Court Doubts Oversight Of NJ Nuclear Slag Cleanup

A court has ruled that the federal government should reconsider which agency is responsible for overseeing the cleanup of nuclear materials on a Newfield site.

Tuesday's ruling from a federal appeals court in Washington D.C. sends the question back to the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

The Commission had ruled in 2011 that New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection would be in charge of the cleanup at the former Shieldalloy Metallurgical Corp. site in Newfield.

State laws on how to handle the cleanup are more stringent and would be more costly for the company. New Jersey could require materials be shipped to Utah.

The court ruling says the NRC needs to give better reasons before handing off authority.

Shieldalloy is a subsidiary of Wayne, Pa.-based Metallurg Holdings, Inc.