Notice2025-01034
Request for Information Regarding Treatment and Disposal of Elemental Mercury
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
January 16, 2025
Issuing agencies
Energy Department
Abstract
The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Environmental Management Consolidated Business Center and Office of Environmental Management are currently in the acquisition planning and regulatory planning stages for a potential future treatment and disposal (T&D) acquisition activity and fee rulemaking activities for elemental mercury waste. This planning supports DOE's efforts to implement the requirements of the Mercury Export Ban Act of 2008, as amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act. DOE's Office of Environmental Management is issuing this RFI for the purpose of conducting market research in accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). This RFI is also being issued to potentially support a future rulemaking action that would establish a fee to provide long- term management and storage of elemental mercury. No contract solicitation is available through this RFI.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 10 (Thursday, January 16, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 10 (Thursday, January 16, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4728-4730]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-01034]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Request for Information Regarding Treatment and Disposal of
Elemental Mercury
AGENCY: Office of Environmental Management, U.S. Department of Energy.
ACTION: Request for information (RFI).
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Environmental Management
Consolidated Business Center and Office of Environmental Management are
currently in the acquisition planning and regulatory planning stages
for a potential future treatment and disposal (T&D) acquisition
activity and fee rulemaking activities for elemental mercury waste.
This planning supports DOE's efforts to implement the requirements of
the Mercury Export Ban Act of 2008, as amended by the Frank R.
Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act. DOE's Office of
Environmental Management is issuing this RFI for the purpose of
conducting market research in accordance with the Federal Acquisition
Regulation (FAR). This RFI is also being issued to potentially support
a future rulemaking action that would establish a fee to provide long-
term management and storage of elemental mercury. No contract
solicitation is available through this RFI.
DATES: Written comments and information are requested on or before
March 3, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties may submit comments via any of the
following methods:
Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#6d00081f0e181f1443000a19430b08082d080043090208430a021b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="0b666e79687e797225666c7f256d6e6e4b6e66256f646e256c647d">[email protected]</span></a>. Please include ``Treatment and
Disposal of Elemental Mercury RFI'' in the subject line, and submit
comments in Microsoft Word, or PDF file format, and avoid the use of
encryption.
Postal Mail: Timothy Herald, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of
Environmental Management, Office of Waste Disposal (EM-4.22), 1000
Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Timothy Herald, U.S. Department of
Energy, Office of Environmental Management, Office of Waste Disposal
(EM-4.22), 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585,
Telephone: (240) 243-8753, Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f59890879680878cdb989281db939090b59098db919a90db929a83"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f79a92859482858ed99a9083d9919292b7929ad9939892d9909881">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Purpose and Introduction
The purpose of this RFI is to identify entities capable of
providing (1) infrastructure, capabilities, and capacities for the
treatment and/or disposal of elemental mercury, (2) documentation of
permits held, or viable strategies for obtaining permits and regulatory
approval for the T&D methods identified, and (3) physical and
administrative methods to segregate and control the elemental mercury
considered under this RFI separately from other hazardous wastes
managed at the facility or facilities.
To that end, this RFI solicits input via capability statements from
interested parties with the specialized capabilities necessary to meet
all, or part of, the major elements of scope for the T&D of elemental
mercury. Within these capability statements, DOE is seeking feedback
from contractors, small business concerns, and other interested parties
regarding options for innovative approaches to perform the work scope
elements of this RFI. This feedback will assist DOE with identifying
interested and capable sources, and with advancing development of DOE's
acquisition strategy and future rulemaking action.
This RFI is issued as part of DOE's implementation of the
requirements of the Mercury Export Ban Act of 2008 (Pub. L. 110-414),
as amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st
Century Act (Pub. L. 114-182) (collectively identified herein as MEBA).
Within MEBA, DOE interprets ``long-term management'' to include T&D.
Elemental mercury managed under MEBA is a hazardous waste and thus must
be treated and disposed of in accordance with applicable statutory and
regulatory requirements.
DOE is aware that Land Disposal Restrictions (LDRs) described in
the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (42 U.S.C. 6901 et
seq.) (RCRA) at 40 CFR part 268, subpart D--Treatment Standards, do not
currently include an approved treatment standard for non-radioactively
contaminated elemental mercury waste that provides an LDR-compliant
waste form acceptable for shallow land disposal. However, a treatment
and land disposal path for non-radioactively contaminated elemental
mercury would be available if the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
promulgated a new rulemaking (per 40 CFR 260.20) or approved a site-
specific No Migration Variance (NMV) (per 40 CFR 268.6) or a site-
specific Determination of Equivalent Treatment (DET) (per 40 CFR
268.42(b)). Recently, DOE received information that could provide other
potential T&D options (e.g., deep well injection) to disposition
elemental mercury. Also, RCRA may allow for intermediary treatment
methods that convert elemental mercury to a more stable form (e.g.,
cinnabar/mercury sulfide) suitable for longer duration storage pending
disposal availability. DOE therefore encourages all interested parties
to identify their T&D methods for DOE consideration.
II. Performance Work Statement
DOE requires services for the T&D of elemental mercury conveyed to
DOE pursuant to MEBA. DOE may initially seek T&D services for up to 120
metric tons (MT) of elemental mercury to which DOE holds title as
established in an August 2020 settlement agreement with Nevada Gold
Mines, LLC (NGM), whereby DOE agreed to accept title to and all further
responsibility for 112 MT of elemental mercury that was in temporary
storage at certain NGM facilities as of December 31, 2019.
DOE is considering additional contract options that could increase
the quantity of elemental mercury T&D capacity over a 5-year contract
period of performance. The potential need for additional T&D capacity
is based on the expectation that additional quantities of elemental
mercury would be conveyed to DOE, and such options would afford DOE the
capability to disposition a much larger volume of elemental mercury
waste. Interested parties' responses to this RFI should address their
capabilities and capacities to treat and/or dispose of the following
three volumes of elemental mercury waste during a base period of
performance
[[Page 4729]]
(estimated) through a maximum 5-year period of performance (PoP):
<bullet> 120 metric tons (MT) elemental mercury--base period
proposed by responding entity.
<bullet> 1,500-2,000 MT elemental mercury (includes base 120 MT)--
maximum 5-year PoP.
<bullet> 2,000-3,000 MT elemental mercury (includes base 120 MT)--
maximum 5-year PoP.
III. Request for Information
Within the context of the information contained in this RFI
request, interested parties may provide responses to the following
information requested below as deemed appropriate and applicable by the
respondent, and to the extent the information is available:
1. Describe your experience managing hazardous materials and
hazardous waste, including elemental mercury as a material and as a
waste. Discuss roles and responsibilities of your company and any
contemplated teaming partners specific to the performance work
statement (PWS) elements of this RFI.
2. Describe your approach to meeting the PWS elements of this RFI
in providing T&D services for elemental mercury waste. Specifically,
discuss:
a. The permits you hold or your regulatory status/proposed strategy
for obtaining regulatory approval (i.e., DET, NMV, other RCRA T&D
method, export to Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
country, etc.) to treat and dispose of elemental mercury waste.
b. Your expected (existing or planned) annual throughput capacity
(i.e., metric tons of elemental mercury per year treated and disposed).
Describe your ability to scale up processes, if required, to achieve
T&D of (a) 1,500-2,000 MT during a 5-year PoP, or (b) 2,500-3,000 MT
during a 5-year PoP.
c. For the existing (or planned) capacity identified in 2(b) above,
describe the proposed facilities and processes and whether new
construction or modifications would be required to treat and dispose of
the requested quantities.
d. Capabilities to safely manage compromised (e.g., leaking,
damaged) containers of elemental mercury, including the ability to open
containers for transfer to new containers, as well as interim products
(e.g., cinnabar).
e. Capabilities to process off-specification waste forms to allow
disposal.
f. Management and disposition of secondary wastes generated during
processing or handling.
g. Disposal facility receipt, handling, staging, and emplacement of
the equivalent of the masses of elemental mercury identified above,
accounting for volume increase due to treatment to produce an
acceptable waste form for disposal.
h. Capabilities to monitor the performance of disposal (e.g.,
monitoring wells, leachate collection and treatment, etc.) in
accordance with regulatory requirements to identify and mitigate
potential leak/release paths.
3. Identify any challenges and risks in meeting the PWS elements of
this RFI in providing T&D service for elemental mercury waste and any
actions your organization would take to address those challenges and
risks.
4. Describe your approach to managing the infrastructure at the
planned facility or facilities to provide segregation and control
processes (e.g., administrative, procedural, and physical) of DOE MEBA
elemental mercury through all activities, including transportation,
handling, treatment, and disposal.
5. Discuss your experience in implementation of environmental,
safety, and health plans related to your (and any teaming partner's)
work, including any prior relevant experience with work on or with DOE
facilities, and your approach to addressing the requirements under 10
CFR part 851, Worker Safety and Health Program, as applicable.
6. Provide a brief Experience and Performance Record (within the
past 15 years). Identify all DOE, other Government, or other commercial
experience relevant to this RFI (include dollar value, contract type,
role in the effort [i.e., prime contractor or subcontractor] date,
scope, duration, and client).
7. DOE may require a leasehold interest in the real property or
properties offering T&D services. Discuss any impacts this may have to
your ability to respond to a request for proposal. Discuss any relevant
experience with leasehold arrangements.
8. Highlight any factors that would make competing for this
contract desirable or undesirable for your firm, including input on
proposal evaluation criteria. Discuss any issues that DOE should
consider when developing the solicitation for this proposal. Identify
any Organizational Conflicts of Interest (OCI) concerns and/or
potential OCI's that you or your teaming partners may have pertaining
to the work described in this RFI. Additionally, please identify and
describe any areas in the major elements of scope believed to be
missing or in need of clarification.
Any additional information that would assist in the evaluation of
the RFI.
IV. Response Guidelines
All interested parties are invited to submit a capability
statement/response to this RFI. Responses to the RFI must be in writing
and submitted no later than March 3, 2025 via one of the methods
provided in the ADDRESSES section. Electronic responses are preferred
and can be provided as an attachment to an email. Please provide
submittals as Microsoft Word (.docx), or PDF files. Respondents may use
formatting that best presents the information, but submittals of 15
pages or less are requested. Respondents may answer as many or as few
topics as they wish. A response to this RFI will not be viewed as a
binding commitment to develop or pursue projects, ideas, or proposals
discussed.
This RFI is solely a request for information and is not a request
for quote or proposal. DOE will not pay for any information that is
provided in response to this announcement, nor will it compensate any
respondents for the development of such information. DOE may contact
firms responding to this announcement to clarify a respondent's
responses or capabilities and other matters as part of this regulatory
research process.
DOE reserves the right to use any, and all, information submitted
by the responding party in any manner. DOE intends to utilize the
information provided in response to this RFI to inform potential future
T&D acquisition activity and fee rulemaking planning activities.
Respondents are advised to avoid including any information that might
be considered business confidential and/or proprietary information
(CBI), if possible, in their submission. DOE will endeavor to protect
such information to the extent legally permissible. If required to do
so as part of the regulatory process, DOE would try to make the
information available to the public in a manner that is not directly
attributable to the responding party.
Confidential Business Information
Pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11, any person submitting information that
he or she believes to be confidential and exempt by law from public
disclosure should submit via email two well-marked copies: one copy of
the document marked ``confidential'' including all the information
believed to be confidential, and one copy of the document marked ``non-
confidential'' with the information believed to be
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confidential deleted. DOE will make its own determination about the
confidential status of the information and treat it according to its
determination.
Signing Authority
This document of the Department of Energy was signed on January 8,
2025, by Candice Trummell, Senior Advisor for Environmental Management,
pursuant to delegated authority from the Secretary of Energy. The
document with the original signature and date is maintained by DOE. For
administrative purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of
the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DOE Federal
Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit the
document in electronic format for publication, as an official document
of the Department of Energy. This administrative process in no way
alters the legal effect of this document upon publication in the
Federal Register.
Signed in Washington, DC, on January 13, 2025.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2025-01034 Filed 1-15-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
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