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Funding Long-Term Stewardship. James D. Werner, Director of Long-Term Stewardship Office of Environmental Management U.S. Department of Energy. Resources for the Future Workshop Long-Term Stewardship at Contaminated Sites: Innovative Funding and Oversight December 7, 2000.
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Funding Long-Term Stewardship James D. Werner, Director of Long-Term Stewardship Office of Environmental Management U.S. Department of Energy Resources for the Future Workshop Long-Term Stewardship at Contaminated Sites: Innovative Funding and Oversight December 7, 2000
Where Have We Been? • Total estimated cost for EM (~$200 billion) does not include cleanup to “unrestricted use” • DOE/EM spent nearly $60 billion from 1989 to present • Acknowledged need for long-term stewardship • Assistant Secretary Huntoon identified long-term stewardship as Strategic Priority • Congress recognizes federal government responsible for long-term stewardship • National Research Council Report on LTS (see Attachment E)
Expected Annual Cost for LTS is Approximately $100 million * 7 2000-2006 Budget Targets Long-term Stewardship Costs Projected Outyear DOE Environmental Management Costs 6 5 Billions of Dollars 4 3 2007-2070 Long-Term Stewardship Rough Cost Estimates from the NDAA Report 2 1 0 2004 2008 2012 2020 2024 2028 2032 2036 2040 2044 2048 2052 2056 2060 2064 2068 2000 2016 *As of 2070
Key Challenges for Effective LTS • Incorporating long-term stewardship considerations into cleanup decisions • Ensuring continued effectiveness of long-term stewardship through multiple changes in property ownership • Ensuring open access to information about residual hazards • Ensuring reliable and sufficient funding • Maintaining continued partnerships with state, local, and Tribal governments • Developing mechanisms and technologies to promote the sustainability of long-term stewardship • Designing and building the concept of “stewardship prevention” into planning for new construction and operation
Potential Funding Mechanisms • Annual Congressional Appropriations • Proposed LTS budget submitted to OMB • Long-term Stewardship Fund(s)/Escrow Account* • Annual funding provided from trust fund/escrow account income or escrow account principal • Could be created at national, state, site level • Fees from DOE Commercial Activities/Sales of Assets* • Receipt from asset sales/fees for services would be collected in LTS fund • Public-Private Partnerships* • Private entities lease site assets at below-market rates in return for funding LTS * May require new legal authority to establish and operate
Attachment A Examples of Federal Trust Funds • Nuclear Waste Fund (42 U.S.C. § 10222) • Federal Old Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund (42 USC § 401(a)) • Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund (42 U.S.C. § 401(b)) • Black Lung Disability Trust Fund (26 USC § 9501) • Aquatic Resources Trust Fund (26 USC § 9504) • Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (26 USC § 9505) • Inland Waterways Trust Fund (26 USC § 9506) • Airport and Airways Trust Fund (26 USC § 9502) • Highway Trust Fund (26 USC § 9503) • Vaccine Injury Compensation Trust Fund (26 USC § 9510) • Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund (26 USC § 9508) • Hazardous Substance Superfund (26 USC § 9507); uses of fund (42 USC § 9611) • Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund (26 USC § 9509)
Attachment B Congressional Report on Long-Term Stewardship Requirements • The FY 2000 National Defense Authorization Act requires the development of a Long-term Stewardship Report that: • Identifies sites or portions of sites where environmental restoration, waste disposal, and facility stabilization will be completed by 2006 without unrestricted land use • Includes sufficient detail to undertake the necessary management and stewardship responsibilities including cost, scope, and schedule Status • Information necessary for the Congressional Report must be compiled by DOE Headquarters from Field Office staff • Draft data call/guidance issued - December 1999 • Data call/guidance issued - February • Initial data from field staff to HQ - April • Pre-concurrence draft - June • Concurrence draft - July • Final Report expected to be delivered to Congress in December, 2000 Will provide initial scope of existing and projected site-by-site long-term stewardship activities.
Attachment C Long-Term Stewardship (LTS) Studyfor PEIS Settlement Requirements • Address national and cross-cutting institutional and programmatic issues,not site-specific issues • Follow CEQ/DOE NEPA process for public involvement, but not a NEPA document Status • 120-day public scoping period from October 6, 1999 to February 3, 2000 • Scoping workshops in TN, NV, OH and ID • Draft Study released October 31, 2000 • 45-day public comment period; Public hearing in Washington, D.C. on November 30, 2000 • Final Study following public comment period Major Topics: • Hazard Management • Managing Real Property • Information Management • Funding & Financial Management • Environmental & Socioeconomic Issues • Sustainability Will not determine policiesWill provide research and analytical support for policy development process.
Attachment D Other Current Tasks • Database of sites with past involvement in nuclear weapons related activities • New National Academy of Sciences study on buried transuranic waste • National Academy of Sciences study of long-term institutional management released in October, 2000 • Strategic plan for long-term stewardship • DOE policy for long-term stewardship responsibility at sites with expected non-EM mission • Web page (http://lts.apps.em.doe.gov) • DOE staff working group — headquarters and field staff • $6.25 million Citizen Monitoring and Technical Assessment Fund pursuant to PEIS lawsuit settlement • Case studies and workshops conducted by Energy Communities Alliance, Environmental Law Institute, National Association of Attorneys General, and National Governors Association • Analysis of funding mechanisms options by Resources For the Future
Attachment E National Research Council Report* • “[S]tewardship is a pervasive concept and not simply a set of measures to be implemented once remediation is complete” • “[E]ffectiveness of cleanup is reliant upon the effectiveness of three measures: contamination reduction, contaminant isolation, and stewardship measures” • “The [NRC] Committee . . . finds that much regarding DOE’s intended reliance on long-term stewardship is at this point problematic.” *Long-term Institutional Management of U.S. Department of Energy Legacy Waste Sites. National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council, August 2000
Attachment F National Research Council Report (ctd.) • Recommended five strategic objectives for an effective LTS program: • Plan for uncertainty • Plan for fallibility • Develop appropriate incentive structures • Undertake scientific, technical, and social research and development • Implement an iterative strategy that allows adaptation to changing conditions or unexpected outcomes