Grand Junction, Colorado, Disposal and Processing Sites

Grand Junction, Colorado, Disposal Site

The Grand Junction disposal site is regulated under Title I of the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA). DOE completed construction of the disposal cell in 1994. The cell remains open to receive additional waste and will be managed under the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) general license for custody and long-term care of remediated UMTRCA Title I sites when it is closed. Since 2003, the DOE Office of Legacy Management has managed the site, which requires routine inspection and maintenance of the disposal site, records-related activities, and stakeholder support.

Grand Junction, Colorado, Processing Site

The Grand Junction processing site is regulated under Title I of the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA). DOE remediated 22 inactive uranium-ore processing sites under the Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project, in accordance with standards enforced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Title 40 "Code of Federal Regulations" (CFR), Part 192. Subpart B of 40 CFR 192 regulated cleanup of contaminated groundwater at the processing sites. All surface and subsurface soils at the Grand Junction processing site were cleaned up to meet the standards in 40 CFR 192. After cleanup, the site was landscaped and the state of Colorado transferred property ownership to the city of Grand Junction through a quitclaim deed in March 1997. No remediation and supplemental standards—based on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s criterion of limited-use groundwater—is the selected groundwater compliance strategy proposed. The quitclaim deed also spelled out the institutional controls that safeguard and protect human health and the environment by restricting access to contaminated groundwater beneath the site.

For more information about the Grand Junction disposal and processing sites, view the fact sheet.