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Show bearing on groundwater compliance for license termination and revision to the ' Corrective Action Flan (CAP) for groundwater cleanup, regardless of the decision with respect to surface reclamation." I offer the following translation into standard English: "Since capping the tailings in place won't have any effect on leaching into water, and since the pile can't be found to be remediated and Atlas dismissed from responsibility until the groundwater is cleaned up, we'll just ignore the whole issue." Putting up with this water contamination might be justified if it would truly cost five times as much to move the pile as to cap it. We don't think so. Local citizens collaborated with volunteer staff from the largest mining reclamation contractors in the world to develop a plan to use 300-to- n Caterpillar mining haul trucks straddling the railroad spur as a haul road to move the tailings to a below-grad- e reclamation in Mancos Stale of the Klondike Flats. These professionals the geophysically-ide- al estimated that the tailings could be reclaimed for a total of $20,355,396 in 314 days. This cost overlaps the range of estimates by Smith Engineering for the cost of capping the pile. The Department of the Interior has noted that Smith's cost estimates (mostly from 1994) may not include the cost of engineering features added to the capping plan during the 19 DEIS Draft Technical Evaluation Report critique; such as ground acceleration from earthquake, insufficient clay thickness in the cap, and protection against Colorado River migration against the toe of the pile . Moving the pile by this creative; safe, least expensive method could cost the same or even less than capping the pile in place with all the additional engineering features. Moving the pile is environmentally preferable, so an equivalent cost to capping makes moving the pile reclamation. the I Title Every pile which was unlined, sitting on a porous basement structure, and leaking into groundwater like Atlas was reclaimed by moving to another, site by the DOE. Five were moved out of metropolitan areas, ami none suffered radiation escape incidents. Several attempts to cap leaky piles in place failed, and the piles were by moving at vast additional expense. What worries me is that we can expect the same if the Atlas tailings are capped - eventually, the pile plus the cap material will be moved to Klondike Flats, at 100 taxpayer expense, because of environmental problems with the capped pile. lined Title II It is a bureaucratic accident that Atlas got classified with well-siteof unlined Title with tailings piles which are appropriately capped in place, instead I piles leaking into watercourses which were moved to stop water contamination. We should thank Atlas for their forbearance take their reclamation bond, release them from further responsibility; then deal with these tailings as we did with many similar sites created under the AEC national defense program. Otherwise, we're going to jack around for years wasting taxpayer and private mining industry money while at least the soluble components of the Atlas tailings patiently deposit themselves in the Colorado River. V.UtK)MLH s LB 1 1 EKLECTICA COFFEE 6 COLLECTIBLES 352 N. MAIN ST. 259-689- mm omjihk (TOWIIIHIL cost-benefici- non-permea- ble d, Association for the Tree of Life (ATL ) is bearing the expense of mailing to calls, etc., regarding the Atlas tailings reclamation. media, information contributions can be sent to P.O. Box 1366, Moab, UT 84532; or call The non-pro- fit Tax-deducti- long-distan-ce 259-509- 5. Another new Zephyr advertiser PEACH APRICOT 6 NECTARINE ORCHARD TOURISTS! Have you been on the road so long, you're starting to resemble the wildlife? Do people run in fear For Sale by Owner Located in Moab, Utah Later I'm going to run myself through the Certified Organic fruit Established markets in intermountain region Modern high density tree planting Frost protection systems carwash. when you walk into a cafe? HOW ABOUT A TRIM? 3 acres irrigation water 5 acre parcel at mouth of Mill Creek Canyon VEDA ANDREW 6 ANGELA 801-259-22- 67 NO ANIMAL TESTING ALL NATURAL INGREDIENTS thirty-on- e RILEY 6 |
