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Q: Will the site hurt the wildlife or the environment? A: The stored fuel will not harm the land, water or plants. Because the fuel is sealed behind thick concrete and steel walls, animals, reptiles or birds on the site will not be harmed. They will not become radioactive. So, if an animal goes on the site and leaves, it will not harm others. Q: Will there be an Environmental Impact Statement for public review and comment? A: Yes. An Environmental Impact Statement is required by federal law. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff and their consultants prepared a draft that was issued in June 2000 and a final EIS that was issued in January 2002. Single copies may be requested by mail, while supplies last, from the Office of the Chief Information Officer, Reproduction and Distribution Services Section, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; by e-mail (Distribution@nrc.gov); or by fax at 301-415-2289. It may also be available on the NRC website: www.nrc.gov. Q: If there's a fire at the facility, won't fire fighting efforts, using water at the site, result in contamination of the soil and groundwater? A: Since any surface contamination of casks and canisters will be well within NRC regulations, water run off from fire fighting efforts would produce no measurable ground or water contamination. Q: How would the PFS facility be affected by wildfires in Skull Valley? A: The facility would not be affected because it is explicitly designed to withstand the effects of any wildfire, such that no wildfire could cause a release of radioactive material. Q: How is the facility protected from fires? A: First, the PFS facility will be surrounded by a 100-yard wide barrier of crested wheat grass that would resist the progress of any wildfire moving through Skull Valley. Second, the area where the spent fuel will be stored at the facility will have a fireproof surface of crushed rock and a buffer zone of more than 150 feet between the edge of the crushed rock and the closest spent fuel storage cask. The buffer zone would prevent a fire from reaching any of the casks or from causing damage elsewhere at the facility. Furthermore, there will be no flammable materials near the casks that could ignite and cause damage to them. Finally, the casks in which the spent nuclear fuel rods will be enclosed will be constructed of steel and concrete with walls 2-feet thick. They are capable of being engulfed by a fire at a temperature of 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit for at least half an hour without suffering any significant damage. Based on scientific observation of real and simulated wildfires, the maximum temperature of a wildfire in Skull Valley would not exceed approximately 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit and that maximum temperature would not last for more than a few minutes at any location. Therefore, a wildfire would pose no threat to the spent fuel at the PFS facility. Q: Has the wildfire issue been addressed in the licensing process? A: The State of Utah had claimed that the PFS facility would be vulnerable to wildfires in the NRC licensing proceeding for the facility. In June 1999, PFS asked the NRC's Atomic Safety and Licensing Board to dismiss the State's claim because, in fact, wildfires would not threaten the PFS facility. In August 1999, the Licensing Board dismissed the claim on the grounds that it no longer presented a genuine issue for further litigation. Indeed, the State of Utah failed even to respond to PFS's analysis that proved that wildfires would not threaten the facility. This issue has been conclusively resolved and should not be cause for further public alarm. Q: Would firefighters fighting fires in Skull Valley be in danger of radiation exposure? A: No. First, PFS will have its own fire brigade to fight any fires within the 820-acre fenced and controlled area around and including the storage facility. It will not be necessary for other firefighters to access the facility or controlled area. Second, even inside the perimeter fence, radiation doses during normal or off-normal circumstances would be well within federal regulations and harmless. Q: What about claims that PFS trains through Skull Valley will cause wildfires? A: That is possible but not probable, and due to the low frequency of trains through the valley, the risk of fires will not significantly increase. In fact, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, in its Draft Environmental Impact Statement, concluded that "the presence of the new rail line would not add significantly to the existing risk of fire in Skull Valley." Fires along railroad rights of way can result from several causes: weeds that are allowed to grow close to the tracks; broken or malfunctioning rail cars; sparks caused by high speeds or steep grades that increase friction between the steel wheels and rails. PFS will maintain and operate its equipment and right of way to avoid these potential problems. Q: There are a number of ranches near the facility. Are the cattle in danger from drinking the water or eating plants near the site? A: Since this site will generate no liquid or air-borne waste, ranchers and their cattle will not become contaminated. Ranching operations in the area will not be affected. In fact, almost all licensed nuclear facilities in the United States have agricultural operations as close neighbors. Many studies have demonstrated there is no negative impact from power plants or spent fuel storage on the surrounding land. Q: Won't this facility ruin the land it's on and the land around it? A: The proposed facility is very benign, using aboveground storage canisters with no active systems that could malfunction or fail. It is not a landfill. It will release nothing into the air, water or soil. The site will in no way have a negative environmental impact on the land around it. Furthermore, after all the spent fuel has been shipped off site, the site will be cleaned up to meet the NRC's rigorous requirements, and to comply with the terms of the lease, including removal of the storage casks and structures not wanted by the Skull Valley Band of Goshute Indians. Q: Has the economic impact of the PFS facility on Tooele County and the state been evaluated? A: Yes. The Draft Environmental Impact Statement evaluated the socioeconomic impacts of the project on the Skull Valley Band of Goshute Indians, on Tooele County and on the state and found a net positive benefit. The project will produce revenue for the Skull Valley Band, taxes for the county and state, hundreds of construction jobs and approximately 43 full time jobs when the facility is operating. Other studies of the economic impacts of nuclear power plants and storage facilities on their surrounding communities found similar benefits. For example, a 1992 study conducted for the U.S. Council for Energy Awareness looked at five nuclear facilities. Each of the five communities showed increases in property values, local tax revenues and employment, improvements in local infrastructure and no decreases in tourism. Highly exaggerated claims about the hazards of transportation and storage only create fear and confusion among the public and may indeed hurt tourism, something no one wants. That is why PFS is working so hard to dispel myths associated with anything "nuclear" and to make sure the public, county and state officials have the facts.
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