EPA's authority in setting decommissioning standards

[Stephen McGuire <SAM2@nrc.gov>]

About a month ago, Judd Sills asked for clarification of the EPA's regulatory
authority over decommissioned NRC-licensed sites.  Since I have seen no answer
on the question, I will take a stab at it.

EPA has stated that Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970 [35 Federal Register 15623]
transferred to EPA the functions of the Atomic Energy Commission under the
Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to the extent that such functions of the Commission
consist of establishing generally applicable environmental standards.  Therefore
EPA claims the authority to set generally applicable standards applying to
decommissioning.

The AEC was to enforce EPA's generally applicable standards through regulation
of discharges to the environment.  EPA's standards would apply outside the
boundaries under the control of persons possessing or using radioactive materials. 
However, once a license is relinquished, the site is outside the boundary of the
NRC's control.  Therefore the EPA regulations become effective.

The EPA is proposing to accept NRC approval of decommissioning at a site as
meeting the EPA's requirements.  However, EPA would do so only if it considered
NRC regulations adequate.  If EPA did not consider NRC's requirements
adequate, then after the site had been released by the NRC, the owner would then
have to clean up to meet EPA standards.

In this way EPA is claiming to have the last say.  Is all this legal?  I'm not a lawyer,
so I can't possible say.  But it is what EPA is claiming.