Dear Hans,

The battle to stop depleted uranium from being dumped in Utah
continues to rage on, for another month at least.

The State Radiation Control Board, after a heated meeting on Tuesday,
unanimously agreed to hear further arguments from both sides before
engaging in making new rules to bar depleted uranium, temporarily or
permanently.

At the meeting, HEAL Utah provided further testimony as to why new
regulations would be in the best interests of the long-term health of
our people and environment, and are urgently needed.

EnergySolutions was also given a turn at the microphone. Rather than
turning to their top engineers and scientists to try to persuade the
Board that their site is safe for depleted uranium disposal, they
instead brought out the lawyers.

EnergySolutions President and former counsel Val Christensen asserted
that the company had not signed any contracts to import massive
amounts of depleted uranium. However, when pushed by the Board, he
would not promise that EnergySolutions would hold off on doing so
until the NRC finishes its rulemaking process. He also stated that
depleted uranium will not be handled differently than any other class
A waste.

The tension in the room mounted when company attorney James Holtkamp,
in a prepared statement, warned the board that they may not legally be
up to the challenge of attempting to pass rules on this issue. The
read-between-the-lines message was clearly: "If you stand in our way,
we will sue you."

Uncowed, the Board voted to forgo its usual month off in July and
reconvene to hear the arguments of HEAL Utah, EnergySolutions and
testimony from engineers at the Department of Radiation Control to
determine if depleted uranium poses an unacceptable risk to the public
and environment.

Please mark your calendars for Tuesday, July 14th from 3pm-5pm, and
join us at the meeting to show your support for new rules that would
prevent a permanently radioactive hazard from being dumped in our
state.

Both the Salt Lake Tribune and the Deseret News reported on the
meeting. You can read the stories in both papers here:
http://healutah.org/sites/all/modules/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=589&qid=161969
http://healutah.org/sites/all/modules/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=594&qid=161969

Help us keep this story front and center in the minds of Utahns. You
can help by writing a letter-to-the-editor of these papers and let
them know where you stand when it comes to depleted uranium dumping
and the future of our state. Click here to get started:
http://healutah.org/sites/all/modules/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=592&qid=161969

For more information on problems with depleted uranium disposal,
please see
http://healutah.org/sites/all/modules/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=595&qid=161969

A BIG thanks to everyone who has sent emails and attended these
meetings. Your actions have helped to convince more than one board
member that we need better protections in our state from the long-
term hazards posed by EnergySolutions and depleted uranium.

We hope to see you on July 14th.

Sincerely-
Eric Spreng
Community Outreach Director
Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah
(801) 355-5055
eric@healutah.org
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HEAL Utah

68 S. Main St., Suite 400
Salt Lake City, UT 84101