a rny Lukachuka Mountains Mining District
W rM Site Proposed for Superfund L st
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency • Region 9 • San Francisco • CA • March 2023
Comment Period Now Open
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is currently accepting
comments on its proposal to add the Lukachukai Mountains
Mining District site to the National Priorities List, commonly
called the Superfund List. The site is located primarily in the Cove,
Round Rock, and Lukachukai Chapters of the Navajo Nation
in northeast Arizona. The site includes over a hundred former
uranium/vanadium mine waste piles. Mining impacted soil and
sediment have polluted portions of the Lukachukai Mountains,
and the Cove and Lukachukai valleys below. (See Figure 1).
EPA's Superfund program identifies sites that may pose actual
or potential threats to public health or the environment due to
contamination in groundwater, surface water, soils, and air. EPA
may conduct investigations, assess cleanup alternatives, and
conduct response actions at sites not on the National Priorities
List. However, placing a site on the National Priorities List allows
EPA to use additional federal resources to conduct cleanup
activities and require potentially responsible parties to conduct or
fund that work.
What are the Environmental Problems at the
Site?
Past uranium and vanadium mining in the Lukachukai Mountains
created waste piles contaminated with radium 226, uranium and
other heavy metals. The Lukachukai Mountains are home to the
Navajo people and they use the mountains for hunting, plant
gathering, and livestock grazing. The mountains provide habitat
for several sensitive species, including the federally threatened
Mexican spotted owl (Strix occidentalis lucida).
Ongoing Activity to Protect Navajo Nation
Communities
Under Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,
and Liability Act removal authority and through funding from the
Tronox Settlement, EPA, in coordination with Navajo Nation EPA,
conducted an extensive removal site evaluation to characterize
dozens of the uranium mine features in the Lukachukai Mountains.
Under a separate settlement, Cyprus Amax has used their funds and
those of the federal government to investigate additional mining
areas. EPA has already taken action to reduce some of the most
urgent threats within the site.
Public Comment Period
March 29 to May 30, 2023
Documents related to the proposed
listing can be viewed at:
Cove Chapter Information Repository-
Red Valley AZ 86544
Window Rock Information Repository
Hwy 264, Indian Route 12 Suite 10
Window Rock, AZ 86515
Online:
www.epa.gov/superfund/lukachukai
Information on how to comment is on
Page 2. Comments on the proposed
listing must be received online or
postmarked by May 30, 2023.
Figure 1: Approximate location of the Lukachukai Mountains
Mining District site.
[go I o raa 6
Arizona]
Hew{ Mexico
March 2023
-------
What are the Environmental Problems at the Site?
Waste piles in the Lukachukai Mountains continue to pose a threat to people and the environment. Waste from these
piles has migrated downstream in washes and may have impacted groundwater. Past ore hauling activities spread
contamination along miles of mountainous haul roads. The wide-spread contamination at the site requires a coordinated
effort to ensure cleanup of all former mining areas and to address downstream impacts. EPA received a letter from the
Navajo Nation President in December 2022 in support of placing this site on the National Priorities List.
The Superfund Process
o*
Preliminary
Assessment /
Site Inspection
Placement on
the National
Priorities List
(NPL)
#
*
Remedial
Investigation
(Rl)
We are Here
Feasibility
Study
(FS)
Q
G
a
0
9
W W
Proposed Plan
Record of
Remedial
Remedial
(PP)
Decision
Design
Action
(ROD)
(RD)
(RA)
Long-Term
Operations &
Maintenance
(O&M)
Community involvement and planning for a site's future reuse are Integral parts of the entire process
to
For more information on the listing process, visit www.epa.gov/superfund/basic-npl-information. or contact Kenyon
Larsen, (415) 972-3105 or larsen.kenyon@epa.gov.
How Do I Comment on the Proposed
Listing?
A 60-day public comment period is currently underway
to receive community input on EPA's proposal to add the
Lukachukai Mountains Mining District site to the NPL.
The documents for EPA's proposed listing of the site are
available at the information repositories listed on Page 1,
and online at www.epa. gov/superfund /lukachukai.
During the comment period, comments are placed in
the EPA docket and are available to the public on an
"as received" basis. A complete set of comments will be
available for viewing approximately one week after the
formal comment period closes.
EPA considers all comments received during the 60-day
public comment period before making a final listing
decision. Public comments must be postmarked by
May 30, 2023.
Please include the docket identification number when
submitting comments. The FDMS Docket Number is:
EPA-HQ-OLEM-2023-0041.
Comments may be submitted by one of the following
methods:
• Go to www.regulations.gov (preferred)
• Mail comments (no faxes or tapes) to:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
EPA Docket Center
Superfund Docket [EPA-HQ-OLEM-2023-0041]
Mail Code 28221T
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20460
For more information on submitting comments please visit:
www.epa.gov/superfund/public-comment-process
March 2023
-------
What is Superfund?
Superfund is the commonly-used name for
the Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Act, a federal law that
enables EPA to respond to hazardous waste sites that
threaten public health and the environment.
When potentially responsible parties are identified for
a hazardous waste site, Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act authorizes
EPA to require those parties to fund site cleanup and/or
perform remediation activities under EPA oversight. If
no responsible party is identified, EPA may perform the
cleanup itself using Superfund funding. If a site is not
on the National Priorities List, EPA will not be able to
access Superfund money to conduct significant, long-
term cleanup.
What Happens Next?
Once the site is added to the Superfund list, EPA will
conduct a remedial investigation and feasibility study
before proposing a cleanup remedy. This proposed
remedy will be described in a document called a
Proposed Plan that will be shared at a public meeting,
posted online, and placed in the information repositories
listed on Page 1. The Proposed Plan will be open
for public comment when released. After all public
comments are considered, EPA finalizes the selected
remedy in a document called a Record of Decision.
Following the Record of Decision, EPA oversees or
performs the design, construction, testing, and operation
of necessary cleanup activities. The public is encouraged
to participate throughout the Superfund process. EPA
will continue to use its Superfund authority to conduct
removal actions at individual mine areas throughout the
site.
Community Involvement
EPA is committed to involving the community in its
cleanup process. The site is at the beginning of the
Superfund process, and it may or may not be placed
on the Superfund list. Nevertheless, EPA is issuing this
fact sheet, and publishing a public notice to include the
public in its decision-making process.
Our Community Involvement program focuses on
answering the community's questions about the
investigation and cleanup effort, providing information
to the community about site activities, and incorporating
community issues and concerns into Agency decisions.
EPA organizes its outreach efforts by developing a
Community Involvement Plan. The plan identifies issues,
concerns, and how EPA will involve the community in the
cleanup process. The plan's focus is based on one-on-one
interviews with residents and other stakeholders.
Site documents are available at EPA's Information
Repositories listed on the first page or online at:
www.epa.gov/superfund/lukachukai.
If the site is added to the Superfund list, EPA will publish a
notice in the newspaper and issue a fact sheet announcing
next steps.
r^-
Mailing List Coupon
If you would like to be on EPA's email list for the Lukachukai Mountains Mining District, please send an email or return
the coupon below to Elsa Johnson (U.S. EPA Region 9, 75 Hawthorne St. (SFD-6-4), San Francisco, CA 94105, johnson.
elsa@epa.gov).
Name
Email Affiliation (optional)
~ Check if you prefer communication via U.S. Mail:
Mailing Address
City, State Zip
Telephone (optional)
L
March 2023
-------
a vi Lukachukai Mountains Mining District
!rM Site Proposed for Superfund L st
Comment Period Now Open
Contact Information
If you have any questions, please contact:
Elsa Johnson
Community Involvement Coordinator
EPA Region 9 (SFD-6-4)
75 Hawthorne St.
Kenyon Larsen
Remedial Project Manager
EPA Region 9 (SFD-6-4)
75 Hawthorne St.
San Francisco, CA 94105
San Francisco, CA 94105
(415) 947-3552
iohnson.elsa<®epa.gov
(415) 972-3105
larsen.kenvoni®epa.gov
Printed on 30% post-consumer Recycled/Recyclable Paper
------- |