South Carolina Elevates Tank Milestone Dispute Resolution With DOE

The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control yesterday requested that its dispute with the Department of Energy over tank waste milestones be elevated to the Dispute Resolution Committee. “We acknowledge that the discussions between representatives of the Department of Energy, SCDHEC and the Environmental Protection Agency have been constructive and that there has been a helpful exchange of information,” states a Jan. 13 letter from DHEC to DOE and EPA officials. “However, we do not agree that the circumstances support DOE’s extension requests for operational closure of four High-Level Waste Tanks. No resolution can be reached at this level.”

 

DOE requested a 15-month extension to the September 2015 closure milestone for Savannah River Tanks 12 and 16, which was denied by the state and the U.S. EPA. The three parties held their first informal dispute resolution meeting in October between project managers and immediate supervisors. Since it was not resolved in those talks, DHEC has elevated the issue to a dispute resolution committee with officials from the EPA, DOE and DHEC. If it is not unanimously resolved there within 28 days, the statement is forwarded to a senior executive committee for resolution, which includes DOE’s Savannah River manager, the EPA Region 4 Administrator and a DHEC deputy commissioner. If it is still not resolved, the parties could elevate it to the EPA Administrator, who may resolve the dispute in conference with the Secretary of Energy and DHEC Commissioner.