Bill on hot-waste limits needed, lawmaker says

Utah lawmakers are not backing down on legislation that would limit hotter radioactive waste from entering the state, despite Envirocare of Utah's plans to withdraw a federal application to take hotter waste.

"This legislation is still appropriate because it might come up in the future," Rep. Steve Urquhart, R-St. George, told the Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment Committee, on Wednesday.

Urquhart said his bill would require legislative and gubernatorial approval for any radioactive waste hotter than what the state allows to be disposed of at Envirocare's landfill in Tooele County. That means no waste with a radiation measuring in excess of 4,000 picocuries per gram.

The bill came after Envirocare applied to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to amend the company's license to accept waste from the Energy Department's former plant in Fernald, Ohio.

The Fernald tailings is 25 times hotter than what Envirocare is permitted to handle at its Tooele County landfill.

In the face of mounting opposition, Envirocare announced Tuesday it was withdrawing its application to the NRC.