Enviros threaten to sue feds over Oak Ridge landfill

Anti-nuclear groups in Tennessee and elsewhere have filed a formal “notice of intent to sue” with the U.S. Department of Justice, alleging violations of the Superfund law at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Site in Tennessee.

Attorneys for the Foundation for Global Sustainability, Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance, Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning and other organizations allege violations of the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation Liability Act (CERCLA), commonly known as the Superfund law. The notice of intent to sue dated Aug. 12, was viewed by Exchange Monitor.

The prospective plaintiffs say a low-level radioactive waste landfill, approved last year in a record of decision from the state and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), could result in contamination of Bear Creek at the Oak Ridge Site. Unless their concerns are addressed, the groups intend to bring suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

For years DOE and U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleishmann (R-Tenn.) have been pushing for approval of the Environmental Management Disposal Facility, calling it key to disposing of on-site construction waste from old mercury-laden buildings from Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Y-12 National Security Complex. The new landfill facility would replace an existing one expected to be full within a few years.

Terry Lodge of Toledo, Ohio and Wallace Taylor of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, are listed as attorneys representing the environmental groups.

DOE on Tuesday declined to comment and referred inquiries to the Justice Department.