DU Utah Defeat

By Jim O'Neill

I regret to report a serious loss at the Utah Radiation Control meeting November 12, 2009 in Salt Lake City. What happened? Take it from someone who was there. Energy Solutions brought in a lawyer and threatened the board with legal action relating to their October decision to keep more DU from coming into the state until a risk assessment to be submitted by Energy Solutions would be approved.
You may see in the national press that the board is moving forward; don't believe it; they basically caved in to pressure and went back to their September "luke warm decision"not to place a moritorium on DU coming into the state. Unfortunately, the October decision was one step forward and November was two steps back.
I feel for the board since they aren't getting support from Governor Herbert who ,it is said, more or less favors Energy Solutions.
The recent public meeting was an anamoly in that part of it was closed door executive session; this is the first time such a shut out of the public has occured with this board. They did it at the request of Energy Solutions lawyer. The board voted unanimously to have part of the meeting closed.The press objected openly but were forced to leave along with the public.
The basic result is Energy Solutions can go ahead and bring in DU for a year or until they complete a risk assessment. In other words the fox runs the henhouse and will give a report when they darn well please.
I know that politics is an unhappy word to most of y'all but allow me to say that we are having elections next year in Utah and since I'm unaffiliated with any non- profit, I intend to work really hard to elect a governor who wants to protect us from Energy Solutions and (as my "old grandad" in Tennessee used to say) will be able to"jack up that board and run another one under it" if necessary.

Jim O'Neal