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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, Nov. 15, 2007 |
CONTACT Jeannine Natterman |
State Health Department Joins Suit as Defendant Against Adams CountyDENVER—The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment announced today that the Colorado Attorney General’s Office has filed a motion on behalf of the department to intervene as a co-defendant with Clean Harbors Deer Trail, LLC, into a lawsuit brought by Adams County. Clean Harbors Deer Trail is a disposal facility near Last Chance that previously was approved by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to accept low-level, naturally occurring radioactive materials. In a continued effort to stop the Clean Harbors facility from accepting such waste materials, Adams County filed a complaint in Adams County District Court in April 2007. The complaint indirectly attacks the radioactive materials license and hazardous waste permit issued by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment in December 2005. In two separate cases, Adams County sued the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment with regard to the license and permit that had been issued. The Colorado Court of Appeals ruled in October 2007 that Adams County may not sue the state regarding radioactive materials licenses or hazardous waste permits because Adams County is a branch of state government and the state cannot sue itself. “We have a duty to make sure the laws and statutes of the state are applied equally around the state,” commented Gary Baughman, director of the department’s Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division. “Sometimes that means making an effort to ensure that different courts make consistent decisions. That’s why we intervened in this case.” Among other things, Adams County’s complaint asserts that designation of a low-level radioactive waste facility by the Rocky Mountain Low Level Radioactive Waste Compact requires a separate certificate of designation from the county. However, state statutes provide that the existing certificate of designation fulfills the requirement. The state has the responsibility of providing for management of low-level radioactive waste, and specific legislation has been enacted to promote the health, safety and welfare of residents within the three-state compact region. The Rocky Mountain Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compact is a regional compact with authority to control certain aspects of the disposal of low-level radioactive waste. ---30--- |
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