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EM Marks Progress on Facilities, Outlines Safe Startup and Commissioning Plans

Panelists at the event for the House Nuclear Cleanup Caucus included, left to right, Parsons Senior Vice President and Salt Waste Processing Facility Project Manager Frank Sheppard, EM Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Mark Whitney, and Bechtel National Inc. Waste Treatment Plant (WTP) Project Director Peggy McCullough.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Leadership from EM and its contractors highlighted measurable progress on major cleanup facilities across the complex and discussed a safe and successful path forward for startup and commissioning at an event for the House Nuclear Cleanup Caucus on June 8.  

   “With construction now complete at the Savannah River Site’s Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF), the Hanford Direct Feed Low Activity Waste (DFLAW) initiative moving forward, and the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) progressing into cold commissioning, we are working hard and working together to leverage lessons learned and achieve our shared goal of safe and successful operations,” EM Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Mark Whitney said. 

   Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.), who chairs the caucus, voiced support for EM’s cleanup and called it a national effort.

   “I’m so proud of the folks in this room: the contractors, the workers, the affected communities who come together in a strong bipartisan way to advocate for cleanup of these legacy sites,” Fleischmann said. “You’re doing a great job. It’s an important job. It’s a federal obligation. These are sites that need to be cleaned up.” Reps. John Shimkus (R-Ill.) and Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) also participated in the event and shared their support for EM’s cleanup efforts.