Kenneth Fletcher
WC Monitor
1/17/2014
A group of state environmental regulators called on the Obama Administration this week for action on a number of initiatives to address issues related to mercury pollution, including the Department of Energy’s establishment of a national storage facility for excess mercury. DOE released in September a final Environmental Impact Statement for the Storage and Management of Elemental Mercury, though the schedule for a record of decision remains un-certain. “With support from the Administration and Congress, the U.S. Dept. of Energy should finalize site selection and establish a national storage facility for excess mercury as required by the law, and [the Environmental Protection Agency] should work with states to investigate the law’s impact on mercury recycling programs,” states a Jan. 14 letter to the White House and the EPA from The Environmental Council of the States and the Quicksilver Caucus, a coalition of environmental leaders.
DOE’s EIS names as a preferred alternative the Waste Control Specialists site near Andrews, Texas. A site is needed because of the Mercury Export Ban Act of 2008, which requires DOE to designate a facility to manage and store elemental mercury for the long-term. Approximately 1,300 tons of DOE mercury is currently stored in 35,000 of the 3-L flasks at the Y–12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tenn. DOE analyzed potential storage sites for storage containments able to house 10,000 tons. DOE analyzed three potential sites at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant—Section 10, Section 20, and Section 35—that would involve construction of new buildings. DOE would build a new facility at WCS, but with minor modification an existing building located there could provide storage of up 2,200 tons of elemental mercury. DOE did not respond to request for comment this week on the mercury storage site.
In this week’s ECOS letter, the mercury storage site was among a string of concerns listed by the groups, which also include equipment in dental offices, mercury reductions in consumer content and plans for reducing mercury to protect water quality. The letter was a result of a resolution passed in September by state environmental agency directors “identifying mercury pollution as a key issue that remains a priority public health concern.” The letter adds, “We feel that an important opportunity is before us to make significant progress in addressing this problem. We have a series of items we would like to work on with the Administration. We think these items will further President Obama’s aim of protecting children from the harmful effects of mercury pollution which he outlined in his 2012 State of the Union address.”
