Jeremy L. Dillon
RW Monitor
2/6/2015
Despite earlier outcry from the Galveston, Texas, City Council over the Army Corps of Engineers’ planned decommissioning of the Sturgis Barge last year, the city council approved the permit needed to move forward with the project in the city’s port late last month. USACE completed an Environmental Assessment as needed under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) guidelines for the decommissioning project, but last fall, the city of Galveston felt more needed to be done to protect its citizens’ quality of life, threatening a legal injunction to prevent the project from moving forward. After a back and forth between the city and USACE, the city council changed its stance after adding additional safeguards to protect transportation routes and emergency preparedness, approving the permit in a 6-1 vote. “I think we’ve put in a lot of safeguards that were concerns of the public,” Council Member Terrilyn Tarlton said during the Jan. 22 Council meeting. “I did do lot homework on this, and I have to say a lot of this stuff was way over my head. But, I asked a lot of questions and received a lot of documentation and information in an executive session, and I feel better today about my vote for the Sturgis.”
The Corps issued a contract to CB&I Federal Services earlier this year for the dismantlement of the MH-1A nuclear reactor currently installed on the barge after the vessel is towed down to Galveston for decommissioning. The permit issued by the city gives Malin International Ship Repair, the company that will host the barge, the permission to move forward. Currently, the Sturgis is in Virginia waiting to be towed down to Galveston, but once the ship is moved work can begin, USACE spokesperson Andrea Takash said. “The Corps of Engineers is pleased that the City Council has approved the Specific Use Permit for the STURGIS project,” Takash said in an email. “We are currently revising the project schedule, and we will continue to work with the City to implement this important project. Once the vessel is secured at the Malin International Shipyard in Galveston, the contractor will begin the work to remove the residual radioactive and/or hazardous materials and complete radiological surveys to ensure compliance with federal and state regulations. It is anticipated that the Sturgis will be in Galveston for 12-18 months,” she said.
The original timeline called for the barge to be towed down from Virginia this fall, but that date has been pushed back due to the city’s delay. Back in November, USACE said the towing of the barge had been pushed back. Takash said this week that the Corps is still trying to determine when it will begin its tow to Texas. The decommissioning of the barge in Galveston allows for accessible infrastructure leading to the EnergySolutions disposal site in Utah, the Corps has said in the past. The Corps originally estimated it would take three years to complete the project, with a summer 2017 estimated project completion, but that may be pushed back three to six months due to the delay.
