is located in parts of Benton, Grant, and Franklin Counties.
The nearest city is Richland, Washington, which borders the Hanford Site on its southeast corner. About
380,000 people live within an 80-kilometer (50-mile) radius of the Hanford Site.
The population within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Hanford Site has been characterized for the
purposes of identifying whether any disproportionately high and adverse impacts exist to minority and low-
income communities. The population surrounding the Hanford Site is shown to be 20 percent minority and
18 percent low-income, based on U.S. Bureau of Census information and the definitions and approach
presented in Appendix L.
Approximately 6 percent of the Hanford Site is occupied by operational facilities. Waste
management and SNF processing activities and waste storage occur near the center of the Hanford Site.
Eight retired plutonium production reactors and the N Reactor are located on the south side of the Columbia
River, and the nuclear research and development laboratories are located in the southeastern part of the
Hanford Site near the city of Richland. The majority of Hanford's SNF is stored in basins in 100-KW and
100-KE. The Fast Flux Test Facility is located in the east-central area of the Hanford Site. The remaining
area is undeveloped land that provides for buffer zones for the operating areas. The Hanford Site is a
Superfund site, listed on the National Priority List.
The land adjacent to the Hanford Site is either urbanized or agricultural. Agricultural areas include
irrigated and dry-land farming and grazing.
In 1992, the Hanford Site employed 16,100 people, accounting for almost 25 percent of the
nonagricultural employment in Benton and Franklin Counties. Other major employers include the Siemens
Nuclear Power Corporation, Sandvik Special Metals, Iowa Beef Processors, Boise Cascade, and Burlington
Northern Railroad.
As of 1992, 248 prehistoric archaeological sites were recorded by the Hanford Cultural Resources
Laboratory of the Pacific Northwest Laboratory. Of the 48 sites on the National Register of Historic Places,
two are single sites and the remainder are in seven archaeological districts. Archaeological sites include
remains of numerous pithouse villages, campsites, cemeteries along the river banks, spirit quest monuments,
hunting camps, game drive complexes, quarries in mountains and rock bluffs, hunting/kill sites in lowland
stabilized dunes, and small temporary camps near perennial sources of water away from the river. Native
Americans have inhabited the land around the Hanford Site since prehistoric times. The Wanapum and the
Chamnapum bands of the Yakama tribe were the area's primary inhabitants, being joined by Palus people,
Walla Walla people, and Umatilla people for fishing the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River. These
people retain traditional secular and religious ties to the region. Some native plant and animal foods, which
are used in religious ceremonies performed by members of the Washane or Seven Drums religion, can be
found on the Hanford Site.
Figure 4-1. Hanford Site location and site map. The Hanford Site is on a low-lying, modified alluvial plain of the Columbia River. Altitudes range
from about 105 meters (345 feet) in the southeast part to about 245 meters (804 feet) in the northwest corner.
The Hanford Site is bounded to the east by the Columbia River and the White Bluffs of the Ringold
Formation, to the southeast by the city of Richland, to the west by the Rattlesnake Hills, and to the north by
the Saddle Mountain.
The principal geologic features beneath the Hanford Site, listed from the oldest to the youngest,
include the Columbia River Basalt Group (basaltic lava flows), the Ringold Formation (weakly cemented
coarse sandy gravel to compacted silt and clay), and a series of deposits called the Hanford formation (coarse
gravel and sand). These units are covered by a few meters or less of recent alluvial or windblown sands.
Other than gravel, there are no geologic resources of economic value on the Hanford Site.
The area of the Hanford Site is historically of low-to-moderate seismicity. On a scale of 0 to 4, the
Hanford Site is in a Uniform Building Code Seismic Risk Zone 2B. (Zone 0 represents little damage, and is
subject to the greatest seismic risk.) The largest seismic shock near the Hanford Site on record was
approximately 4.5 to 5.0 on the Richter scale and Modified Mercalli Intensity of V; it was recorded in Corfu,
35 kilometers (22 miles) north of the Hanford Site in 1918. A Modified Mercalli Intensity V quake occurred
in 1973. Many lower intensity earthquakes have occurred in the Columbia Plateau and on the Hanford Site as
part of "earthquake swarms," which are clusters of several small earthquakes occurring over a short period of
time.
The Hanford Site is located approximately 160 kilometers (100 miles) to the east of the Cascade
Range, which includes several volcanic vents. The great distance eliminates the potential for lava flows from
these volcanoes reaching the Hanford Site. The foreseeable volcanic effects at the Hanford Site are limited to
windborne volcanic ash.
The general climate of the Hanford Site is hot and dry in summer and cool in winter. The average
annual precipitation is 16 centimeters (6.3 inches), most of which falls during the winter. On average,
thunderstorms occur 11 days per year, mostly during the summer. Tornadoes are extremely rare, occurring
within 160 kilometers (100 miles) of the Hanford Site about once in 3 years. Air quality in the Hanford
region is well within the State of Washington and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards for
criteria pollutants, except that short-term particulate concentrations occasionally exceed the PM-10 standard.
(PM-10 is particulate matter defined as suspended particulates with an aerodynamic diameter less than 10
micrometers.) The Class I Area (areas where degradation of air quality is to be severely restricted) nearest to
the Hanford Site is at Goat Rocks Wilderness Area, 145 kilometers (90 miles) away.
Two rivers pass through or near the Hanford Site. The Columbia River passes through the northern
part of the Hanford Site and forms part of the eastern boundary. The average daily flow of this river is 3,400
cubic meters per second (120,100 cubic feet per second). The Yakima River, with an average flow of 104
cubic meters per second (3,673 cubic feet per second), is located near the southern portion of the Hanford
Site. Wastewaters are discharged to several ponds on the Hanford Site and the Columbia River. In addition
to these surface waters, there are two intermittent creeks that form the remainder of the surface waters on the
Hanford Site. The flood areas of these rivers and streams include some areas where facilities are located, but
flooding is well-controlled by upstream dams on the Columbia River. Minor flooding (away from facilities)
occurs from other watercourses. While specific information on the 100-year floodplain has not been defined,
the projected extent of the maximum probable flood, which is greater than the area of inundation expected
from a 100-year flood, would not impact proposed SNF facilities. More details on flooding, including that
induced by dam failures, are given in Section 4 of Appendix A of Volume 1.
The water quality of the Columbia River is high, with minor increases in constituents resulting from
Hanford Site discharges. Radiological monitoring shows low levels of radionuclides in samples of Columbia
River water. Tritium, iodine-129, and uranium are found in somewhat higher concentrations downstream of
the Hanford Site than upstream, but are well below concentration guidelines established by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency drinking water standards. Nonradiological water quality parameters
measured during 1989 were similar to those reported in previous years and were within Washington State
Water Quality Standards.
Part of the water supply at the Hanford Site and for the nearby Tri-Cities is the Columbia River. In
1991, the combined water use for Richland, Pasco, and Kennewick was 4.3 107 cubic meters (11.38 billion
gallons). Richland and Kennewick derive a portion of their water used from nearby groundwater wells and
rely on groundwater as a sole source of water from November through March each year. Additional
references and more detailed information on groundwater are in Appendix A of Volume 1.
In 1993, several radionuclides and nonradioactive chemicals were present in unconfined aquifers
located beneath the Hanford Site in some locations at levels exceeding U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
drinking water standards and/or DOE Derived Concentration Guides. These constituents are listed, as
follows: radiological constituents-tritium, strontium-90, cobalt-60, antimony-125, technetium-99, iodine-
129, cesium-137, uranium, and plutonium; and nonradiological constituent-nitrate, chromium,
trichloroethylene, cyanide, fluoride, carbon tetrachloride, and chloroform. Groundwater beneath the Hanford
Site is not used for human consumption or food production with the exception of a well utilized for drinking
at the Fast Flux Test Facility visitor center. Above-background levels of tritium and iodine-129 have been
detected in this well; however, these levels are well below U.S. Environmental Protection Agency drinking
water standards.
DOE asserts a federally reserved water withdrawal right with respect to the Hanford Site operations.
Current withdrawals from the Columbia River occur under this assertion. Of the water consumed from
surface waters in the vicinity of the Hanford Site, 13 percent is used for industrial purposes. The Hanford
Site uses 41 percent of the water targeted for industrial use.
The Hanford Site is a shrub-steppe environment dominated by cheatgrass and sagebrush, but it
includes 10 different types of plant communities. This plant environment supports 12 species of amphibians
and reptiles, 39 species of mammals, and numerous bird and insect species. Deer and elk are the major large
animals, and coyotes are the major mammalian predators. Wetlands of varying size exist along the Columbia
River and support extensive stands of willows, grasses, aquatic plants, and other plants. In the Hanford
Reach of the Columbia River, 44 species of fish have been identified. The Hanford Reach is also used by
various salmon and trout species as a spawning area and a migration route to and from upstream spawning
areas. Four threatened or endangered plants classified by the State of Washington exist on the Hanford Site,
as well as seven species of threatened or endangered birds or mammals and one insect species. The insect
species and three of the bird species are federally listed.
No federally listed threatened or endangered species have been observed at the proposed SNF site.
However, two Federal and/or state candidate species, the loggerhead shrike (Federal and state candidate) and
sage sparrow (state candidate), were observed during a survey of the proposed SNF site. The sagebrush
habitat at the proposed site is considered priority habitat by the State of Washington for the loggerhead
shrikes, sage sparrows, burrowing owls (state candidate), pygmy rabbits (Federal candidate and state
threatened), sage thrashers (state candidate), western sage grouse (Federal and state candidate), and
sagebrush voles (state monitored). Although burrowing owls were not observed at the site, ground squirrel
burrows used by burrowing owls and owl pellets were observed during the survey. No evidence of the other
species were found at the proposed site. The closest known ferruginous hawk (Federal candidate and state-
threatened species) nest is approximately 8.9 kilometers (5.5 miles) northwest of the site. The proposed site
should be considered as comprising a portion of the foraging range of this species.
The Tri-Cities (Richland, Kennewick, and Pasco) serve as a regional transportation center with major
air, land, and river connections. The Tri-Cities area has four major highways: U.S. Routes 12 and 395, State
Route 240, and Interstate 82. State Route 240 traverses the Hanford Site from southeast to northwest. The
Burlington Northern and Union Pacific railroads connect the area to more than 35 states. Docking facilities
exist at the ports of Benton, Kennewick, and Pasco. The Tri-Cities Airport, located in Pasco, provides daily
passenger and freight services.
For the years 1991 to 1993, the potential collective dose to the population within 80 kilometers (50
miles) from all Hanford Site effluents was calculated to be 0.9, 0.8, and 0.4 person-rem, respectively. In
1993, the dose to the maximally exposed offsite individual was calculated to be 0.00003 rem (0.03 millirem)
per year from all exposure pathways. For perspective, collective dose to the same population from natural
background radiation was calculated to be about 100,000 person-rem from an average individual dose of 0.3
rem (300 millirem) per year.
In 1993, about 14,500 individuals were monitored at the Hanford Site. Of those monitored, 11,000
were classified as radiation workers with a collective dose of 200 person-rem and an average annual dose
equivalent of 0.02 rem (20 millirem) per individual with measurable doses. A subset of Hanford radiation
workers associated with SNF storage at 100 K Basins averaged doses of 0.4 rem (400 millirem) per year.
These averages are well below the 10 CFR Part 835 radiation dose limit of 5 rem (5,000 millirem) per year
and the DOE Administration Control Level of 2 rem (2,000 millirem) per year for occupational exposure.
Electricity in the region is provided by several different entities, but it is ultimately generated by the
Bonneville Power Administration. About 74 percent of the region's installed generating capacity is
hydroelectric. Power for the Hanford Site is purchased wholesale from the Bonneville Power Administration,
amounting to greater than 550 megawatts in 1988. Because of the reliance on hydropower, annual production
is variable, averaging 16,400 megawatts of capacity.
Major incorporated areas in Benton and Franklin Counties are served by municipal wastewater
treatment systems. The unincorporated areas are served by onsite septic systems.
High-level radioactive waste has been accumulating at the Hanford Site since 1944 in 149 single-
shell tanks-no new waste has been added to these tanks since 1980. Much of the liquid waste from single-
shell tanks has been transferred to newer double-shell tanks for safer storage. Transuranic wastes were
disposed of onsite before 1970 in unlined trenches. Since 1970, transuranic wastes have been stored in
abovegrade storage facilities. As of 1991, there were about 120,000 cubic meters (157,000 cubic yards) of
transuranic waste buried or in retrievable storage. Mixed low-level waste totaling 16,745 cubic meters
(21,902 cubic yards) was buried at the Hanford Site from 1987 to 1991. Another 4,225 cubic meters (5,526
cubic yards) of mixed waste has accumulated in storage. In 1992, 56,245 kilograms (124,000 pounds) of
mixed low-level waste was generated. From 1944 to 1991, approximately 558,916 cubic meters (731,030
cubic yards) of low-level waste was buried at the Hanford Site. In 1991, 5,300 cubic meters (6,932 cubic
yards) of low-level waste was generated at the Hanford Site. In 1992, 619,268 kilograms (1,365,000
pounds) of hazardous waste was generated. Mixed wastes are 99 percent tank wastes at the Hanford Site
resulting from 108 different waste streams. Hazardous wastes generated in 1995 from SNF are expected to
total 2.2 cubic meters (2.9 cubic yards). In 1992, industrial solid waste totaled 22,213 cubic meters (29,054
cubic yards) and asbestos totaled 1,017 cubic meters (1,330 cubic yards). A total of 1,484 hazardous
chemicals are reported at the Hanford Site at over 783 locations, and they are found in 2,926 different
hazardous materials. In 1992, the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act reporting
threshold was exceeded for 53 hazardous chemicals.
4.2 Idaho National Engineering Laboratory
This section summarizes environmental characterization information on the Idaho National
Engineering Laboratory. This information has been used to evaluate impacts at the Idaho National
Engineering Laboratory under various alternatives for management of SNF. More detailed
information characterizing this Idaho National Engineering Laboratory is presented in Appendix B, under
separate cover.
The Idaho National Engineering Laboratory is located on approximately 2,300 square kilometers
(890 square miles) of land in southeastern Idaho and contains nine major facility areas (see Figure 4-2). It is
located primarily within Butte County, but portions of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory are also
located in Bingham, Jefferson, Bonneville, and Clark Counties. The Idaho National Engineering Laboratory
is roughly equidistant from Salt Lake City, Utah, and Boise, Idaho. Cities near the Idaho National
Engineering Laboratory include Idaho Falls to the east, Blackfoot to the southeast, Pocatello to the south-
southeast, and Arco to the southwest. Yellowstone National Park is 149 kilometers (90 miles) to the east.
Categories of land use at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory include facility operations,
grazing, general open space, and infrastructure, such as roads. About 2 percent of the total Idaho National
Engineering Laboratory area [4600 hectares (11,400 acres)] is used for facilities and operations. The Idaho
National Engineering Laboratory is a Superfund site, listed on the National Priority List.
The region of influence for the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory is a seven-county area
comprising Bingham, Butte, Bonneville, Clark, Jefferson, Bannock, and Madison counties. The region of
influence had a 1990 population of 219,713. Historically, the regional economy has relied predominantly on
farming and ranching. Mining is also an important component of the regional economy.
The population within an 80-kilometer (50-mile) circle centered at Argonne National Laboratory-
West on the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory has been characterized for the purposes of identifying
whether any disproportionately high and adverse impacts exist to minority and low-income communities. The
population surrounding the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory is shown to be 7 percent minority and 14
percent low-income, based on U.S. Bureau of Census information and the definitions and approach presented
in Appendix L.
During fiscal year 1990, the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory directly employed
approximately 11,100 personnel, accounting for almost 12 percent of the total regional employment.
Approximately 38,000 persons, or 17 percent of the total regional population, were directly supported by
employment associated with the operation of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. In 1992, the total
direct Idaho National Engineering Laboratory employment was approximately 11,600 jobs. The total number
of jobs at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory is projected to decrease to approximately 8,620 in fiscal
year 1995 and to approximately 7,250 in fiscal year 2004.
More than 1,500 prehistoric and historic archaeological resources have been identified in the Idaho
National Engineering Laboratory area, but only 4 percent of the Idaho National Engineering
Figure 4-2. Idaho National Engineering Laboratory location and site map.Laboratory has been surveyed, mostly near major facility areas. The resources identified include prehistoric
and historic sites and isolates. Although not formally evaluated, these sites are considered potentially eligible
for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places; the isolates have been categorized as unlikely to
meet eligibility requirements. The Experimental Breeder Reactor-I is listed on the National Register of
Historic Places, and other structures could potentially be listed. The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes are the
region's primary Native American residents. Because they believe the land is sacred, the entire Idaho
National Engineering Laboratory reserve is potentially culturally important to them. Cultural resources, to
the Shoshone-Bannock peoples, include all forms of traditional lifeways and usage of all natural resources.
This includes not only prehistoric archaeological sites, which are important in religious or cultural heritage
context, but also features of the natural landscape, air, plant, water, or animal resources that might have
special significance. DOE has committed to additional interaction and exchange of information with the
Shoshone-Bannock Tribes at the Fort Hall Reservation.
The northwestern edge of the Eastern Snake River Plain, where the Idaho National Engineering
Laboratory is located, is bordered on the north and west by the Bitterroot, Lemhi, and Lost River mountain
ranges. A number of inactive volcanic buttes also form part of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory
landscape.
The Eastern Snake River Plain forms a broad, northeast-trending, crescent-shaped trough with low
relief comprised primarily of basaltic lava flows. These flows at the surface range in age from 1.2 million to
2,100 years. The surface of the Eastern Snake River Plain is comprised primarily of basaltic lava flows with
thin, discontinuous, interbedded deposits of wind-blown loess and sand, waterborne alluvial fan and
floodplain alluvial sediments, and rhyolitic domes formed 1,200,000 to 300,000 years ago.
The Eastern Snake River Plain is on an area of low seismicity that is adjacent to the seismically
active Intermountain Seismic Belt and Centennial Tectonic Belt and lies in Uniform Building Code Seismic
Risk Zones 2B and 3. The largest recorded earthquake in the Centennial Tectonic Belt occurred on October
28, 1983, near Borah Peak, Idaho, and had a moment magnitude of 6.9 (surface wave magnitude of 7.3). The
epicenter was about 90 to 100 kilometers (56 to 68 miles) from the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory.
The largest recorded earthquake within the Intermountain Seismic Belt surface wave (Richter scale magnitude
7.5) occurred on August 17, 1959, near Hebgen Lake, Montana, with an epicenter 145 kilometers (90 miles)
northeast of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. In addition to these earthquakes, a total of
29 earthquakes greater than magnitude 5.5 have occurred within 322 kilometers (200 miles) of the Idaho
National Engineering Laboratory since 1884. The Idaho National Engineering Laboratory lies in a potentially
active but long-time dormant volcanic area. The conditional probability of basaltic volcanism affecting a
south-central area of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory is one incident in 40,000 to 100,000 years.
The probability of volcanic impact on Idaho National Engineering Laboratory facilities further north is
estimated to be less than one incident in every million years or longer.
Within Idaho National Engineering Laboratory boundaries, the geologic resources found or produced
are sand, gravel, and pumice. Several quarries or pits maintain supply material for various onsite
construction projects.
The general climate of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory is characterized by average
seasonal temperatures that range from -7.3C (18.8F) in winter to 18.2C (64.8F) in summer, with an
annual average temperature of about 5.6C (42F). Annual precipitation is light, averaging 221 millimeters
(8.71 inches). Snowfall averages 701 millimeters (27.6 inches) per year.
Although the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory is in a belt of prevailing westerlies, these winds
are normally channeled by the adjacent mountain ranges into southwest wind. The annual average windspeed
measured at the 6.1-meter (20-foot) level at the Central Facilities Area weather station is 3.4 meters per
second (7.5 miles per hour). Monthly average values range from 2.3 meters per second (5.1 miles per hour)
in December to 4.2 meters per second (9.3 miles per hour) in April and May. The highest hourly average
nearground windspeed measured at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory is 22.8 meters per second
(51 miles per hour).
Severe weather, other than thunderstorms, is uncommon. Five funnel clouds (that is, tornadoes not
touching the ground) and no tornadoes have been reported between 1950 and 1988.
Neither the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory nor the surrounding counties is designated as a
nonattainment area (40 CFR Part 81.313) with respect to any of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards
(40 CFR Part 50). The Idaho National Engineering Laboratory is located in a Class II area. Three prevention
of significant deterioration (40 CFR Part 52.21) Class I ambient air quality areas have been designated in the
vicinity of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory: Craters of the Moon Wilderness Area, Idaho,
53 kilometers (33 miles) west-southwest from the center of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory;
Yellowstone National Park, Idaho-Wyoming, 143 kilometers (89 miles) east northeast from the center of the
Idaho National Engineering Laboratory; and Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, approximately
145 kilometers (90 miles) east from the center of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory.
The types and amounts of nonradiological emissions from Idaho National Engineering Laboratory
facilities and activities are similar to those of other industrial complexes of similar size. Baseline
concentrations from criteria and hazardous/toxic air pollutants are within applicable standards and guidelines.
Radioactive emissions occur from Idaho National Engineering Laboratory facilities; the calculated annual
dose to the maximally exposed offsite individual is 0.00005 rem (0.05 millirem).
Essentially no surface water bodies drain the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory-all creeks and
streams arise in the mountains and much of their water is diverted for irrigation. There is little flow of water
onsite. Water that does reach the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory through the Big Lost River flows
past the Test Reactor Area/Idaho Chemical Processing Plant area before going below ground or may be
diverted by an onsite dam during heavy flows onto the southern part of the Idaho National Engineering
Laboratory. The remainder of the water infiltrates near Test Area North. All rivers and streams are
intermittent. No surface water runs off of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory.
The Idaho National Engineering Laboratory does not withdraw or use surface water for operations,
nor does it discharge effluents to natural surface water. However, the three surface water bodies at or near the
Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (Big and Little Lost Rivers and Birch Creek) have the following
designated uses: agricultural water supply, cold-water biota, salmonid spawning, and primary and secondary
contact recreation. In addition, waters in the Big Lost River and Birch Creek have been designated for
domestic water supply and as special resource waters.
Depths to the water table at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory range from 61 meters (200
feet) in the north to 274 meters (900 feet) in the south. Flows in the largely unconfined Snake River Plain
Aquifer are generally to the southwest. Groundwater flows at speeds ranging from 1.5 to 6.1 meters per day
(5 to 20 feet per day). The water quality of the aquifer is generally good, and it is designated a sole source
aquifer. As of 1992, concentrations of iodine-129, cobalt-60, strontium-90, and cesium-137 had exceeded
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's maximum contaminant levels for drinking water established for
radionuclides in localized areas within the aquifer inside the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory
boundary. However, concentrations of these radionuclides in groundwater are generally decreasing over time.
This decrease is attributed to improved waste management practices, reduced discharges, adsorption, and
radioactive decay. Individual maximum contaminant levels have not been established for plutonium-238,
plutonium-239, plutonium-240, and americium-241. However, these radionuclides have not been detected
above the established limits for gross alpha particle activity or the proposed adjusted gross alpha activity
maximum contaminant levels for drinking water. Extremely low concentrations of iodine-129 and tritium
have migrated offsite, but both concentrations are well below the current U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency's maximum contaminant levels for drinking water.
Of the nonradioactive metals, only total chromium has exceeded maximum contaminant levels
established by the Safe Drinking Water Act. Nitrates have exceeded the maximum contaminant levels in the
past near the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant but have been below the maximum contaminant level since
1988. Carbon tetrachloride, chloroform, 1,1-dichloroethylene, cis-1,2-dichloroethylene, trans-1,2-
dichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, trichlorethylene, and vinyl chloride have exceeded maximum
contaminant levels at various times over the last 5 years.
Groundwater use on the Snake River Plain includes irrigation, food processing and aquaculture, and
domestic, rural, public, and livestock supply. Water use for the upper Snake River drainage basin and the
Snake River Plain Aquifer was 16.4 109 cubic meters (4.3 1012 gallons) per year in 1985. Most of this
water is for agriculture. The aquifer is the source of all water used at the Idaho National Engineering
Laboratory. Site activities withdraw an average of 7.4 million cubic meters (1.9 billion gallons) per year,
with a substantial portion discharged to the surface or subsurface and eventually returned to the aquifer. This
withdrawal represents approximately 0.4 percent of the water consumed from the Eastern Snake River Plain
Aquifer, or 53 percent of the maximum yield of a single typical irrigation well.
Total consumption of water at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory averages 0.25 cubic
meters per second (8.8 cubic feet per second). DOE holds a Federal Reserved Water Right for the Idaho
National Engineering Laboratory, which permits a groundwater pumping capacity of 2.3 cubic meters per
second (80 cubic feet per second), though this capacity is not utilized. The DOE priority on water rights
dates back to the establishment of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory.
Localized flooding can occur at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory when the ground is
frozen and melting snow combines with heavy spring rains. Test Area North was flooded in 1969; and, also
in 1969, extensive flooding caused by snowmelt occurred in the lower Birch Creek Valley. Studies have
shown that both the 25- and 100-year, 24-hour rainfall/snowmelt storm event could cause flooding within the
Radioactive Waste Management Complex. The drainage system, including dikes and erosion prevention
features designed to mitigate potential surface water flooding, have been upgraded. The area inundated by a
probable maximum flood in the vicinity of Mackay Dam, 75 kilometers (45 miles) northeast of the Idaho
National Engineering Laboratory, coupled with a dam failure, probably exceeds the areas expected to be
inundated by 100- and 500-year floods of the Big Lost River at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory.
Analyses indicate that the shallow depths and low flow velocities resulting from the Mackay probable
maximum flood and dam failure would not have a significant impact on Idaho National Engineering
Laboratory facilities.
Onsite vegetation is predominantly shrub-steppe. Communities range from shadscale-steppe
vegetation at lower altitudes, through sagebrush and grass dominated communities, to juniper woodlands
along the foothills of nearby mountains and buttes. Big sagebrush and rabbitbrush are the most common
shrub species. Indian ricegrass, wheatgrasses, squirreltail, and cheatgrass are common grasses. Common
forbs include phlox, mustards, and Russian thistle.
About 270 vertebrate species have been observed onsite. These include 46 mammal, 204 bird, 10
reptile, 2 amphibian, and 9 fish species. Major fur-bearing species include coyote, badger, and bobcat.
Important big-game species include the pronghorn, mule deer, and elk. Two federally endangered and nine
candidate animal species potentially occur on the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. The bald eagle is a
winter resident and is locally common in the far north end and the western edge of the Idaho National
Engineering Laboratory. Peregrine falcons are infrequently observed in the winter. Neither species is known
to nest onsite, and neither is commonly observed near facilities. The candidate species include the
white-faced ibis, northern goshawk, ferruginous hawk, burrowing owl, Townsend's big-eared bat, pygmy
rabbit, long-eared myotis, small-footed myotis, and Idaho pointheaded grasshopper (occurs just north of the
Idaho National Engineering Laboratory).
No Federal- or state-listed plant species occur at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, but
eight plant species identified by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, or the Idaho
Native Plant Society as sensitive, rare, or unique are known to occur there. These species are not generally
located near any facilities and are uncommon on the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory because they
require unique microhabitats.
Two interstate highways serve the general region: Interstate 15, a north-south route that connects
several cities along the Snake River, approximately 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of the Idaho National
Engineering Laboratory, and Interstate 86, an east-west route that intersects Interstate 15 about 64 kilometers
(40 miles) south of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. U.S. Highways 20 and 26 are the main
access routes to the southern portion of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. State Route 33 provides
access to the northern portion of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory from the east, State Routes 28
and 33 from the north, and State Route 22 from the west. These roads are complemented by an onsite
(controlled access) system of about 140 kilometers (87 miles) of roads.
The Union Pacific Railroad provides rail service to the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory.
Idaho Falls receives railroad freight service from Butte, Montana, to the north, and from Pocatello, Idaho, and
Salt Lake City, Utah, to the south. The Union Pacific's Blackfoot-to-Arco route, which crosses the southern
portion of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, provides rail service to the Idaho National Engineering
Laboratory. This branch connects with a DOE spur line that links with developed areas. Most naval reactor
SNF has been transported to the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory over these rail lines. Other
shipments arrive by truck.
Several airlines provide Idaho Falls with aircraft passenger and cargo service.
Recorded doses from 1987 to 1991 were used as a baseline for comparison with SNF management
operations for the next 40 years. The average annual occupational dose to individuals with measurable doses
was 0.156 rem (156 millirem), giving an average collective dose of about 300 person-rem.
Industrial health and safety statistics from 1987 to 1991 are used as a baseline for comparison for the
alternatives. There were 1,337 total recordable injury and illness cases at the Idaho National Engineering
Laboratory from 1987 to 1991, for an average of 8,385 employees working a total of 79,654,000 hours. One
fatality occurred at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory between 1987 and 1991 when an employee
was struck and killed by a forklift.
The water supply for the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory is provided by a system of about 30
wells, with pumps and storage tanks. The average combined pumpage from the Idaho National Engineering
Laboratory wells from 1987 through 1991 was 7.4 billion liters per year (1.9 billion gallons per year),
calculated based on the cumulative volumes of water withdrawn from the wells.
Average annual wastewater discharge volume at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory for 1989
through 1991 was 537 million liters (142 million gallons).
The rated capacity of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory electric power transmission loop
line is 124 megavolt-amperes. The peak demand on the system from 1990 through 1993 was about 40
megavolt-amperes, and the average usage was approximately 200,000 megawatt-hours per year.
No high-level liquid waste resulting from reprocessing activities has been generated at the Idaho
National Engineering Laboratory since 1992; however, certain other processes generate waste classified and
handled as high-level waste. These sources are estimated to generate 750 cubic meters in 1995. From 1989
through 1992, an average of approximately 48.5 cubic meters of mixed low-level waste was generated
annually. From 1989 through 1992, an average of approximately 46.5 cubic meters of low-level waste was
generated annually.
Burial of transuranic waste ended in 1970; since then all transuranic waste has been placed in
retrievable storage. Receipt of offsite transuranic waste ended in 1988 (with minor case-by-case exceptions).
After 1988, only minor amounts of transuranic waste have been generated onsite and placed into retrievable
storage. About 127,000 cubic meters (166,000 cubic yards) are retrievably stored or buried at the Idaho
National Engineering Laboratory. The average annual volume of hazardous waste transported offsite from
1988 through 1991 was approximately 180 cubic meters. The average annual volume of industrial and
commercial solid waste disposed of at the Central Facilities Area landfill from 1988 through 1992 was
approximately 52,000 cubic meters (68,000 cubic yards).
4.3 Savannah River Site
This section presents summary environmental characterization information on the Savannah River
Site. This information has been used to evaluate impacts at the site under various alternatives for
management of SNF. More detailed information characterizing the Savannah River Site is presented in
Appendix C, under separate cover.
The Atomic Energy Commission established the Savannah River Site in 1950 as the Savannah River
Project to produce nuclear materials for the national defense. The number of Savannah River Site facilities
grew to include five nuclear production reactors (now inactive), two chemical separations areas, a fuel and
target fabrication facility (inactive), and support facilities.
The Savannah River Site occupies an area of approximately 800 square kilometers (310 square
miles) in western South Carolina, in a generally rural area about 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of
Augusta, Georgia (see Figure 4-3). The Savannah River Site, which is bordered by the Savannah River to the
southwest, includes portions of three South Carolina counties: Aiken, Barnwell, and Allendale.
Approximately 73,500 hectares (181,500 acres) of the Savannah River Site is undeveloped, and 90
percent of this area (more than 65,000 hectares) is forest land. The Savannah River Forest Station (a branch
of the U.S. Forest Service) manages the forested areas, many of which are pine plantations, under a
cooperative agreement with DOE. Facilities that previously produced defense nuclear materials occupy
approximately 5 percent of the total Savannah River Site land area. The remaining area consists of wetlands,
ponds, and reservoirs.
Approximately 90 percent of the Savannah River Site work force lives in six counties around the
Savannah River Site (Aiken, Allendale, Bamberg, and Barnwell counties in South Carolina and Richmond
and Columbia counties in Georgia). In 1990, employment at the Savannah River Site was 20,230,
representing approximately 10 percent of the employment in the six-county region of influence. Employment
at the Savannah River Site grew to 23,351 in Fiscal Year 1992, with a payroll of more than $1.1 billion. The
total number of jobs at the Savannah River Site is projected to decrease to approximately 15,800 in Fiscal
Year 1995.
Between 1980 and 1990, the population in the six-county region of influence increased 13 percent,
from 376,058 to 425,607. More than 88 percent of the 1990 population lived in Aiken (120,940), Columbia
(66,031), and Richmond (189,719) counties. According to census data, the estimated average number of
persons per household in the six-county region was 2.72, and the median age of the population was 31.2
years.
The population within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Savannah River Site has been characterized
for the purposes of identifying whether any disproportionately high and adverse impacts exist to minority and
low-income communities. The population surrounding the Savannah River Site is shown to be 38 percent
minority and 17 percent low-income based on U.S. Bureau of Census information, and the definitions and
approach presented in Appendix L.
As of the end of Fiscal Year 1992, archaeological surveys have covered about 60 percent of the
Savannah River Site and recorded 858 archaeological sites. Of these 858 sites, more than 200 have been
evaluated, and 53 have been determined to be eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.
Three Native American groups-the Yuchi Tribal Organization, the National Council of Muskogee
Creek, and the Indian Peoples Muskogee Tribal Town Confederacy-have expressed
Figure 4-3. Savannah River Site location and site map.concern over sites and items of religious significance on the Savannah River Site. DOE routinely notifies
these organizations about major planned actions on the Savannah River Site and asks them to comment on
the Savannah River Site documents prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969.
The Savannah River Site has gently rolling terrain and is heavily wooded. Facilities are scattered
about the Savannah River Site, but major production facilities (for example, reactors and separations areas)
are confined to its interior. As a result, the Savannah River Site facilities are generally not visible from
outside of the Savannah River Site.
The Savannah River Site lies in the Coastal Plain physiographic province of South Carolina,
approximately 32 kilometers (20 miles) southeast of the Fall Line, which separates the Atlantic Coastal Plain
province from the Piedmont province. Onsite elevations range from 27 to 128 meters (89 to 420 feet) above
mean sea level.
The Coastal Plain sediments underlying the Savannah River Site consist of sandy clays and clayey
sands; however, occasional beds of clean sand, gravel, clay, and carbonate do occur. Underlying these
sediments are dense crystalline igneous and metamorphic rock or younger consolidated sediments of the
Triassic Period. A regional aquitard, the Appleton Confining System, hydrologically separates the Triassic
formations and older igneous and metamorphic rocks from the overlying Coastal Plain sediments.
The area of the Savannah River Site is historically of low-to-moderate seismicity. On a scale of 0 to
4, the Savannah River Site is in a Uniform Building Code Seismic Risk Zone 2A. The partially mapped Pen
Branch Fault, which spans the central portion of the Savannah River Site, is considered to be
Cretaceous/Tertiary (140 million to 1.6 million years) reactivation of a northern boundary fault of the
Triassic age Dunbarton basin. There is no evidence to indicate that the Pen Branch Fault is a capable fault as
defined by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Surface mapping, subsurface boring, and geophysical
investigations have not identified any faulting of the sedimentary strata at the Savannah River Site that would
have an effect on facilities.
The closest offsite fault system of significance is the Augusta Fault Zone, approximately
40 kilometers (25 miles) from the Savannah River Site. In this fault zone, the Belair Fault has experienced
the most recent movement, but it is not considered capable of generating major earthquakes. There is no
conclusive evidence of recent displacement along any fault within 320 kilometers (200 miles) of the
Savannah River Site, with the possible exception of the buried faults in the epicentral area of the 1886
Charleston, South Carolina, earthquake, approximately 145 kilometers (90 miles) away.
Two major earthquakes have occurred within 320 kilometers (200 miles) of the Savannah River Site:
(a) the Charleston earthquake of 1886, which had an estimated Richter scale magnitude of 6.8, and (b) the
Union County, South Carolina, earthquake of 1913, with an estimated Richter magnitude of 6.0, which
occurred about 160 kilometers (100 miles) from the Savannah River Site. In June 1985, a minor earthquake
with a local Richter scale magnitude of 2.6 and a focal depth of 1.0 kilometer (0.60 mile) occurred at the
Savannah River Site. An earthquake with a local Richter scale magnitude of 2.0 occurred on the Savannah
River Site on August 5, 1988, but was not felt by onsite workers.
The Savannah River Site is in a temperate region with mild winters and long humid summers.
Average monthly temperatures range from 7.2C (45F) in January to 27.2C (81F) in July. The average
annual precipitation at the Savannah River Site is approximately 122 centimeters (48 inches).
Prevailing winds are from the northeast and southwest, with an annual average windspeed of
3.8 meters per second (8.5 miles per hour). Windspeeds are typically highest in winter and lowest in summer.
On average, thunderstorms occur 56 days per year. The estimated probability of a tornado striking
the Savannah River Site is 7.0 10-5 per year. Nine tornadoes have been confirmed on the Savannah River
Site since 1953. Hurricane-strength winds have been recorded once at the Savannah River Site, from
Hurricane Gracie in 1959.
Air quality at the Savannah River Site is generally good, meeting National Ambient Air Quality
Standards for criteria pollutants. The nearest Class I Area, the Congaree National Monument, is more than
80 kilometers (50 miles) from the Savannah River Site. Tritium is the only radionuclide of Savannah River
Site origin that is routinely detected in offsite air samples in concentrations above background.
Five streams drain the Savannah River Site: Upper Three Runs Creek, Fourmile Branch, Pen
Branch, Steel Creek, and Lower Three Runs Creek. These streams originate on the Aiken Plateau and
descend 15 to 60 meters (50 to 200 feet) before discharging to the Savannah River.
Surface-water quality in the Savannah River downstream of the Savannah River Site is generally
good. In 1992, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control changed the
classification of the river and its tributary streams to "freshwaters" from "Class B waters," imposing more
stringent water quality standards. Two elements-iron and manganese (both naturally high constituents of
local waters)-have historically exceeded maximum concentration limits.
Two distinct hydrogeologic systems underlie the Savannah River Site: (a) the southeastern Coastal
Plain province, where a wedge of unconsolidated sediments of Late Cretaceous and Tertiary origin contains
the major aquifer systems of the area, and (b) the Piedmont Province, where groundwater occurs in
mudstones and sandstones within Paleozoic metamorphic and igneous basement rock. The vadose zone
ranges in thickness from approximately 40 meters (130 feet) in the
northernmost portion of the Savannah River Site to the surface in areas where the water table intersects
wetlands or streams.
The sediments of the southeastern Coastal Plain hydrogeologic province are grouped into three major
aquifer systems divided by two major confining systems, all underlain by the Appleton Confining System.
These aquifer systems are known regionally as the Floridan, the Dublin, and the Midville systems. The local
aquifers associated with these three aquifer systems are the Steed Pond, Crouch Branch, and McQueen
Branch Aquifers.
The Crouch Branch and McQueen Branch hydrostratigraphic units are the most important aquifers in
the vicinity of the Savannah River Site. The McQueen Branch Aquifer, in particular, is highly transmissive
and serves as the main production aquifer for the Savannah River Site. The groundwater in the Crouch
Branch and McQueen Branch Aquifers is suitable for most domestic and industrial purposes.
Industrial solvents, metals, tritium, or other constituents used or generated at the Savannah River Site
have contaminated the groundwater over 5 to 10 percent of the Site. Contaminated groundwater generally
underlies only a few facilities, and the contaminants detected reflect the material and processes used in these
facilities. Contamination of groundwater in an aquifer supplying drinking water has occurred in one
relatively small area in the northwest portion of the Savannah River Site: two wells in the Dublin-Midville
Aquifer System (formerly known as the Tuscaloosa Formation) contain low concentrations of
trichloroethylene and tetrachloroethylene.
The aquifers underlying the Savannah River Site sustain single-well yields of about 10.2 million
liters per day (2.7 million gallons per day). The Savannah River Site withdraws approximately 14.0 billion
liters per year (3.7 billion gallons per year) of groundwater for domestic and industrial uses. The Savannah
River Site draws approximately 75.7 billion liters per year (20 billion gallons per year) of cooling water from
the Savannah River. Water rights are not at issue at the Savannah River Site.
The Savannah River Site lies in the Upper Coastal Plain physiographic province. The Savannah
River Site is near the transition area between the oak-hickory-pine forest and the southern mixed forest. As a
consequence, species typical of both associations are present.
Plant communities adapted to dry conditions occur on more northern, upland areas of the Savannah
River Site. (This area is sometimes referred to as the Aiken Plateau.) The most common community types
on the northern half of the Savannah River Site are longleaf pine plantations and longleaf pine-turkey oak
sandhills. Wetter areas along streams support different groups of plant species, including loblolly pine and
bottomland hardwood forest communities. Other aquatic habitats, such as ponds, marshes, river swamps,
and Carolina bays, add considerable botanical diversity to the Savannah River Site.
Four federally listed endangered animal species occur on the Savannah River Site or in the Savannah
River upstream and downstream of the Savannah River Site: the red-cockaded woodpecker, the wood stork,
the southern bald eagle, and the shortnose sturgeon. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lists a fifth species,
the American alligator, as "threatened due to similarity of appearance" (to the endangered American
crocodile). Researchers have found one federally listed endangered plant species, the smooth coneflower, on
the Savannah River Site.
In 1992, the Savannah River Site hunters (chosen by lottery from a large pool of applicants)
harvested 1,519 deer and 168 feral hogs. The purpose of these hunts is to keep deer and feral hog
populations in check and to reduce the number of animal-vehicle accidents on the Savannah River Site. The
Savannah River Site measures each animal killed during the hunts for radioactivity. The maximum
measurement of cesium-137 in a Savannah River Site deer was 22.4 picocuries per gram; the average was 6.4
picocuries per gram. For hogs, the maximum value was 22.9 picocuries per gram: and the average was 3.5
picocuries per gram. The estimated maximum dose received by a Savannah River Site hunter was 0.049 rem
(49 millirem) per year. This estimate assumed a hunter whose entire meat consumption for the year consisted
of the Savannah River Site deer.
The major sources of noise at the Savannah River Site are equipment and machinery (for example,
cooling towers, transformers, engines, pumps, boilers, steam vents, and paging systems) in developed
operational areas. Studies indicate that, because of the remote locations of the Savannah River Site
operational areas, existing onsite noise sources do not adversely affect individuals offsite. Workplace noise
limits established by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration protect onsite workers.
Interstate 20 is the primary east-west corridor in the general area of the Savannah River Site. U.S.
Highways 1 and 25 are the principal north-south routes. Direct access to the Savannah River Site from the
northwest is provided by South Carolina Highways 125 and 19; South Carolina Highway 125 is open to
through traffic. South Carolina Highways 39 and 64 also provide access to the Savannah River Site. The
CSX railroad line also serves the Savannah River Site.
Atmospheric releases of radioactive material to the environment from Savannah River Site
operations from 1990 to 1992 resulted in an average dose of approximately 0.00002 rem (0.02 millirem) per
year to individuals living within an 80-kilometer (50-mile) radius of the Savannah River Site. The collective
dose equivalent due to atmospheric releases from the 1992 Savannah River Site operations to the population
of 620,100 occupying the 80-kilometer (50-mile) radius was 6.4 person-rem. Atmospheric releases of tritium
accounted for more than 90 percent of the estimated offsite population dose.
Similarly, liquid releases of tritium account for more than 99 percent of the total radioactivity
discharged to the Savannah River from the Savannah River Site activities. The calculated average annual
dose to the maximum exposed individual resulting from liquid releases from 1990 to 1992 was 0.00021 rem
(0.21 millirem). This resulted in average doses of 0.00004 and 0.00005 rem (0.04 and 0.05 millirem) per
year to consumers of drinking water from the downstream Beaufort-Jasper (South Carolina) and Port
Wentworth (Georgia) water treatment plants, respectively.
The Savannah River Site purchases power from South Carolina Electric and Gas Company through
three purchased power-line interconnects to the Savannah River Site transmission grid. Recent total annual
power consumption for the Savannah River Site was approximately 659,000 megawatt hours. The average
load was 75 megavolt-amperes, and the peak demand was about 130 megavolt-amperes.
Average annual wastewater discharge volume at the Savannah River Site is about 2 million liters per
day (528,400 gallons per day), which is about 50 percent of capacity. Eighteen waste treatment plants
currently process all Savannah River Site sanitary waste. A new centralized sanitary wastewater treatment
facility, scheduled for completion in mid-1995, will replace 14 of these plants.
The Savannah River Site had 127.9 million liters (33.8 million gallons) of radioactive high-level
waste onsite at the end of 1991, in 50 underground tanks, which is more than 90 percent of existing capacity.
By 1993, the Savannah River Site had 9,900 cubic meters (350,000 cubic feet) of transuranic waste in
storage. The current volume of mixed low-level waste at the Savannah River Site is 1,700 cubic meters
(60,000 cubic feet). Low-level waste is packaged for disposal onsite in carbon steel boxes and deposited in
trenches. Hazardous wastes in storage at the Savannah River Site total some 1.6 million kilograms (3.6
million pounds), with a volume of 2,430 cubic meters (86,000 cubic feet).
4.4 Nevada Test Site
This section presents summary environmental characterization information on the Nevada Test Site.
This information has been used to evaluate impacts at the Nevada Test Site under various alternatives for
management of SNF. More detailed information characterizing the Nevada Test Site is presented in
Appendix F, under separate cover.
The Nevada Test Site is located in southwestern Nevada in southern Nye County. The Nevada Test
Site is bordered on three sides by the Nellis Air Force Base Bombing and Gunnery Range (see Figure 4-4).
The Nellis Range serves as a buffer zone between Nevada Test Site test areas and land open to the public.
The Nevada Test Site comprises about 3,500 square kilometers (1,350 square miles), making this one of the
largest contiguous, unpopulated land areas in the United States. The Nevada Test Site has been used for
underground weapons testing and as a nonnuclear test area. Congress has mandated that the Federal
Government pursue the development of mined geologic repositories for the permanent disposal of SNF and
high-level waste and has directed DOE to study
Figure 4-4. Nevada Test Site location and site map.the Yucca Mountain, Nevada, site to determine whether it is a suitable site for the nation's first geologic
repository.
The majority of the land near the Nevada Test Site is managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land
Management and used for livestock grazing. The area is surrounded by recreational areas used for activities
such as hunting, fishing, and camping.
The economy of the two-county area near the Nevada Test Site is dominated by support services for
contractor personnel at the Nevada Test Site, with a direct link to Clark County and the Las Vegas area where
most of the employees reside. Most of the offsite supporting contractors and the labor and capital supporting
indirect economic activity connected to the Nevada Test Site are also located in Clark County. In 1990, the
population of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Statistical area was 735,000, with a 4.7 percent annual growth rate
since 1980. In contrast, Nye County is sparsely populated, with employment provided by service industries,
some mining, and Government-sector jobs. As of January 1994, the work force totaled 8,563.
The population within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Nevada Test Site has been characterized for
the purposes of identifying whether any disproportionately high and adverse impacts exist to minority and
low-income communities. The population surrounding the Nevada Test Site is shown to be 6 percent
minority and 12 percent low-income, based on U.S. Bureau of Census information and the definitions and
approach presented in Appendix L.
On the Nevada Test Site, numerous prehistoric sites and prehistoric/historic sites have been recorded
and recommended as eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. However, none of them are
located in the vicinity of the proposed SNF management facility. Historic activities began in 1849 with the
Emigrant Trail, mining camps, and later the settlements of Bullfrog-Goldfield, Las Vegas, and Tonopah.
Southern Nevada, including parts of what is now the Nevada Test Site, was inhabited by peoples of the
Southern Paiute and Shoshone Tribes. Areas in the northern portion of the Nevada Test Site, including the
Pahute and Rainier Mesas, contain sites of cultural affiliation to these peoples. However, no known Native
American resources are located within the areas proposed for SNF facilities. Some late Pleistocene terrestrial
vertebrate fossils also occur in the area, notably at Tule Springs.
The Nevada Test Site is in a visual setting of low-lying valleys and flats interspersed with mountains
and the vegetation of the Mojave Desert and Great Basin. Because the public can be expected to have little
concern about changes in the area's landscape and views are not regionally unique, the area may be considered
to have low to moderate visual sensitivity.
The Nevada Test Site is located in the southern part of the Great Basin section of the Basin and
Range Physiographic Province. Local geology is characterized by mountains of Precambrian and Paleozoic
sedimentary rocks and Tertiary volcanic tuffs and lavas separated by alluvial, topographically closed valleys.
Sedimentary rocks are complex, folded, and faulted carbonates in the upper and lower parts and shale and
sandstone in the middle section. Volcanic rocks are predominantly Tertiary tuffs with some basalts and
scattered granitic plutons. Potential geologic resources within the Nevada Test Site boundaries include silver,
gold, tungsten, molybdenum, zeolites, barite, and fluorite.
The area of the Nevada Test Site is historically of low-to-moderate seismicity. On a scale of 0 to 4,
the Nevada Test Site is in Uniform Building Code Seismic Risk Zones 2B and 3. Seismic activity in the
Nevada Test Site area generally occurs as thrust faults, normal faults, and strike-slip faults. Recent
displacements are thought to have occurred as a consequence of underground nuclear explosions. Recorded
seismic activity before 1978 within 10 kilometers (6 miles) of Yucca Mountain shows seven earthquakes;
two had magnitudes 3.6 and 3.4 on the Richter scale, and five had magnitudes that were smaller or could not
be determined because of instrument problems. Two historical earthquakes with a magnitude of 6 (Richter
scale) have been reported 110 kilometers (68 miles) southwest of Yucca Mountain and 210 kilometers (130
miles) to the northeast. Most earthquakes in the area are less than 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) in depth.
Historic seismic events and the length of active faults can be used to infer a maximum magnitude of 7 to 8 for
earthquakes in the Yucca Mountain region. Recurrence intervals for earthquakes with magnitudes greater
than 7 are 25,000 years, greater than 6 are 2,500 years, and greater than 5 are 250 years.
The climate in the Nevada Test Site region is characterized by high solar radiation, limited
precipitation, low humidity, and large diurnal temperature ranges. At Area 6, the mean daily minimum and
maximum temperatures are -6.1 to 10.6C (21 to 51F) in January and 14 to 36C (57 to 96F) in July.
Average precipitation at Area 6 is 15 centimeters (6 inches).
DOE maintains an extensive network of air sampling stations for radiological parameters such as
particulates, reactive gases, tritium, and noble gases. Nonradiological air pollutants are within state and
Federal standards. In recent years, the majority of radioactive effluents at the Nevada Test Site have resulted
from underground nuclear tests. In addition, some of the radioactivity detected by onsite air monitors can be
attributed to resuspension of radioactive particulate matter remaining from the atmospheric testing conducted
from 1951 to 1962. Monitoring of airborne particulates, noble gases, and tritiated water vapor on the Nevada
Test Site in 1992 indicated onsite concentrations that were generally not statistically different from
background concentrations. External gamma exposure monitoring has indicated that the gamma environment
has been consistent from year to year. Although airborne releases of radioactivity to offsite areas occurred
during the years that atmospheric testing was performed, in recent years, no Nevada Test Site-related
radioactivity has been detected offsite at any air sampling station.
Surface drainage in the Nevada Test Site area is ephemeral, and almost no streamflow data have been
collected. Perennial surface waters occur as springs and in short reaches of the Amargosa River. Potential
evaporation is 152 to 170 centimeters per year (60 to 67 inches per year). Run-off still occurs in response to
infrequent storm events, which may cause local flooding, especially in Fortymile Canyon, the Amargosa
River, and Jackass Flats drainage. There is the potential for a 100-year magnitude flood to transport
radioactive contaminants released as a result of historic underground nuclear testing beyond the boundaries of
the Nevada Test Site.
Six major aquifers occur in the area of the Nevada Test Site, including some perched groundwater.
The hydrogeology is characterized by great depths to the groundwater table of 200 to 500 meters (660 to
1,640 feet) and slow velocity in the saturated and unsaturated zones. Flow velocities in these systems range
from 1.8 to 183 meters (6 to 600 feet) per year. Regional groundwater flow is from the north and northeast
toward the regional discharge area near Ash Meadows in the Amargosa Desert. Modeling studies for the
Radioactive Waste Management Site at Area 5 indicate that the travel time from the surface to the regional
water table is on the order of thousands of years.
Water in southern Nevada (excluding the Las Vegas area) is used chiefly for irrigation and to a lesser
extent for livestock, municipal needs, and domestic supplies. Almost all water supplies are pumped from the
groundwater aquifers, although some springs supply water to Death Valley and other areas south of the
Nevada Test Site. The Nevada Test Site obtains its water supply from the aquifers underlying the Nevada
Test Site in the Ash Meadows Subbasin and Alkali Flat-Furnace Creek Ranch Subbasin. Nevada Test Site
water use is discussed in detail in Appendix F of Volume 1.
Groundwater meets U.S. Environmental Protection Agency secondary standards for major cations
and anions and the primary standards for deleterious constituents. Contamination by radionuclides occurs
below the water table as well as in the unsaturated zone above it as a result of underground nuclear testing.
The extent of this contamination is currently being studied.
The Nevada Test Site lies in a transition area between the Mojave Desert and Great Basin,
supporting flora and fauna from both areas. Less than 1 percent of the area has been developed. Natural
vegetation occurs in nine plant communities identified as creosote bush; blackbrush; creosote-blackbrush,
hopsage-desert thorn; sagebrush; saltbush; mountains, hills, and mesas; and two distinct desert thorn plant
communities. Introduced weedy species, such as cheatgrass and Russian thistle, are common in disturbed
areas.
Approximately 273 vertebrate wildlife species have been observed onsite, including over 30 species
of reptiles, 190 species of birds, and 50 species of mammals. Common species include reptiles, rodents,
raptors, and wild horses. A number of game and fur-bearing species are found on the Nevada Test Site, but
hunting and trapping are not permitted.
National Wetland Inventory maps of the Nevada Test Site have not been prepared, nor have wetlands
been delineated onsite. Available information indicates that wetlands on the Nevada Test Site are limited in
distribution and extent. Small riverine and palustrine wetlands may occur adjacent to surface drainages,
springs, playas, and reservoirs on the Nevada Test Site. There are no perennial streams on the Nevada Test
Site, and permanent surface water sources are limited to a few small springs and reservoirs. Springs do not
support fish populations onsite, while reservoirs support introduced bluegill, goldfish, and golden shiner.
Twenty-five federally and state-listed threatened, endangered, and other special status species have
been identified on and in the vicinity of the Nevada Test Site, including 9 birds, 2 reptiles, 1 fish, 2 mammals,
and 11 plant species. Federally endangered species include the American peregrine falcon, bald eagle, and
Devil's Hole pupfish. The federally threatened species is the desert tortoise.
The major noise sources at the Nevada Test Site occur primarily in developed operational areas and
include various facilities; equipment and machines (for example, engines, pumps, boilers, steam vents, paging
systems, construction equipment, and vehicles); aircraft operations; and testing. At the Nevada Test Site
boundary away from most facilities, noise levels are barely distinguishable from background noise levels.
Some wildlife disturbances may occur as a result of these activities.
Vehicular access to the Nevada Test Site is provided by U.S. Route 95 from the south and off-road
access via State Route 375 from the northeast. No major improvements are scheduled for these segments
providing immediate access to the Nevada Test Site.
The major railroad in the area is the Union Pacific, which runs through Las Vegas and is located
approximately 80 kilometers (50 miles) east of the Nevada Test Site. A 15-kilometer (9-mile) railroad serves
Area 25, but it does not connect with the Union Pacific line.
Background radiation exposure and releases of radionuclides to the environment from Nevada Test
Site operations provide the sources of radiation exposure to people in the Nevada Test Site region. The
estimated dose-equivalent during 1992 for the population within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Nevada Test
Site was 5.2 10-3 person-rem. The average dose was 1.1 10-5 rem (1.110-2 millirem) in 1992 for a person
at the Nevada Test Site boundary. This dose is well below the National Emission Standards for Hazardous
Air Pollutants standard of 0.01 rem (10 millirem) per year and is a very small percentage of the background
dose.
From 1988 to 1993, water use at the Nevada Test Site varied from a high of 134 liters per second
(2,125 gallons per minute) in 1989 to a low of 60 liters per second (949 gallons per minute) in 1993.
Significant changes in consumption are not anticipated.
From 1989 to 1993, Nevada Test Site electrical consumption ranged from 144,521 to
183,188 megawatt hours, with peak demands varying from 30.9 to 38.4 megavolt-amperes. In 1995,
consumption is projected to be 176,440 megawatt hours, with a peak demand of 39.5 megavolt-amperes.
Nevada Test Site manages the following categories of waste: low-level waste, transuranic waste,
hazardous waste, radioactive mixed waste, and nonhazardous waste. The Nevada Test Site does not currently
manage high-level waste or SNF. Waste management activities include onsite treatment, onsite storage,
onsite disposal, and preparation for appropriate offsite disposal. In addition, the Nevada Test Site uses and
manages an onsite inventory of hazardous materials, including some managed in underground storage tanks.
Total nonradioactive waste generated at the Nevada Test Site in 1992 included approximately
90,000 kilograms (100 tons) of Resource Conservation and Recovery Act hazardous waste and
218,000 kilograms (240 tons) of hazardous non-Resource Conservation and Recovery Act waste.
4.5 Oak Ridge Reservation
This section presents summary environmental characterization information on the Oak Ridge
Reservation. This information has been used to evaluate impacts at the Oak Ridge Reservation under various
alternatives for management of SNF. More detailed information characterizing the Oak Ridge Reservation is
presented in Appendix F, under separate cover.
The Oak Ridge Reservation is located on approximately 34,667 acres (140 square kilometers) of
federally owned land. The reservation comprises forested lands, public lands, buffer zones and three
operations areas: Y-12 Plant, Oak Ridge National Laboratories, and the K-25 Site (formerly the Oak Ridge
Gaseous Diffusion Plant) (see Figure 4-5). The Oak Ridge Reservation is located within the incorporated
city limits of Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Bordering land uses are predominantly rural, including residences, small
farms, forest, and pasture.
Most of the industrial and commercial development, by energy-related companies in support of the
Oak Ridge Reservation, has occurred in the City of Oak Ridge in Anderson and Roane counties. Regional
economic linkages at the Oak Ridge Reservation occur primarily within Anderson, Knox, Roane, and Loudon
counties, where most of the offsite contractors, labor, and capital are located. Employment at the Oak Ridge
Reservation in 1990 was approximately 17,080 people, and it is projected to decrease to approximately
16,980 by the year 1999.
The population within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Oak Ridge Reservation has been characterized
for the purposes of identifying whether any disproportionately high and adverse impacts exist to minority and
low-income communities. The population surrounding the Oak Ridge Reservation is shown to be 6 percent
minority and 16 percent low-income, based on U.S. Bureau of Census information and the definitions and
approach presented in Appendix L.
There are no identified archaeological sites or historic structures on the proposed site for the SNF
management facilities on the Oak Ridge Reservation. Invertebrate fossils remains are found in early
Cambrian to early Mississippian aged formations underlying the Oak Ridge Reservation. In the
Figure 4-5. Oak Ridge Reservation location and site map.early 1700s, the Overhill Cherokee lived in the area of the Oak Ridge Reservation. These Native Americans
were forcibly moved to Oklahoma in 1838. While the Cherokee may retain cultural affiliation with their
ancestral home, there are no known Native American resources on the proposed site for SNF facilities.
Visual resources are characterized by a series of low ridges and valleys trending northeast to
southwest. Deciduous and coniferous forest covers about 80 percent of the Oak Ridge Reservation. The
DOE facilities are brightly lit at night, making them highly visible.
The area of the Oak Ridge Reservation is historically of low-to-moderate seismicity. On a scale of 0
to 4, the Oak Ridge Reservation is in a Uniform Building Code Seismic Risk Zone 2A. The Oak Ridge
Reservation lies entirely within the western portion of the Valley and Ridge Province, near the boundary with
the Cumberland Plateau. This province is characterized by numerous linear ridges and valleys. There are
three regional thrust faults in the area. From 1811 to 1975, five major earthquakes have affected the Oak
Ridge Reservation area, but none has been at an intensity that caused severe damage. There is no evidence of
any volcanic activity in the area for more than one million years.
The climate of the region is characterized by moderate to high precipitation in all seasons, high
humidity, low winds, and low diurnal temperature ranges. At Oak Ridge, mean annual precipitation was 54
inches (137 centimeters) from 1961 to 1990. Mean daily temperatures range from 2.6C (36F) in January
to 24.8C (76.7F) in July. Daytime winds are usually southwesterly, while nighttime winds are
northeasterly. In Tennessee, tornadoes are infrequent. The western half of the state has experienced three
times as many tornadoes as the eastern half where the Oak Ridge Reservation is located. The Oak Ridge
Reservation experienced a tornado from a severe thunderstorm on February 21, 1993.
A network of air monitoring stations at the Oak Ridge Reservation measures several types of
uranium particulates, heavy metals, and several materials released by a Toxic Substances Control Act
incinerator. The total dose of 0.0033 rem (3.3 millirem) per year to the maximally exposed individual is well
within the 0.01 rem (10 millirem) per year National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants
standard. The estimated collective committed effective dose equivalent to the approximately 880,000
persons within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Oak Ridge Reservation was approximately 52 person-rem for
1992. This represents about 0.02 percent of the 280,000 person-rem that the surrounding population might
receive from all sources of natural radiation. The Oak Ridge Reservation meets the state and Federal
standards for all criteria pollutants.
The surface drainage of the Oak Ridge Reservation includes numerous creeks (such as White Oak,
Poplar, and Bear Creeks) and the Clinch River, which subsequently flow to the Tennessee River. Melton Hill
Dam, immediately south of the Oak Ridge Reservation, controls the flow of the Clinch River near the Oak
Ridge Reservation. Average discharge from the dam was 150 cubic meters (5,300 cubic feet) per second
from 1963 to 1979. The Clinch River supplies water for the Oak Ridge Reservation and for regional
industrial uses.
Geologic units of the Oak Ridge Reservation comprise two hydrologic groups: (a) the Knox Aquifer,
formed by the Knox Group and Maynardsville Limestone, and (b) the Oak Ridge Reservation aquitards,
which include other geologic units of the area including sandstones, siltstones, and shales. The Knox Aquifer
has solution conduits that store and transmit relatively large volumes of water, while the aquitards are
controlled by fractures and transmit limited amounts of water. The aquifer is the primary source of sustained
stream flow on the Oak Ridge Reservation. However, some flowpaths of the Knox Aquifer lead to discharge
points outside the Oak Ridge Reservation boundary. Because of the abundance of surface water in the area,
groundwater wells are not common. Groundwater quality is good above 300 meters (1,000 feet), but it has
high total dissolved solids at depth.
Groundwater contamination has occurred in the general area of past-practice waste disposal sites,
waste storage tanks, spill sites, and contaminated inactive facilities. Principal contaminants include volatile
organics, nitrates, heavy metals, and radioactivity. Exact rates and extent of the contamination have not been
quantified. However, data indicate that most contamination remains relatively close to the source. As an
example of the maximum extent of groundwater contamination, nitrate has been detected in wells 3,000 feet
(900 meters) southwest of the source. Nitrate is relatively mobile in groundwater and may therefore define
the maximum horizontal migration of contamination. At Oak Ridge National Laboratory, 20 waste area
groups have been identified and are being monitored for groundwater contamination. Monitoring data from
each waste area group will direct further groundwater studies. At the K-25 Site, organics are the most
commonly detected groundwater contaminants. Elevated levels of gross alpha and gross beta have been
detected in a number of wells. Uranium and technetium-99, respectively, appear to be primarily responsible
for the elevated gross alpha and gross beta levels. The metals chromium, lead, arsenic, and barium have been
detected in a number of wells at concentrations exceeding drinking water standards. Elevated levels of
fluoride and polychlorinated biphenyls have also been detected in some wells.
The offsite residential drinking water quality monitoring program has detected radionuclides and
organics in some offsite monitoring wells; however, concentrations have been below drinking water
standards. Fluoride has been detected at concentrations exceeding drinking water standards in one offsite
well. The high fluoride concentration and accompanying pH are most likely from natural chemical reactions
in the substrate.
The Clinch River supplies most of the water to the Oak Ridge Reservation, the City of Oak Ridge,
and other cities along the river. Major surface water uses include withdrawals for industrial and public water
supplies, commercial and recreational navigation, and other recreational water activities. Because of the
abundance of surface water, most community and Oak Ridge Reservation water supplies come from surface
supplies rather than groundwater. One supply well exists on the reservation for use as a supplemental water
supply to a laboratory. Groundwater is used for some domestic, municipal, farm, irrigation, and industrial
purposes. A typical well in the aquitard yields under 0.25 gallons per minute (0.02 liters per second), and in
many places wells are incapable of producing enough water to support a typical household.
The Oak Ridge Reservation area was cleared by logging and agricultural practices in the past, but it
is currently dominated by pine and pine hardwood, and oak hickory, as well as northern hardwood and
hemlock-white pine-hardwood forest types.
Approximately 267 different vertebrate wildlife species have been recorded onsite, including 39
mammals, 169 birds, 33 reptiles, and 26 amphibians. Local habitats include wetlands, fields, pasture, and
pine plantations in addition to forest. Undeveloped areas on the Oak Ridge Reservation support game and
fur-bearing populations.
Wetlands have been identified on the Oak Ridge Reservation, based primarily on the National
Wetland Inventory maps. Wetlands on the Oak Ridge Reservation include emergent, scrub/shrub, and
forested wetland. These wetlands are located in embayments of the Melton Hill and Watts Bar Reservoir that
border the reservation; along all major streams, including East Fork Poplar Creek, Bear Creek, and their
tributaries; in old farm ponds; and around groundwater seeps. Commercial fishing occurs adjacent to the Oak
Ridge Reservation for catfish and carp. Sport fishing for bass, catfish, and other fresh-water fish is also
popular.
Forty-seven species of federally and state-listed threatened, endangered, and other special status
species have been identified on and in the vicinity of the Oak Ridge Reservation, including 19 plants, 3
amphibians, 4 reptiles, 2 fish, 14 birds, and 5 mammals. Virginia spirea is a federally threatened plant
species; bald eagle, peregrine falcon, gray bat, and Indiana bat are federally endangered species found in the
area. The state-listed Tennessee dace has been recorded in Bear Creek and tributaries of East Fork Poplar
Creek.
The major noise sources within the Oak Ridge Reservation occur primarily in developed operational
areas and include facilities and equipment and machines, such as transformers, engines, pumps, boilers, and
vehicles. Outside the operations area major sources of noise are vehicles and railroad operations. At the Oak
Ridge Reservation boundary, away from most of these activities, noise from these sources is barely
distinguishable from background noise levels. Some disturbances of wildlife may occur on the Oak Ridge
Reservation as a result of operations and construction activities.
Bear Creek Valley Road provides vehicular access to the Oak Ridge Reservation. Tennessee State
Routes 58, 62, 95, and 162 pass through the Oak Ridge Reservation and are open to the public. Road
construction and modification are planned for segments of Bear Creek Valley Road, Scarboro Road, and
State Routes 58, 62, and 95 in the near future. Interstate 40 is within 8 kilometers (5 miles) to the south.
Railroad service on the Oak Ridge Reservation is provided by CSX Transportation and the Norfolk and
Southern Corporation. Knoxville is the closest major airport, 64 kilometers (40 miles) away.
Low-level, hazardous, and mixed wastes are generated and managed at the Y-12 Plant, K-25 Site,
and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Nonhazardous wastes are generated at all three sites and disposed of
at the Y-12 Plant Sanitary Landfill. Oak Ridge Reservation generates and manages SNF and transuranic
waste. Waste management at the Y-12 Plant and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory includes onsite waste
treatment, onsite waste disposal, preparation for proper offsite waste disposal, and onsite waste storage.
Liquid and solid hazardous wastes are disposed of offsite. Some low-level radioactive wastes are disposed of
onsite.
4.6 Naval Sites
This section presents summary environmental characterization information on the naval sites that
have been evaluated under various alternatives for management or examination of naval SNF. This
information has been used to evaluate impacts at the sites under various alternatives for management of SNF.
More detailed information characterizing these sites is presented in Appendix D, under separate cover.
The average annual radiation exposure for each naval shipyard radiation worker is 0.26 rem (260
millirem) (NNPP 1993). The average lifetime accumulated exposure for shipyard workers is 1.2 rem (1,200
millirem) (NNPP 1993).
4.6.1 Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
The Puget Sound Naval Shipyard is located in Bremerton, Washington, 23 kilometers (14 miles)
west of Seattle and 32 kilometers (20 miles) northwest of Tacoma (Figure 4-6). The population within 80
kilometers (50 miles) of the shipyard is about 3 million people.
The population within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard has been
characterized for the purposes of identifying whether any disproportionately high and adverse impacts exist to
minority and low-income communities. The population surrounding the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard is
shown to be 13 percent minority and 8 percent low-income, based on U.S. Bureau of Census information and
the definitions and approach presented in Appendix L.
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard is on 132 hectares (327 acres) of highly developed land. The
waterfront dry dock area is the high-security portion of the shipyard where most production activities take
place. This area includes production shops, administration, and some public works and supply functions.
The upland area of the shipyard provides services to military personnel, including housing, retail goods and
services, recreation, counseling, dental care, and other support services. The industrial support area in the
southwestern portion of the shipyard includes several piers for homeported ships and inactive fleet, the power
plant, warehouses, a steel yard, public works shops, and parking.
There are about 10,200 civilians working at the shipyard. With other Government facilities in the
area, the Federal payroll in Kitsap County, where the shipyard is located, provides about 45 percent of the
total employment.
There are no prehistoric archaeological sites identified at the shipyard. There are four National
Registered Historical Districts and one National Historic Landmark within the boundaries of the shipyard.
Until the mid-1880s, Kitsap County was inhabited by several Native American tribes of the Salish language
group who lived on the shores of Puget Sound. For about
Figure 4-6. Puget Sound Naval Shipyard location and vicinity map.100 years, the principal settlement of the Suquamish Tribe lay along the west shore of Agate Passage. There
are no Native American properties or ceremonial sites in the shipyard areas where SNF activities would be
conducted.
The natural topography of the shipyard has been altered significantly from its original condition.
Portions of the upland areas of the complex were cut to fill marshes and create level land. The resulting fill
material was predominantly a silty, gravelly sand with occasional pockets of silts and clays. The remaining
areas of natural soils vary from dense glacial deposits to soft bay mud and peat. The upland soil is a stiff,
hardpacked, clay soil with low permeability.
The site lies within Uniform Building Code Seismic Risk Zone 3. There have been approximately
200 earthquakes in the area since 1840, most of which caused little or no damage. The
most recent earthquakes of high magnitude were near Olympia [64 kilometers (40 miles) from Bremerton] in
1949 (7.1 on the Richter scale) and near Seattle in 1965 (6.5 on the Richter scale). The central Puget Sound
area could experience an earthquake of intensity 7.5 on the Richter scale. There has been no known surface
faulting in conjunction with earthquakes in the shipyard region. Potential hazards from volcanism are
minimal and limited to windborne volcanic ash.
The potential hazard from tsunamis and seiches is minimal because the system of straits and inlets
that surround Puget Sound provides a natural barrier, effectively damping the propagation of distantly
generated tsunamis.
The general area around Bremerton is damp, cool, and cloudy much of the year. Average windspeed
at the Seattle-Tacoma Airport is 4 meters per second (9 miles per hour), with prevailing winds from the
southwest.
The Code of Federal Regulations (40 CFR Part 81) states that the Air Quality Control Region for
this site is better than national standards for total suspended particulate matter and sulfur dioxide. The area
has no specific classification for ozone, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen dioxide. The nearest Class I Area is
Olympic National Park, approximately 24 kilometers (15 miles) from the site.
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard has no important surface freshwaters. Groundwater is generally found
within 30 meters (100 feet) of the ground surface in sand and gravel layers. The quality of most groundwater
near Bremerton is good. Groundwater is used for approximately 35 percent of the public water supply.
Current shipyard use is about 2.6 billion liters (676 million gallons) annually.
Vegetation and wildlife on the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard are limited to undeveloped areas that
comprise approximately 19 hectares (46 acres) of the entire Bremerton Naval Complex. Most of these areas
have been previously disturbed and are currently landscaped with native and ornamental trees and shrubs. No
sensitive, threatened, or endangered aquatic or terrestrial species have been observed at the shipyard.
Land access to the Seattle/Tacoma area is over two interstate highways: Interstate 90 and
Interstate 5. The major thoroughfare in south Kitsap County is State Route 16, which runs south from
Bremerton to Tacoma where it connects with Interstate 5. Bremerton's primary access routes include State
Routes 3, 303, and 304.
The Burlington Northern Railroad provides scheduled and on-demand freight service to southern and
central Kitsap County. A Navy-owned spur line from Shelton, Washington, provides additional rail service to
the shipyard. SNF originating at Bremerton and Pearl Harbor has historically been transported by rail from
Bremerton to the Expended Core Facility at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. Since 1962, all 134
shipments of SNF have been sent from Bremerton to the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory by rail-114
originating from Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and 20 transported by ship from Hawaii to the Puget Sound
Naval Shipyard, where the containers were transferred to railcars for the journey to the Idaho National
Engineering Laboratory.
The annual airborne emissions from the site do not result in any measurable radiation exposure to the
general public. Emissions of radionuclides from the site result in a calculated effective dose equivalent of less
than 0.0001 rem (0.1 millirem) per year to any member of the general public.
In addition, normal activities associated with current naval nuclear operations at the site do not result
in the intentional discharge of any radioactive liquid effluent. Environmental monitoring programs conducted
by the site and independent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency monitoring of shipyard sites have shown
that the operations at the site have had no adverse impacts on public health or safety. Additional discussion
of these monitoring programs is found in Section 4.1.1 of Appendix D of Volume 1 of this EIS.
4.6.2 Norfolk Naval Shipyard
Norfolk Naval Shipyard is located in the Tidewater region of Virginia and is contiguous with the city
of Portsmouth (see Figure 4-7). Newport News Shipyard, where some naval nuclear ships are defueled, is
located in Newport News, Virginia (see Figure 4-8). Six city areas are within 24 kilometers (15 miles) of the
Norfolk Naval Shipyard: Portsmouth, Chesapeake, Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Hampton and Newport News,
and Suffolk. About 1.5 million people (USBC 1992) reside within an 80-kilometer (50-mile) radius of the
shipyard, and about 8,500 shipyard workers are employed at the shipyard.
The population within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Norfolk Naval Shipyard has been
characterized for the purposes of identifying whether any disproportionately high and adverse impacts exist to
minority and low-income communities. The population surrounding the Norfolk Naval
Figure 4-7. Norfolk Naval Shipyard location and vicinity map.Figure 4-8. Newport News Shipyard location and vicinity map.Shipyard is shown to be 33 percent minority and 11 percent low-income, based on U.S. Bureau of Census
information and the definitions and approach presented in Appendix L.
Norfolk Naval Shipyard occupies over 486 hectares (1,200 acres) and includes over
500 administrative, industrial, and support structures along 4 miles of shoreline. Over 95 percent of the land
within its boundaries is covered with structures or paved with concrete or asphalt. The facility is divided into
a controlled industrial area and a nonindustrial area. All piers, dry docks, and work facilities involved with
naval nuclear propulsion plant work are within the controlled industrial area.
No prehistoric archaeological sites or submerged cultural resources have been identified at the
shipyard. Drydock I is a National Historic Landmark. There are no Native American properties or
ceremonial sites in the areas where naval SNF activities would be conducted.
Norfolk Naval Shipyard is located in Uniform Building Code Seismic Risk Zone 1, which is the
second lowest of four risk categories. No volcanic hazards exist.
The general climate of the area is mild and moist, with predominant winds from the south to
southwest. In summer, afternoon thunderstorms are very common. Thunderstorms occasionally spawn
isolated tornadoes throughout the region, but they move through the area rapidly along with storm centers.
Hurricanes and tidal flooding are not uncommon; tornados are infrequent. The Code of Federal Regulations
(40 CFR Part 81) states that the Air Quality Control Region that includes this site is in marginal
nonattainment for ozone and is better than national standards for total suspended particulate matter and sulfur
dioxide. The area has no specific classification for carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide. The nearest Class
I Area is the Swanquarter National Wilderness Area, which is approximately 160 kilometers (100 miles)
from the site.
Norfolk Naval Shipyard is located on the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth River in a highly
industrialized area of the city of Portsmouth, Virginia, 13 kilometers (8 miles) upstream from the confluence
of the James and Elizabeth Rivers. The Southern Branch is a deep water river that
provides access to heavy industry in the vicinity of the shipyard. The Southern Branch is brackish and is not
a source of drinking water.
Shallow groundwater underlies the whole region. Designated as the Columbia Aquifer, the aquifer is
comprised of interbedded gravel, sand, silt, and clay and is unconfined throughout the region. Underneath the
Columbia Aquifer is the Yorktown Aquifer, which is a major source of domestic, commercial, and light
industrial water. This aquifer is the usual source of drinking and domestic consumption water for those
localities within the region not served by municipal water systems.
The shipyard area is highly developed, and its surface is about 95 percent covered with impervious
materials. Several federally designated threatened or endangered species exist in the region; however,
habitats have not been identified on shipyard property. No state-listed rare, threatened, or endangered species
exist within the 24-kilometer (15-mile) tidal influence zone.
There are three main road corridors within the city of Portsmouth. These roads are High Street,
Portsmouth Boulevard, and George Washington Highway, and they provide access to suburban commercial
and residential areas. The Downtown and Midtown Tunnels link Portsmouth and Norfolk and join via
connecting arteries to the regional interstate highway network consisting of Interstates 64, 262, 464, and 664.
Interstate 64 crosses Hampton Roads and Interstate 664 crosses the lower James River, linking the south-side
cities to Newport News and Hampton on the peninsula.
Norfolk Southern and CSX operate extensive rail transportation networks for freight and bulk cargo.
Norfolk and Newport News are the Nation's largest terminals for coal exports, and, along with Portsmouth,
have a large capacity for containerized and bulk cargos. Lines operated by CSX and Norfolk Southern
subsidiaries serve the shipyard at the north and south ends and at Southgate and St. Juliens Creek annexes.
Since 1965, all 10 shipments of naval SNF originating at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard have been made by rail
to the Expended Core Facility at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory.
The annual airborne emissions from the site do not result in any measurable radiation exposure to the
general public. Emissions of radionuclides from the site result in a calculated effective dose equivalent of less
than 0.0001 rem (0.1 millirem) per year to any member of the general public.
In addition, normal activities associated with current naval nuclear operations at the site do not result
in the intentional discharge of any radioactive liquid effluent. Environmental monitoring programs conducted
by the site and independent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency monitoring of shipyard sites have shown
that the operations at the site have had no adverse impacts on public health or safety. Additional discussion
of these monitoring programs is found in Section 4.1.2 of Appendix D of Volume 1 of this EIS.
4.6.3 Portsmouth Naval Shipyard
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard is located in York County, in the southeast corner of Maine. It is on
Seavey Island, near the mouth of the Piscataqua River (see Figure 4-9). Seavey Island has an area of 113
hectares (278 acres). To the north lies the low-density residential community of Kittery, Maine. South of the
shipyard, across the river, is the city of Portsmouth (population 22,300) and the town of New Castle in New
Hampshire. The population within an 80-kilometer (50-mile) radius of the site is approximately 2.4 million.
The shipyard is the region's largest employer, with 5,000 employees.
Figure 4-9. Portsmouth Naval Shipyard location and vicinity map. The population within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard has been
characterized for the purposes of identifying whether any disproportionately high and adverse impacts exist to
minority and low-income communities. The population surrounding the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard is shown
to be 5 percent minority and 7 percent low-income, based on U.S. Bureau of Census information and the
definitions and approach presented in Appendix L.
On November 17, 1977, the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, entered the
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places. The district
includes 54 acres of land and 59 buildings and structures. There are no known cultural resources in the area
of the site where naval SNF would be stored.
Seavey Island is a rock knob, a prominent bedrock outcrop. The bedrock is a fine-grained,
lime-silicate material consisting of chalky sandstone formed under heat and pressure, siltstone, and gray
sandstone shale. There are no economic geologic resources at the site.
The shipyard is in Uniform Building Code Seismic Risk Zone 2A. Numerous small faults are found
in rock units across the region, but only the Rye-Kittery contact is important enough to show on a geologic
map.
The typical weather is caused by various incursions of cold, dry arctic air; warm land air from the
Gulf States; and cool, damp air from the Atlantic Ocean. Dominance of these systems can change on a daily
basis, creating highly variable weather conditions. Precipitation is evenly distributed over the year for an
annual total of 108 centimeters (42.6 inches). Local fog is observed 15 percent of the time, and it is dense
enough to restrict visibility to 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) or less about 35 percent of that time.
Winds average 3.9 meters per second (8.8 miles per hour), but speeds greater than 17.9 meters per
second (40 miles per hour) can occur any time of year. Severe weather from tornadoes and hurricanes is rare.
The Code of Federal Regulations (40 CFR Part 81) states that the Air Quality Control Region for
this site is in moderate nonattainment for ozone and is better than national standards for total suspended
particulate matter and sulfur dioxide. The area has no specific classification for carbon monoxide and
nitrogen dioxide. The nearest Class I Area to the site is the Presidential Range-Dry River Wilderness Area,
which is approximately 120 kilometers (75 miles) from the shipyard.
The Piscataqua River, formed by the confluence of the Cocheco River and the Salmon Falls River,
flows southeasterly for 21 kilometers (13 miles) until it enters the ocean at Portsmouth Harbor. The entire 21
kilometers (13 miles) of the river is tidal. The river is one of the fastest flowing tidal waterways of any
commercial port in the northeastern United States. The Piscataqua River is designated as having acceptable
water quality.
The limited amount of vegetation and the industrial nature of the shipyard limit the availability of
suitable habitat for most terrestrial species. There is one small freshwater wetland located at the shipyard.
No threatened or endangered species have been identified at the site.
Vehicles can reach the Kittery-Portsmouth area by means of Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1. The
shipyard is accessible by two federally owned bridges that cross to the residential streets of Kittery, Maine.
Walker Avenue is the primary access route to Bridge 1, and Whipple Road provides direct access to Bridge 2.
There is daily freight rail service to the Shipyard by the Boston and Maine Railroad. The railroad
connects Portsmouth with Manchester, New Hampshire; Portland, Maine; and Boston, Massachusetts.
Naval SNF has been removed from Navy nuclear ships at the shipyard and transported to the Idaho
National Engineering Laboratory since 1959. There have been 43 shipments made, all by rail.
The annual airborne emissions from the site do not result in any measurable radiation exposure to the
general public. Emissions of radionuclides from the site result in a calculated effective dose equivalent of less
than 0.0001 rem (0.1 millirem) per year to any member of the general public.
In addition, normal activities associated with current naval nuclear operations at the site do not result
in the intentional discharge of any radioactive liquid effluent. Environmental monitoring programs conducted
by the site and independent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency monitoring of shipyard sites have shown
that the operations at the site have had no adverse impacts on public health or safety. Additional discussion
of these monitoring programs is found in Section 4.1.3 of Appendix D of Volume 1 of this EIS.
4.6.4 Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard
The Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard is located in the Southeast Loch of Pearl Harbor, Oahu, Hawaii
(see Figure 4-10). The population of the island of Oahu was approximately 820,000 people in 1990.
The population within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard has been
characterized for the purposes of identifying whether any disproportionately high and adverse impacts exist to
minority and low-income communities. The population surrounding the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard is
shown to be 68 percent minority and 7 percent low-income, based on U.S. Bureau of Census information and
the definitions and approach presented in Appendix L.
Figure 4-10. Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard location and vicinity map. The shipyard employs about 5,000 civilian employees, and, combined with other U.S. Department of
Defense civilian employees, it accounts for 10,900 local jobs.
Pearl Harbor has been the site of several important historical events, and it is most noted for its role
in the Pacific Theater Defense during World War II. Naval Base Pearl Harbor was designated as a National
Historic Landmark in 1964; in 1974, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. There are no
archaeological sites located within the boundary of the shipyard. There are no Native Hawaiian properties or
ceremonial sites in the shipyard areas where naval SNF activities would be conducted.
Pearl Harbor estuary lies on the coastal sedimentary plain of southern Oahu. Streams, springs, and
groundwater flow into the harbor. The estuary was formed by freshwater flows that have eroded the coastal
plain and retarded coral growth. The west side of the harbor is primarily comprised of limestone reef
material. The east side of the harbor is mainly compacted volcanic ash. Hard, dense volcanic rock forms the
bulk of the rock material to the north. Much of the land area in Pearl Harbor is fill land created by dredge
spoils. There are no geologic resources of economic value at the shipyard.
The Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard is located in Uniform Building Code Seismic Risk Zone 1. Except
for the island of Hawaii, the islands are not a highly seismic area. Even on Hawaii, most of the earthquakes
originate from volcanic activity and do little or no damage, although a few have been quite severe. The
Hawaiian Islands were formed by volcanic eruptions; however, the only active volcanic area is on the island
of Hawaii. There are no volcanic hazards on the Island of Oahu.
Past tsunami inundation levels have been about 1 meter (3 feet) above mean sea level. Projected
tsunami wave elevations for the 10-, 100-, and 500-year event are 0.2, 0.6, and 1.2 meters (0.8, 2.0, and 3.8
feet), respectively, for adjacent coastal areas. Maximum reasonably foreseeable typhoon storm water level
rise would be approximately 4.3 meters (14.5 feet) above mean sea level.
The predominant winds are from the northeast, particularly from February to November. At certain
times of the year, south to southwest winds and mild offshore breezes can be expected. Winds with speeds
up to 22 meters per second (49 miles per hour) occasionally strike from the north or northeast, but they rarely
reach gale velocities. Southerly winds are usually accompanied by wet tropical air and frequent heavy
showers. Destructive hurricanes with high tidal surges have hit the Hawaiian Islands twice in the past 25
years (both times centered on Kauai), in 1982 and 1992.
The Code of Federal Regulations (40 CFR Part 81) states that the Air Quality Control Region for
this site is better than national standards for total suspended particulate matter and sulfur dioxide. The area
has no specific classification for ozone, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen dioxide. The nearest Class I Area is
Haleakala National Park, on the Island of Maui, which is 188 kilometers (117 miles) from the shipyard.
Eight streams discharge into Pearl Harbor. Some flooding occurs along the major streams, but it is
not a problem at the naval complex, affecting only a narrow strip along Aiea Stream. Naval Base Pearl
Harbor receives most of its water from the Koolau Aquifer and a small portion from the Waianae Aquifer,
which are located in south central Oahu.
No federally or state-listed threatened or endangered species or critical habitats are known to exist
within the confines of the shipyard. Because the area has been greatly disturbed and native vegetation
completely eliminated, there is little remaining terrestrial habitat of any consequence. Some migratory birds
and indigenous waterfowl occasionally frequent the shoreline areas of the shipyard, but none are residents.
There are several wetland areas within the Pearl Harbor area, including the Pearl Harbor National
Wildlife Refuge, which provides habitat for the endangered Hawaiian Coot and Hawaiian Stilt.
The traffic into and out of the base is a combination of commuting traffic, residential-related traffic,
and service traffic. Kamehameha Highway is the primary access route to the base from the Ewa/
Pearl City/
central Oahu direction. Both Kamehameha Highway and Interstate Highway H-1 provide access to the Naval
Base from Honolulu.
Naval SNF has been removed from Navy nuclear-powered ships and transported to the Expended
Core Facility at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. Naval SNF shipments to the Idaho National
Engineering Laboratory were initiated in 1962. Since then, 20 shipments have been made. The shipments
were taken by ship to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, where the containers were then transported to the
Idaho National Engineering Laboratory by rail.
The annual airborne emissions from the site do not result in any measurable radiation exposure to the
general public. Emissions of radionuclides from the site result in a calculated effective dose equivalent of less
than 0.0001 rem (0.1 millirem) per year to any member of the general public.
In addition, normal activities associated with current naval nuclear operations at the site do not result
in the intentional discharge of any radioactive liquid effluent. Environmental monitoring programs conducted
by the site and independent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency monitoring of shipyard sites have shown
that the operations at the site have had no adverse impacts on public health or safety. Additional discussion
of these monitoring programs is found in Section 4.1.1 of Appendix D of Volume 1 of this EIS.
4.6.5 Kesselring Site
The Kenneth A. Kesselring Site is located about 24 kilometers (15 miles) north of the City of
Schenectady, New York, and 13 kilometers (8 miles) west of Saratoga Springs (see Figure 4-11). It contains
three operating naval nuclear propulsion prototype plants and support facilities. The site also includes one
prototype plant that is being permanently shut down and one prototype that has been permanently shut down.
All operating facilities are located in a secure area near the center of the 1,578-hectare (3,900-acre)
reservation.
In 1993, the site employed about 1,450 civilian workers. About 1.15 million people live within an
80-kilometer (50-mile radius) of the site according to the 1990 Census, but most of the land immediately
adjacent to the site is either wooded or used for agriculture. The nearest cities include those previously
mentioned and Gloversville, Amsterdam, and Albany.
The population within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Kesselring Site has been characterized for the
purposes of identifying whether any disproportionately high and adverse impacts exist to minority and low-
income communities. The population surrounding the Kesselring Site is shown to be 6 percent minority and
9 percent low-income, based on U.S. Bureau of Census information and the definitions and approach
presented in Appendix L.
The Kesselring Site reservation was used primarily for agricultural purposes before Federal
Government acquisition in 1948. There are no known archaeological, architectural, cultural, or Native
American Indian sites in the secure area where SNF storage would take place.
The site lies on primarily unconsolidated material, primarily of glacial origin, that overlies bedrock.
Where it exists, the overburden can be up to several hundred feet thick. The overburden consists of three
basic kinds of depositional units: glacier debris, lake, and ice-contact/outwash deposits. Deposits from
glaciers overlie much of the bedrock and form the elliptical hills throughout most of the reservation. The
glacier deposits are a dense and poorly sorted mixture of clay, silt, sand, gravel, and boulders. Thinly
stratified lake clay and silt deposits are mapped over the southeastern quadrant of the site. The
ice-contact/outwash deposits mostly consist of stratified sands and gravels.
The general area of the site is in Uniform Building Code Seismic Risk Zone 2, with a moderate risk
of damage caused by earthquakes. There is a Zone 1 (minor damage) area to the south and a Zone 3 (major
damage) area to the north of the site. The maximum intensity earthquake within 161 kilometers (100 miles)
of the site had a Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale value of VII. The most recent earthquake of that intensity
occurred at Lake George, New York, on April 30, 1931. Because the site is located near the fault system that
caused this quake, an earthquake of similar intensity could occur at the site. There are no volcanic hazards in
the vicinity of the site.
Figure 4-11. Kesselring Site location and vicinity map. The general climate of the site is cold in winter and cool to warm in summer. Winds originate mostly
from the west or northwest during the winter, but come from the south in the warmer months. Wind
velocities are moderate and generally average less than 4.5 meters per second (10 miles per hour).
Destructive winds [greater than 36 meters per second (80 miles per hour)] occur infrequently, and tornadoes
are rare.
The Code of Federal Regulations (40 CFR Part 81) states that the Air Quality Control Region that
includes this site is in marginal nonattainment for ozone and is better than national standards for total
suspended particulate matter and sulfur dioxide. The area has no specific classification for carbon monoxide
and nitrogen dioxide. The nearest Class I Area is at Lye Brook Wilderness, Suarderland, Vermont, which is
74 kilometers (46 miles) from the site.
The Kesselring Site is located in a predominately rural area. There are 13 wetlands on the Kesselring
Site; current operations do not impact these wetlands. Federally or state-listed threatened and endangered
species located in the Saratoga County area include the bald eagle, the karner blue butterfly, the peregrine
falcon, and the red-shouldered hawk. There are, however, no records of any of these species on the site.
Only secondary roads follow the boundary of the site. They are used primarily by Kesselring Site
employees and as delivery routes for small products and produce. State Route 29 runs 3 kilometers (2 miles)
to the north, State Route 147 runs 6 kilometers (4 miles) to the west, and State Route 67 runs 6 kilometers (4
miles) to the south. State Route 50, 10 kilometers (6 miles) east, running from Saratoga Springs to Scotia,
carries the only appreciable amount of truck and bus traffic. The majority of through traffic uses either
Interstate 87 or parallel route U.S. Highway 9, 16 kilometers (10 miles) to the east.
Two lines of the Delaware and Hudson Railroad cross the region within 16 kilometers (10 miles) of
the site. The main north-south line runs through Ballston Spa, just over 8 kilometers (5 miles) to the east,
and a trunkline runs just over 8 kilometers (5 miles) to the northeast into the central Adirondack area.
SNF from the Kesselring Site has been sent to the Expended Core Facility at the Idaho National
Engineering Laboratory since 1961. Shipping containers are transported by truck to a nearby commercial rail
line where the containers were loaded onto rail cars. Since 1961, 20 shipments of naval SNF have been sent
to the Expended Core Facility from the Kesselring Site.
The annual airborne emissions from the site do not result in measurable radiation exposure to the
general public. Emissions of radionuclides from the site result in a calculated effective dose equivalent of less
than 0.0001 rem (0.1 millirem) per year to any member of the general public.
In addition, normal activities associated with current naval nuclear operations at the site do not result
in the intentional discharge of any radioactive liquid effluent. Environmental monitoring programs conducted
by the site have shown that the operations at the site have had no adverse impacts on public health or safety.
4.7 Other Generator/Storage Locations
In addition to the five major sites, DOE is responsible for the management of SNF generated at
several other DOE sites and other locations. These sites include DOE reactors at sites other than the Hanford
Site, Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, the Savannah River Site, and the Oak Ridge Reservation;
university and domestic research reactors; and three locations where specific types of commercial power
reactor SNF for which DOE is responsible are stored. This section summarizes environmental
characterization information for these sites that might be affected by programmatic decisions on SNF
management. More detailed information characterizing the sites is presented in Appendix E, under separate
cover.
The facilities and installations included in this category preclude the definition of their affected
environments in a consistent and uniform manner without describing each site. The information available in
existing facility documents varies widely depending on the nature of the installation and the requirements for
describing the environment by the overseeing or regulatory agencies. For example, the environmental
parameters required to be described by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for licensing of small
research reactors or material processing and storage facilities are fewer in number and less detailed than those
required for larger reactor installations at DOE facilities. Thus, the ability to represent these environmental
parameters in a consistent manner based on existing documentation is limited, and several parameters
addressed for the major DOE sites are not discussed at all or are discussed only to a limited degree for many
of these other generator/ storage locations. Because alternatives evaluated will not require alteration of these
sites, the sites are not described in detail. See Appendix E, Chapter 4 for more information.
4.7.1 DOE Test and Experimental Reactors
In addition to facilities at the Hanford Site, Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, Savannah River
Site, and Oak Ridge Reservation, experimental reactors are located at, and small quantities of SNF are in
storage at, the following four DOE sites: Brookhaven National Laboratory, Los Alamos National
Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, and Argonne National Laboratory-East.
4.7.1.1 Brookhaven National Laboratory.
Brookhaven National Laboratory is located on a
2,131-hectare (5,265-acre) site on Long Island, New York, approximately 97 kilometers (60 miles) east of
New York City, in a primarily suburban area. About 410,000 people reside in Brookhaven Township, which
houses the Laboratory, and 8,000 people live within 0.8 kilometer (0.5 mile) of the Laboratory boundary.
In terms of meteorology, the laboratory can be characterized, like most Eastern Seaboard areas, as a
well-ventilated site. The annual precipitation during 1991 was 45.3 inches (115 centimeters), which is about
3.1 inches (8.0 centimeters) below the 40-year annual precipitation average of 48.4 inches (123 centimeters).
Suffolk County, in which the site is located, is classified as being in nonattainment of the standards
for the criteria pollutant ozone. The county is in attainment of standards for carbon monoxide, particulates,
sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and lead.
No active earthquake-producing faults are known in the Long Island area. The area lies in a Uniform
Building Code Seismic Risk Zone 2A (moderate seismic hazard) area.
Groundwater flow under the Laboratory site is complex, moving in different directions in different
sections of the site, but generally with a velocity estimated to range from 30 to 45 centimeters per day (12 to
18 inches per day), flowing either toward the Peconic River or in deeper layers recharging the Atlantic Ocean.
The Nassau/Suffolk Aquifer System underlying the Brookhaven National Laboratory has been designated a
sole source aquifer by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The releases of radioactive gaseous and liquid effluents from Brookhaven National Laboratory from
1988 to 1992 have resulted in calculated average doses to hypothetical maximally exposed individuals of
0.000113 and 0.000722 rem (0.113 and 0.722 millirem) per year, respectively.
4.7.1.2 Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Los Alamos occupies an area of about 11,000
hectares (28,000 acres) located primarily in Los Alamos county in northern New Mexico, about 39 kilometers
(24 miles) northwest of Santa Fe. The resident population of Los Alamos county in 1990 was 18,115; about
3,900 Los Alamos National Laboratory employees reside in the adjacent Rio Arriba and Santa Fe counties.
The climate at Los Alamos National Laboratory is characterized as semi-arid steppe, with an average
annual rainfall of about 21 centimeters (8.1 inches). Severe weather affecting facility design or operation is
extremely rare. Los Alamos National Laboratory is located in the New Mexico Intrastate Air Quality Control
Region. Areas in Los Alamos National Laboratory and its surrounding counties are designated as in
attainment with respect to the National Ambient Air Quality Standards.
The Los Alamos National Laboratory is located on the Pajarito Plateau, which is dissected by deep
canyons separated by long narrow mesas. It lies within Seismic Zone 2B, and seismic hazards studies have
identified three active faults in the area. Studies suggest seismic events with a magnitude of 6.5 to 7.8 have
been produced in the last 500,000 years.
Surface water at Los Alamos consists of intermittent streams; several canyons receive treated
industrial or sanitary effluents that rarely extend aboveground beyond Los Alamos National Laboratory
boundaries. The depth to the main groundwater aquifer, which supplies nearly all water at Los Alamos
National Laboratory, ranges from about 366 meters (1,200 feet) in the west to about 183 meters (600 feet) in
the east part of the site, and groundwater discharges to springs along the Rio Grande.
The releases of radioactive effluents from Los Alamos National Laboratory over the period 1987 to
1991 have resulted in a calculated average dose to the hypothetical maximally exposed individual of about
0.004 rem (4 millirem) per year.
4.7.1.3 Sandia National Laboratories.
The Sandia National Laboratories reactor and SNF
operations are located on about 3,360 hectares (8,300 acres) of Kirtland Air Force Base allocated to DOE,
approximately 10 kilometers (6.5 miles) southeast of downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico. The 1990
population of Albuquerque was about 385,000.
The climate at Sandia National Laboratories is characteristic of a semi-arid steppe, with an average
annual rainfall of about 21 centimeters (8.1 inches). Severe weather affecting facility design or operation is
extremely rare. The Sandia National Laboratories is within the Albuquerque-Mid Rio Grande New Mexico
Intrastate Air Quality Control Region, portions of which are designated as nonattainment by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency for Colorado.
The Sandia National Laboratories is located on the Albuquerque East Mesa in a Seismic Zone 2B, in
a region of high seismic activity but of low magnitude and intensity. More than 1,100 earthquakes have
occurred during the last 127 years, but only 3 have caused damage in Albuquerque.
The Rio Grande is the main surface drainage route for the area, with an average flow of about 28.5
cubic meters per second (37.3 cubic yards per second). No perennial streams flow through the Sandia
National Laboratories area, and flooding is not a high probability at Kirtland Air Force Base. The
groundwater is distinguished by a fault complex underlying the area; depths range from 15 to 30 meters (50
to 100 feet) on the east side of the complex and from 115 to 152 meters (380 to 500 feet) on the west side.
Groundwater flow west of the complex is generally toward the north and northwest, and groundwater flow
east of the fault complex is typically west toward the fault system.
4.7.1.4 Argonne National Laboratory-East.
Argonne National Laboratory-East occupies
about a 688-hectare (1,700-acre) site located in DuPage County, Illinois, within the Chicago metropolitan
area. The site is surrounded by a 826-hectare (2,040-acre) green belt forest preserve operated by DuPage
County. The 1990 population of the Chicago metropolitan area was about
6.6 million people.
The climate in the Argonne National Laboratory-East area is characterized as continental, with an
average annual precipitation of 80 centimeters (31.5 inches). The area experiences about 40 thunderstorms
annually, occasionally accompanied by hail, damaging winds, or tornadoes. The theoretical probability of a
tornado strike at Argonne National Laboratory-East is about one every 1,200 years, although the site was
struck by tornadoes in 1976 and 1978, with minor damage.
The Argonne National Laboratory-East site is located above about a 30-meter- (100-foot)-thick
glacial till deposit on top of dolomite bedrock. The site is in Uniform Building Code Seismic Zone 1.
Several areas of seismic activity are present at moderate distances from the site, but ground motions induced
by these seismic sources are expected to be minimal at the site.
The Argonne National Laboratory-East site contains a number of small ponds and surface streams
that enter the Des Plaines River about 2.0 kilometers (1.25 miles) southeast of the site center. Groundwater
is extracted from two underlying aquifers. No aquifers in the region are considered sole-source aquifers by
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
4.7.2 Domestic Research and Test Reactors
Appendix E also identifies 55 non-DOE facilities representing domestic, licensed, small generators
of SNF. They include training, research, and test reactors at universities, commercial establishments, and
several Government installations. These facilities have been licensed by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission for reactor operation and the storage of the SNF they generate. Although they are not DOE
facilities, past practices and long-term plans and agreements have always called for the SNF they generate to
be transported to DOE facilities. In the past, this SNF was generally processed at the Savannah River Site,
Hanford Site, or Idaho National Engineering Laboratory for recovery of the highly enriched uranium in their
fuel. Under all but the No Action and Decentralization alternatives, these fuels would be transported to a
DOE site for storage until ultimate disposition.
These 55 U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensed facilities, 40 of which are operated by
universities, are located in 28 states. They are located in a wide variety of areas, ranging from rural locations
to industrial research parks and urban university campuses, which does not permit a description of a typical
affected environment for these facilities. Information on the environments of three of the larger of these
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission-licensed research reactors [the National Institute of Standards and
Technology (former National Bureau of Standards), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the
University of Missouri reactors] is summarized in the following sections.
4.7.2.1 National Institute of Standards and Technology.
The National Institute of
Standards and Technology reactor is located on the Institute's 233-hectare (576-acre) campus in the city of
Gaithersburg, Maryland, about 20 miles northwest of downtown Washington, D.C. The 1990 population of
Gaithersburg, a Washington suburban area, was about 39,500. The nearest site boundary is about 0.40
kilometer (0.25 mile) southwest of the reactor.
The climate of the area is moderate, with infrequent occurrences of severe weather. Although a
number of winter storms and hurricanes have affected the general area, the site is not subject to flooding, and
the recurrence interval for a tornado at the site is about one in 2,000 years. Air quality is primarily
determined by the presence of 12-lane Interstate Highway 270, used by commuters to and from the downtown
Washington, D.C., area and suburban residential areas.
There are no known major faults in the site vicinity, although the site region is moderately seismic
(Seismic Zone l). The maximum ground acceleration for the site area was estimated to be 0.07g.
There are no discharges from the National Institute of Standards and Technology reactor to surface
streams or groundwater; liquid wastes are processed before discharge to the local sanitary sewer system and
have averaged 2.7 curies of tritium and 1.9 millicuries of other beta-gamma emitters per year from 1988 to
1992. Over the same period, the site released airborne emissions containing an average of 710 curies of
argon-41 and 353 curies of tritium per year, well below the license limits for the site. However, individual or
collective doses are not reported, and because site meteorological data are not monitored, doses cannot be
reliably estimated.
4.7.2.2 Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology
reactor, housed in a gas-tight building with 0.6-meter (2-feet) concrete shielding, is located on a 0.39-hectare
(1-acre) site in a heavily industrialized section of Cambridge, Massachusetts, a few blocks from the main
Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus and about 1.6 kilometer (1 mile) from Boston across the
Charles River. The population of Cambridge was about 95,800 in 1990.
The meteorological conditions vary from highly stable with light winds to unstable atmospheric
conditions with strong winds. Severe weather conditions are uncommon, and flooding of the area is not
expected even under record rainfall conditions. Air quality is typical of an urban area.
The Cambridge area has been relatively free of earthquakes over the past 150 years, but it did
experience an earthquake in 1755, which destroyed some buildings. The region is located in Seismic Zone 2,
and the reactor is conservatively designed to withstand projected seismic activity.
There are no discharges from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology reactor to surface streams or
groundwater; liquid wastes are processed before discharge to the local sanitary sewer system and have
averaged 0.074 curies of tritium and 9.5 millicuries of other beta-gamma emitters per year from 1988 to
1992. Over the same period, the reactor released airborne effluents containing an annual average of 1,215
curies of argon-41, well below the license limits for the reactor. However, individual or collective doses are
not reported, and because site meteorological data are not monitored, doses cannot be reliably estimated,
particularly given the highly urbanized vicinity.
4.7.2.3 University of Missouri.
The Columbia Research Reactor is sited within a 34-hectare
(85-acre) Research Park about 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) southwest of the main campus of the University of
Missouri, located south of the main business district of Columbia, Missouri. The population of Columbia
was about 69,000 in 1990. Agriculture is the predominant regional activity, although there are a number of
small industrial activities in the area.
The climate of the region is continental, and high windspeeds are not uncommon; 150 kilometer per
hour (94 mile per hour) winds have a recurrence interval of once in 100 years, but tornadoes are very
uncommon. Air quality is representative of the nonurban midwest. Surface drainage from the site moves
eventually to the Missouri River.
Columbia is located in the stable area of Missouri and, despite the proximity to the New Madrid area,
the probability of seismic damage in the area is low as reflected by its location in Seismic Zone 1.
There are no discharges from the University of Missouri/Columbia Research Reactor to surface
streams or groundwater; liquid waste is processed before discharge to the local sanitary sewer system and has
averaged 0.21 curie of tritium and 25.6 millicuries of other beta-gamma emitters per year from 1988 to 1992.
Over the same period, the reactor released airborne effluents containing an annual average of about 660
curies of argon-41 and about 7 curies of tritium, well below the license limits for the reactor. However,
individual or collective doses are not reported, and because site meteorological data are not monitored, doses
cannot be reliably estimated.
4.7.3 Spent Nuclear Fuel from Special Nuclear Power Plants
Three facilities house SNF from power reactors for which DOE has assumed responsibility. Unlike
the facilities discussed previously, no additional SNF is either being generated at or being transported to these
storage facilities. These facilities include the West Valley Demonstration Project, in West Valley, New York;
the former Fort St. Vrain Nuclear Power Plant in Colorado; and the Babcock & Wilcox Research Center,
Lynchburg, Virginia. Their environmental characterizations are summarized in the following sections and
presented in more detail in Appendix E.
4.7.3.1 West Valley Demonstration Project.
The West Valley Demonstration Project
occupies an 88-hectare (220-acre) site formerly housing the first United States commercial nuclear fuel
processing plant, within a larger 1,341-hectare (3,345-acre) site known as the Western New York Nuclear
Service Center. The Center is located in Cattaraugus County, a rural area of western New York State, about
50 kilometers (31 miles) south of Buffalo, New York, and 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of Lake Erie.
A 60-meter (200-foot) onsite meteorological tower is operated by DOE at the West Valley
Demonstration Project. A review of the West Valley Demonstration Project tower's 1992 data indicates that
the prevailing wind was from the south-southeast with a mean wind speed of 2.4 meters per second (5.4 miles
per hour). The precipitation for 1992 was 18 centimeters (7.1 inches) above the annual average of 104
centimeters (40.9 inches). The onsite 1992 wind data and National Weather Service wind data collected at
the Buffalo airport did not compare well, thereby indicating that the Buffalo airport is not representative for
predicting conditions at the West Valley Demonstration Project.
The West Valley Demonstration Project is located within the Cattaraugus Highlands, which is a
transitional zone between the Appalachian Plateau Province and the Great Lakes Plain. No fold or fault of
any consequence is recognized within the site. The Clarendon-Linden structure is the closest active "capable"
earthquake- (fault-) producing feature known to exist in the region. It is approximately 37 kilometers (23
miles) from the site. The site has experienced a moderate amount of relatively minor seismic activity. During
historical times, ground motion at the site probably has not exceeded a Modified Mercalli Intensity of IV or a
horizontal acceleration of 0.05g. It is estimated that the maximum earthquake on the Clarendon-Linden
structure would produce an earthquake of Modified Mercalli Intensity of VI or VII and a maximum horizontal
acceleration of approximately 0.12g at the site.
The West Valley Demonstration Project is located in the Cattaraugus Creek drainage basin, which is
part of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence watershed. All surface drainage from the West Valley Demonstration
Project is to Buttermilk Creek, which flows into Cattaraugus Creek and ultimately into Lake Erie. The
uppermost water-bearing unit underlying the West Valley Demonstration Project is a hydrologically isolated
part of the Cattaraugus Creek Aquifer System, which has been designated a sole source aquifer by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency. This unit is included in the sole source designation due to its hydrologic
similarity and proximity to the producing Cattaraugus Creek Aquifer.
4.7.3.2 Fort St.
Vrain. The Fort St. Vrain site is located in Weld County in northeastern
Colorado, approximately 5.6 kilometers (3.5 miles) northwest of the town of Platteville, 0.8 kilometer (0.5
mile) west of the South Platte River, and 56 kilometers (35 miles) north of Denver. The Fort St. Vrain site
consists of 1,132 hectares (2,798 acres). Based on the 1980 census, the population within an 8-kilometer (5-
mile) radius of the site was estimated to be 3,148, with 1,662 residing in the town of Platteville (USBC
1982). Most of the land in the immediate area of the site is disturbed, agricultural land.
The general climate around the Fort St. Vrain site is generally mild. In this semi-arid region, the
precipitation averages 25 to 38 centimeters (10 to 15 inches) a year, mostly from thunderstorms in late spring
and summer. Northeastern Colorado has moderate thunderstorm activity. The region typically experiences 5
tornadoes per year per 25,900 square kilometers (10,000 square miles), with peak tornado activity occurring
during the month of June. A study of tornadoes in the area concluded that 161-kilometer-per hour- (100-
mile-per-hour) winds should constitute maximum wind forces to be expected at Fort St. Vrain.
The Fort St. Vrain site is located on the east flank of the Colorado Front Range, a complexly faulted
anticlinal arch. Numerous faults and smaller folds are superimposed on the arch and are related to the uplift
of the Front Range. The Fort St. Vrain site has not experienced any observed earthquake activity. A field
examination of the area produced no evidence of recent movement along any of the known faults. The closest
area of recent activity is about 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of the site. The site is located in Seismic Zone
1.
The nearest major surface water features to the Fort St. Vrain site are the South Platte River, about
0.8 kilometer (0.5 mile) east of the site, and the St. Vrain Creek, about 1.2 kilometer (0.75 mile) west of the
site. Local surface water diversions from these rivers, which feed irrigation ditches to support agriculture, are
somewhat closer, about 0.5 kilometer (0.33 mile) east and west of the site and about 0.64 kilometer (0.4 mile)
to the north of the site, and an irrigation ditch is located 0.16 kilometer (0.1 mile) to the south of the site.
4.7.3.3 Babcock & Wilcox Research Center, Lynchburg.
The Babcock & Wilcox
Research Center occupies a 1.6-hectare (4-acre) fenced area within Babcock & Wilcox's 374-hectare
(925-acre) Mount Athos site. The research center is in Campbell County, Virginia, near the James River,
approximately 6.5 kilometers (4 miles) east of the city of Lynchburg. The research facility and the nearby
city of Lynchburg are centrally located within the area of Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, and Campbell
Counties. The combined population of these counties is about 180,000.
The climate of the Lynchburg area is influenced by cold and dry polar continental air masses in the
winter and warm and humid gulf maritime air masses in the summer. Rainfall amounts can be expected to
reach 102.4 centimeters (40.3 inches) in any given year. Severe weather is limited to thunderstorms with a
low probability of tornadoes. The mean number of thunderstorms occurring at Lynchburg is approximately
22 per year. The probability of a tornado actually striking the site is 3.0 10-4 per year, with a recurrence
interval of 3,333 years.
The land at the Babcock & Wilcox Research Center is characterized by scattered hills of various
dimensions lying eastward from the main chain of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The site is located in a western
part of the central Virginia cluster region, which is classified as Seismic Zone 2. Approximately
121 earthquakes with epicenters in Virginia have occurred during the last 236 years. Two earthquakes have
been recorded with intensities sufficient to cause some damage, but these were not in the area of the Center.
Earthquakes are not expected to cause serious damage to the Lynchburg facilities nor result in release of
hazardous materials.
The James River is formed about 154 kilometers (96 miles) upstream of the site by the confluence of
the Jackson and Cowpasture Rivers. The James River flows generally south-southeast from the Valley and
Ridge Province to the Atlantic Ocean through the Hampton Roads and Chesapeake Bay. The annual average
flow rate of the James River at the plant is estimated to be about 110 cubic meters per second (3,900 cubic
feet per second). The largest recent flood occurred in November 1985 and had a flood stage of 163 meters
(534 feet) above mean sea level at Lynchburg. The groundwater elevation is between 134 and 140 meters
(440 and 460 feet) above mean sea level, which is 3 meters (10 feet) below surface elevation at the annual
average flow rate. Because of the relative impermeability of the silt and clay topsoils, neither the water in
surface soils nor river flood water has a major effect on the groundwater supply or quality.
References Chapter 4
NNPP (Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program), 1993, Environmental Monitoring and Disposal of Radioactive
Wastes from U.S. Naval Nuclear Powered Ships and Their Support Facilities, Report NT-93-1,
Washington, D.C., February.
USBC (U.S. Bureau of the Census), 1982, 1980 Census of Population and Housing, Washington, D.C.
USBC (U.S. Bureau of the Census), 1992, 1990 Census of Population and Housing, Washington, D.C.