Belfield, North Dakota (Umtra Site)

 Home
 BEMR Contents
 U.S. Map

Belfield and Bowman are two of the 24 uranium mill processing sites designated by the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act for remediation by the Department of Energy. During the 1960s, private firms processed most of the uranium ore mined in the United States for the Atomic Energy Commission, a predecessor of the Department of Energy. Congress passed the Act in 1978 in response to public concern regarding potential health hazards from long-term exposure to uranium mill tailings. It authorized the Department of Energy to stabilize, dispose of, and control uranium mill tailings and other contaminated material at 24 uranium mill processing sites and vicinity properties. For a general discussion of the UMTRA Program, see the overview presented in the New Mexico section of this report.

The cost estimate model used for this report provides costs for each of the UMTRA sites. All costs for waste management activities, program management, and relevant landlord activities attributable to the Department are provided for within the scope of environmental restoration. There are no Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act sites with either current or planned nuclear material and facility stabilization activity needs. Funding for all sites is 100 percent nondefense.

Pursuant to the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act, the Department of Energy entered into a Cooperative Agreement in 1983 with the State of North Dakota. The agreement outlines the roles and responsibilities of each party. It also delineates the cost sharing arrangement that states that the Department of Energy is responsible for 100 percent of the assessment costs and 90 percent of the remediation costs, and the State is responsible for the remaining 10 percent of the remediation costs. In addition, the Department of Energy is responsible for paying 90 percent of the State's 10 percent, and the State is responsible for the remaining 10 percent of these costs (one percent of the total). The Nuclear Regulatory Commission concurred on the original agreement and is required to concur on all major modifications thereafter.

Based on a letter received from the State of North Dakota in March 1995 requesting that the Department of Energy remove the Belfield and Bowman sites from designation under the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act, the Project has suspended all activities for these sites. Preliminary documents have been prepared to notify Congress and to initiate a Federal Register notice to remove the sites from designation under the Act. The sections that follow represent planning prior to the State's request.

BELFIELD, NORTH DAKOTA (UMTRA SITE)

The Belfield site is located in southwestern North Dakota, 1.6 kilometers (one mile) southeast of the Town of Belfield in Stark County. The former ashing site occupies 4.3 hectares (10.7 acres).

FACILITY MISSION

The mission of the Belfield site was to provide uraniferous ash for processing at the Ambrosia Lake, New Mexico and Rifle, Colorado mill sites for the United States Government. The source of contamination was the residual radioactive material that remained after a lignite coal ashing process concentrated the uranium found in the coal. The ash from this process is different from the usual mill tailings found at the other UMTRA sites. Currently, a construction company uses the site to store and service equipment.

The Environmental Management program is responsible for cleaning up surface- and ground-water contamination at the UMTRA sites. The Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act designated the residual radioactive material found at this site for cleanup and stabilization. The Act directed the Environmental Protection Agency to promulgate standards (Code of Federal Regulations Title 40, Part 192) and the Department of Energy to perform the cleanup. It also assigned the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to oversee and certify the cleanup, and license the completed disposal cell.

FUTURE USE

Remedial action at the former Belfield processing site would be performed under a Remedial Action Agreement among the Department of Energy, the State of North Dakota, and the private land owners. Upon completion of surface- and ground-water remedial action, Nuclear Regulatory Commission site certification, and certification of compliance with the Environmental Protection Agency ground-water standards, ownership of the former processing site will be returned to the private landowners. The future use of the site is likely to be Agricultural or light Industrial.

ENVIRONMENTAL RESTORATION

Although no discernible pile remains, the former ashing site contains ash-contaminated soil. Windblown stack-released ash has contaminated 8.5 hectares (21 acres). Residual milling related contaminated ground water is also present.

Surface Project

In the proposed surface remedial action, which is scheduled to start in FY 1996, all residual radioactive material from the Belfield site will be relocated 97 kilometers (60 miles) south, to the Bowman, North Dakota site, for co-disposal.

Approximately 44,080 cubic meters (58,000 cubic yards) of contaminated materials from the Belfield site are scheduled to be transported to the Bowman disposal cell, where they will be stabilized. The residual radioactive materials requiring remediation are only the contaminated soil, gravel, and rubble from the site. Concurrent with site remediation, eight vicinity properties will be remediated. During remedial actions, transportation of the tailings over public roads will be accomplished under a special Department of Transportation exemption. Remedial action is scheduled to be complete in FY 1997. Nuclear Regulatory Commission certification and licensing of the Bowman disposal site will take place in FY 1998, with transfer to the Long-Term Surveillance and Maintenance Program late in FY 1998.

The site has been fully characterized, and no further monitoring of any media is occurring. No mill tailings pond or pile is present because the ash was shipped to another location for processing during the 1960s.

The contaminant distribution and remediation needed is outlined in the Belfield/Bowman, North Dakota Remedial Action Plan. The Remedial Action Plan, which requires Nuclear Regulatory Commission concurrence, will be published in the spring of 1996. The site Completion Report will be prepared and included as part of the site Certification Report. Since the tailings will be removed, no further surveillance of the site is required under the Surface Project once the remedial action is completed.

Ground-Water Compliance Project

The Department is developing a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement pertaining to all 24 UMTRA sites. For a discussion of the Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement see the UMTRA program narrative in the New Mexico section of the report. Site-specific National Environmental Policy Act documentation will be developed to propose an appropriate ground-water compliance strategy and reasonable alternatives for the Belfield site once the Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement is completed.

This report assumes a No Further Action compliance demonstration ground-water strategy for the Belfield site. The high background concentrations of the contaminants of concern should allow for supplemental standards based on widespread ambient contamination and no threat to human health or the environment. For all types of ground-water compliance strategies, once the site is determined by Nuclear Regulatory Commission to be in compliance with Subpart B of the Environmental Protection Agency Standards and it is certified, no additional long-term surveillance or monitoring will be conducted.

The extent of ground-water contamination related to uranium processing activities at the Belfield site is difficult to determine. The contamination was minimal because of the low intensity of the processing activities (only the physical process of burning lignite). In general, uranium processing activities at the Belfield site have only slightly impacted the naturally poor quality of the ground water.

The following milestone dates have been established for planning purposes.

The indicator parameter for the Belfield site is uranium. It is the constituent most likely related to the uraniferous lignite ashing activities at the site. The processing operation did not use inorganic or organic chemicals, and none are expected in ground water.

Water quality sampling was conducted at the Belfield site from 1986 to 1988 and again in 1993. Investigators analyzed ground-water samples collected from onsite and downgradient monitoring wells to determine the extent and magnitude of ground-water contamination related to uranium processing activities. In the upper zone downgradient of the site, analyses showed that only uranium concentrations were elevated above background levels. However, the uranium does not form a discrete plume in the upper zone downgradient from the processing site. No contaminants were found in the lignite zone that exceeded background concentrations.

Some constituents of concern (such as antimony, chromium, lead, molybdenum, selenium, uranium, and vanadium) occur at naturally elevated concentrations in shallow ground water adjacent to lignite zones in this region of North Dakota. This has made it difficult to distinguish between ground water contamination related to the former uranium processing activities at this site and the naturally occurring concentrations of these constituents. Furthermore, farm waste, septic tanks, sewage disposal ponds, and waste from current industrial activities on the site may contribute some contaminants to the ground water in the vicinity of the site.

Direct Program Management/Support

Program management supports management efforts for the National Environmental Policy Act process, site characterization and licensing, public information/participation, applicable state and federal regulator costs, quality assurance audits, program and management support for the technical assistance contractor, special studies, document control, technical assistance contractor site and technical management, cost and schedule controls, planning and preparation of the federal budget, and the Environmental Management Progress Tracking System.

FUNDING ESTIMATE

The following table presents estimated funding information for the Belfield site.