Divine Strake in Nevada---blast postponed

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Local News - Divine Strake blast postponed

 

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Article published May 10, 2006

Divine Strake blast postponed

 

Test won't happen for at least three weeks, agencies acknowledge

By BRIAN PASSEY

bpassey

ST. GEORGE - After conflicting reports over the weekend about whether the

June 2 Divine Strake test would be postponed, various federal agencies have

acknowledged the large bomb blast will not go forward until June 23 at the

earliest.

However, late Tuesday night a Defense Department spokeswoman said that a study

of a revised environmental assessment of the blast resulted in a finding of " no

significant impact " to the human environment.

Darwin Morgan, a public information officer for the Nevada Test Site, confirmed

Tuesday that the 700-ton ammonium nitrate-fuel oil blast has been postponed for

at least three weeks. The Defense Threat Reduction Agency and the National

Nuclear Security Administration proposed the test 150 miles west of St. George

to gather data about the effects of both large conventional weapons and

low-yield nuclear weapons.

Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, released a statement Tuesday morning indicating that

he hopes the postponement will help get all the facts " out for public view. "

Matheson and Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, have both been persistent in questioning

federal officials about the blast.

Cheri Abdelnour, a DTRA spokeswoman, said the Department of Energy's Nevada

Site Office decided to postpone the experiment " due to scheduled legal

proceedings. " Downwinders in both Nevada and Utah, along with members of the

Western Shoshone tribe, filed a lawsuit in April to stop the blast because of

the possibility of disrupting radioactively contaminated soil and spreading it

downwind.

Robert Hager, a Reno, Nev. attorney representing the plaintiffs in the lawsuit,

said the postponement is good news for his clients and all Downwinders. But he

said the agencies conducting the test need to produce the data that indicates it

will be safe.

" Some of the things that the NNSA says are flat out untrue, " Hager alleged,

referring to government assertions there is no radioactive soil at the blast

site. " Until they come forward with data that will support their opinion that

the blast will be safe we will continue to stop them in court. "

An appendix to the government's environmental assessment indicates the nearest

man-made radioactivity is approximately 1.1 miles from the blast site. Despite

this factor, the NNSA and the DTRA still released a finding of no significant

impact, stating, " the proposed action is not a major federal action

significantly affecting the quality of the human environment. "

The finding authorizes Divine Strake to be " conducted within the limitations of

applicable permits and regulations, " according to the revised finding document.

Though the announcement of the finding had not been made at the time of Hager's

comments, he expected the outcome. However, the lawsuit remains and he indicated

the government was ordered to provide to him by Thursday the entire

administrative record with all the data used for the original and revised

environmental assessments.

Utah efforts

Hager said he has been impressed with Utah's delegation to Congress, especially

Hatch and Matheson, in questioning the federal agencies conducting the test.

" Concerns expressed by Utah elected officials have been very helpful, " Hager

said. " My hat is off to them for standing up for the health concerns of the

residents of Utah. "

Hager said elected officials in Nevada, with the exception of Rep. Shelley

Berkley, D-Nev., have not been as persistent in questioning the agencies.

In a statement released two weeks ago from the office of Sen. Bob Bennett,

R-Utah, spokeswoman Mary Jane Collipriest said the senator " believes every

precaution is being taken to ensure that this test is conducted safely. "

However, he has requested a briefing in person by NNSA officials to review all

aspects of the proposed test to determine whether the test should proceed.

Hatch's office also released a letter the senator sent Tuesday to James

Tegnelia, DTRA director, indicating the agency still has not provided all the

information Hatch requested regarding the blast. In the letter Hatch asked

Tegnelia specific questions about possibly contaminated soil near the blast site

and the scientific explanation for why it will not pose a danger to residents

during the proposed test.

Hatch has also requested a public meeting regarding the test in St. George and

has asked representatives from DTRA and NNSA to attend.

State agencies in both Nevada and Utah also are taking a close look at the

environmental assessments for the blast. Before the postponement, the Nevada

Division of Environmental Protection indicated it would seek to delay the blast

if questions about air quality still lingered.

Donna Kemp Spangler, public information officer for the Utah Department of

Environmental Quality, said her department also is studying the environmental

assessment. In her limited evaluation, Spangler said the federal government's

environmental assessment is " really lacking in a lot of data " because it is not

a full-blown environmental impact statement, which requires more information.

Had the NNSA and DTRA not made a finding of " no significant impact " Tuesday, a

full environmental impact statement likely would have been required, causing a

much longer delay in the test date.

Vanessa Pierce of the Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah questioned the

credibility of an environmental assessment completed by the same agencies

conducting the test, calling it a conflict of interest. She encouraged Utah's

delegation to Congress to pursue an outside assessment and review.

" It doesn't make sense that the agency conducting the test is the one doing the

environmental assessment, " she said. " It's like having the fox guarding the hen

house. "

 

 

 

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