Final Land Use at the Fernald Site

In 1999, DOE approved a final land use plan for the 1,050-acre Fernald site after cleanup and site closure actions are complete. DOE’s plan is to restore natural resources on 904 acres to compensate for natural resources that were destroyed or damaged by site operations and cleanup.

The origin of the final land use issue dates back to the mid-1980s when the Fernald site was producing uranium metal for the nation’s defense program during the Cold War.  In 1986, the State of Ohio filed a $206 million claim against DOE for damages to natural resources caused by uranium metal production operations. At that time, DOE was just beginning the remedial investigation/feasibility study (RI/FS), a comprehensive environmental investigation conducted in and around the site to identify the nature and extent of contamination and determine the best cleanup solutions. In 1988, DOE and the State of Ohio reached a Consent Agreement that placed a “stay” on the claim until the site’s records of decisions—legal agreements that establish cleanup plans—were approved.  One year later, Fernald site management shut down uranium production operations to focus on environmental compliance. In 1991, Congress approved a new environmental remediation mission for the Fernald site, formally ending the site's 38-year production mission.

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), the federal law commonly known as “Superfund” that governs cleanup of hazardous, toxic and radioactive substances, requires federal and state officials to act as trustees for natural resources on behalf of the public. In 1993, to prepare for the completion of the RI/FS, DOE began identifying agencies that might have an interest in serving as Fernald’s trustees. The U.S. Department of Interior and the State of Ohio, represented by Ohio EPA, agreed to join DOE as Fernald’s Natural Resource Trustees. In June 1994, the trustees met for the first time to discuss integrating natural resource restoration with future cleanup activities.

To resolve the State's claim, the trustees developed a plan to restore, replace or acquire equivalent natural resources to compensate for those that were injured or destroyed. In April 1998, the trustees reached a tentative settlement to resolve the State of Ohio’s claim and any future natural resource injury liability claims the trustees may file against DOE.  The tentative settlement included the following provisions:

• 884 acres dedicated to natural resource restoration;
• 20 acres dedicated to ecological research projects; and
• Implementation of a groundwater education project to provide educational resources to the public.

Of the remaining acreage, DOE has committed 123 acres for the On-Site Disposal Facility, an engineered waste disposal facility, and has set-aside 23 acres for potential future development.

In September 1998, DOE issued the Final Land Use Environmental Assessment (EA) and the draft Fernald Natural Resource Restoration Plan to formally solicit public input on the proposed restoration work and final land use of the Fernald site. Required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the EA must include a brief discussion of the need for the proposed action, any alternatives, and the environmental impacts of the proposed action and the alternatives.

The Fernald Natural Resource Restoration Plan outlines DOE’s final land use strategy and identifies institutional controls needed to restore and commit portions of the site to an undeveloped park, with and emphasis on wildlife habitat. The plan also integrates previous commitments DOE made to stakeholders in the site’s records of decisions. The commitments include ensuring federal ownership of the site and operation and maintenance of the On-Site Disposal Facility in perpetuity, creating new wetlands, and honoring the Fernald Citizens Advisory Board’s 1995 recommendation to avoid residential and agricultural use due to contamination concerns.  In addition, DOE agreed to offer opportunities for public involvement in the decision process, and to select a land use that benefits the community and satisfies the trustees.  In June 1999, DOE finalized the EA, establishing the final path forward for natural resource restoration of the Fernald site.

The Natural Resource trustees signed a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in July 2001 that formalized its relationship as a trustee council and committed DOE to implement the Natural Resource Restoration Plan. DOE is working with the trustees to reach a final settlement and resolve the state's 1986 claim.