Nuke waste facility/Lab/letters needed!

[marylia@earthlink.net (marylia)]

Hi. Can you write a short note to the Governor's office supporting our
request for an Environmental Impact Report on Livermore Lab's hazardous
and radioactive waste? We have about a 30 day window, and your letter
could make a huge difference. Please read on for details. The address and
contact person at the governor's office are at the end of the article.
Thank you. Peace, Marylia

Governor Fails Important First Test

by Marylia Kelley
--from Tri-Valley CAREs' July 1999 newsletter, Citizen's Watch

Last month, newly-elected Governor Gray Davis made his first big decision
under our state's key environmental law, the California Environmental
Quality Act (CEQA). This law is California's equivalent of the federal
National Environmental Policy Act. CEQA governs decisions made by state
agencies, and was enacted expressly to protect public health and our
communities.

The Governor's decision?
Davis' senior staff reportedly pressed the state Dept. of Toxic Substances
Control (DTSC) to grant Livermore Lab a final permit to build and operate a
new $32 million hazardous and radioactive waste treatment facility.
Further, the governor's office and DTSC decided it was not necessary to
conduct an Environmental Impact Report before making the permit
determination, instead relying on information provided by the Lab that is
years old, inaccurate and/or incomplete.

The published rationale?
According to the permit decision, the state certifies that Livermore Lab's
hazardous and radioactive waste operations could not possibly have a
negative impact on workers, the surrounding community or the environment.
This, at a site that sits on the EPA's Superfund list as one of the most
heavily polluted places in the nation. This, at a major nuclear weapons
research & development center with 880 pounds of plutonium (enough to make
nearly 100 modern nuclear weapons), 440 pounds of highly-enriched uranium
and a multitude of other radioactive and toxic materials on hand. This, at
place with a long - and continuing - history of accidents, spills to the
environment, employee injuries and safety violations involving hazardous
and radioactive wastes.

Tri-Valley CAREs' response?
Our organization, with the assistance of a fine team of attorneys, will
file a petition appealing the permit decision before the July 2nd deadline.
The DTSC will consider our petition, and the Lab will be prohibited from
going  forward with construction during the process. The state usually
responds to appeals in a reasonably quick time frame, about 30 days. One
very important point: based on our appeal the state can, if it chooses,
reverse its current decision, revoke the Lab's permit and require an
Environmental Impact Report before any new decision is made to grant or
deny the Lab a permit. If the state rejects our appeal, we will have the
further option of filing  a lawsuit.

What do we urgently need?
Over the next 30 days we have an opportunity to convince the governor's
office and DTSC of the wisdom of reversing their decision. Write a letter
today to Governor Gray Davis, Attn: Lynn Schenk, Chief of Staff, State
Capitol Bldg., Sacramento, CA 95814. The fax for Ms. Schenk is (916)
445-4633. She may be reached by phone at (916) 445-2841.


++ Please note that my email address has changed to <marylia@earthlink.net>
on 3/1/99 ++

Marylia Kelley
Tri-Valley CAREs
(Communities Against a Radioactive Environment)
2582 Old First Street
Livermore, CA USA 94550

<http://www.igc.org/tvc/> - is our web site, please visit us there!
Our web site will remain at this location. Only my email address has
changed on 3/1/99.

(925) 443-7148 - is our phone
(925) 443-0177 - is our fax

Working for peace, justice and a healthy environment since 1983, Tri-Valley
CAREs has been a member of the nation-wide Alliance for Nuclear
Accountability in the U.S. since 1989, and is a co-founding member of the
international Abolition 2000 network for the elimination of nuclear
weapons.