Success Stories - Siting Renewable Energy on Contaminated Land New Rifle Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA) Title I Site, Colorado Solar to Power the Rifle Regional Wastewater Reclamation Facility at Former Uranium Processing Site Site Description The New Rifle Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA) Title I site is located approximately two miles southwest of the City of Rifle, Colorado. The Colorado River defines its southern boundary. The site is the chosen location of Rifle's proposed Energy Innovation Center—an innovative industrial cluster that will promote bio- based industry development and pioneering energy technologies and provide quality, reliable, and clean power sources to the community and local industry. The first installation of clean energy technology on this site is a 12-acre, 1.7 megawatt (MW) solar zero emission solar energy system to power Rifle's new $23.2 million Regional Wastewater Reclamation Facility, which is also located on the site. Property History The New Rifle mill, owned and operated by Union Carbide Corporation (UCC), produced uranium and vanadium concentrates, processed tailings and uranium ore, and refined upgrade products from 1958 to 1970—which 96 percent of the uranium produced during this time was sold to the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), while all of the mill's vanadium production was delivered to the commercial market. During the period, the mill averaged 400 tons of ore per day (TPD) throughput and treated a total of 1.8 million tons of ore. At the termination of UCC's last AEC-procurement contract (December 1970), there were about 2.5 million tons of radioactive tailings impounded at the New Rifle Mill site. The mill continued to produce uranium during 1971 and 1972 for the commercial market, and part of the mill was used to produce vanadium concentrate from 1973 to 1984. From years of these milling operations, the site became contaminated with radioactive tailings, and the groundwater with arsenic, molybdenum, nitrate, selenium, uranium, and vanadium. In 1978, Congress passed the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA) that required the cleanup of 24 inactive uranium ore processing sites, including the New Rifle site by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The site under UMTRCA was purchased for cleanup by the State, while DOE performed the cleanup of surface and groundwater contamination at the site. Encapsulation of radioactive materials in U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission-approved disposal cells began in spring 1992 and was completed in October 1996. The site's groundwater contamination is being treated by natural flushing in conjunction with institutional controls and monitoring. The State of Colorado transferred ownership of the site to the City of Rifle, Colorado in 2004. QUICK FACTS: Location: Property Size: Site Ownership: Former Use: Contaminants: Project Type: Type of RE: Project Cost: Key Partners: Current Status: EPA Region 8, Garfield County, CO 130 Acres City of Rifle, CO Uranium and vanadium processing site Arsenic, molybdenum, nitrate, selenium, uranium, and vanadium DOE Uranium Mine Tailings Remediation Act (UMTRA) Solar PV Not publicly available U.S. Department of Energy Office of Legacy Management, State of Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Garfield County, CO, SunEdison Under construction, 2009 completion (1.7 MW Solar PV system only) CONTACT: Richard P. Bush, DOE Office of Legacy Management, Site Manager: (970) 248-6073, richard.bush@lm.doe.gov Matt Sturgeon, City of Rifle, CO, Rifle Energy Innovation Center: (970) 625-6224, msturgeon@rifleco.org To learn more about siting renewable energy on contaminated land, visit: www.epa.gov/renewableenergyland ------- Success Stories - Siting Renewable Energy on Contaminated Land New Rifle Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA) Title I Site, Colorado Solar to Power the Rifle Regional Wastewater Reclamation Facility at Former Uranium Processing Site Renewable Energy Development The City of Rifle began construction of its new wastewater reclamation facility on the UMTRCA Title I site in December 2008. SunEdison, LLC (the largest solar energy provider in North America) began installation of a 1.72 MW Direct Current (DC) solar photovoltaic (PV) system on 12 acres of the site in December 2008. The system will provide 60 percent of the daylight power needed to operate Rifle's wastewater reclamation facility. On a nearby site, SunEdison installed a 0.60 MW DC PV solar system that provides 100 percent of the power needed to pump drinking water for local residents from the Colorado River. During their first complete year of operation, these two systems will produce more than 4 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of clean solar energy, and more than 75 million kWh over 20 years— enough energy to power 7,039 homes for a year. Over the first 20 years of generation, the two zero-emission systems will offset more than 152 million Ibs. of carbon dioxide that would have been emitted during the production of electricity from fossil fuels. In addition to solar energy, a geothermal system will heat and cool the wastewater facility's administration building, and premium efficiency motors will power the facility's pumping system. In addition to the PV solar project, and at the core of Rifle's Energy Innovation Center is the development of an bio-based industry cluster— a collection of individual pads for private, bio-based companies that can utilize renewable bio-based materials such as carbohydrates to produce products and energy, helping to make Rifle a center for energy and bio- processing and production. These pads will all be connected as part of a large power grid, and will be able to either utilize or supply electricity, steam heat, cooled water, or natural gas to other users on the site or onto the external power grid. The Rifle Energy Innovation Center also will include a bio-based research and visitor center, an energy feedstock storage area, and gathering space for renewable energy expositions and conferences. PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS: No upfront capital cost to the City of Rifle, CO— SunEdison financed, is installing and will maintain the clean solar energy systems. Under a 20-year solar power services agreement with SunEdison, Rifle will purchase the solar electricity from SunEdison at costs less than retail rates for traditional energy sources—saving taxpayers on utility rates. The combined 2.3 MW PV solar system is one of the largest municipal solar rollouts in the United States. Up to $2 million saved by Rifle and taxpayers by redeveloping contaminated land already owned by the city. Energy produced by solar PV systems requires little or no water. Leveraged 20-25 green construction jobs, retained 3 jobs, and created 1 new job at Rifle's new wastewater reclamation facility. Use of green building materials in the new wastewater reclamation facility—masonry units made from recycled materials. Solar energy produced will be used to help meet Colorado's Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) mandate, which requires large utilities to generate 20 percent of their power (4 percent specifically from solar) from renewable sources by 2020. The Energy Innovation Center will help create long-term quality employment for local residents, foster entrepreneurial opportunity, and guide land use decisions within the area to be sustainable, innovative, and technology driven. CONTACT: Richard P. Bush, DOE Office of Legacy Management, Site Manager: (970) 248-6073, richard.bush@lm.doe.gov Matt Sturgeon, City of Rifle, CO, Rifle Energy Innovation Center: (970) 625-6224, msturgeon@rifleco.org To learn more about siting renewable energy on contaminated land, visit: www.epa.gov/renewableenergyland ------- |