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Community
DOE and Fluor Fernald meet regularly with
citizens on Fernald cleanup plans and issues (6810D-123).
Building
relationships and earning public trust and respect after decades of
controversy and secrecy takes time and consistent, quality performance.
Today, project managers, regulators and citizens share a stake in the
decision process and work together to find practical, balanced solutions
to complex cleanup issues. However, this hasn’t always been the case.
In the late
1980s and early 1990s, the site was immersed in the complicated remedial
investigation/feasibility study phase to characterize site hazards and
determine the best cleanup solutions. Fernald followed a regulatory
mandated public review process that allowed opportunities for public
comment, but did little to break down long-standing communication barriers
or build trust. Local residents and community leaders were concerned that
decisions, which would ultimately affect their lives, would be made behind
closed doors or with limited public input. They insisted on more frequent,
face-to-face interaction with site decision makers.
In
response, DOE and Fluor Fernald adopted a new strategy for public
participation that exceeded the text book style found in the regulations.
The strategy combined a strong public information program with direct,
two-way communication between management and the public early in the
decision process. At first, project managers were apprehensive with this
approach and worried that it might slow progress. However, project
managers were quick to realize that the public could help them find
answers to difficult, controversial social and economic questions such as:
“How clean is clean?” and “Where should the waste go?”.
In 1993,
the Fernald Citizens Task Force was formed to
consider these questions and others that were threatening cleanup
progress. Within two years, the Task Force provided recommendations to DOE
that changed the course of cleanup and became the national model for
effective public participation. The recommendations not only saved
taxpayers billions of dollars and shaved years off the cleanup schedule,
but were also fair and realistic. The group’s success was due in part to
the support and attention it received from DOE, Fluor Fernald and
regulators. For the first time, project managers, regulators and citizens
shared a stake in the decision process and worked together to find
practical, balanced solutions.
About the
same time the Task Force was formed, DOE and Fluor Fernald established the
Fernald Envoy Program to bridge the communication gap between citizens and
decision makers. The Envoy Program had two clear objectives: to provide
timely information about Fernald to the community and relay public
concerns and ideas back to decision makers. Envoys were selected from all
fields and disciplines, including engineering, management, construction,
unions, and support organizations.
Although
most of Fernald’s major cleanup decisions have been made, citizens
remain actively involved in Fernald issues. Some citizens are focused on
ensuring cleanup is performed safely and efficiently; they’ve invested
personal time and energy in selecting cleanup solutions and want to see
them implemented. Other citizens are interested in future challenges that
face Fernald, such as final land use of the 1,050 acre site, stewardship
issues, and worker/community transition. Regardless of the topic, DOE and
Fluor Fernald recognize the value of early public participation and look
forward to continuing this partnership until cleanup and site restoration
are complete.
For More
Information
Contact Sue Walpole, S. M. Stoller, 513-648-4026, email: Sue.Walpole@lm.doe.gov,
or visit the Fernald Community
Calendar.
7264-D21 |
6810-D263
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