Officials with the Moab Uranium Mill Tailings Remediation Action Project hold up commemorative flags recognizing the milestone of disposing 11 million tons of mill tailings. From left are Moab Site Operations Manager Ken Kisiel, Deputy Federal Cleanup Director Sasha Robertson, Federal Cleanup Director Russell McCallister, Project Manager Greg Church, and Operations Manager Heather White.
MOAB, Utah – EM’s Moab Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Project achieved an EM 2020 priority on Oct. 19 after relocating another million tons of contaminated soil and debris away from the Moab Site and the Colorado River, bringing the project’s cumulative total of mill tailings disposed to 11 million tons.
The achievement puts the site two-thirds of the way toward safely completing the removal of 16 million tons of material away from the river and to an engineered disposal site.
Moab UMTRA Project Federal Cleanup Director Russell McCallister said reaching the milestone is an outstanding accomplishment for the project's small team.
“Challenging times demand a clearly defined purpose," McCallister said. "I’m proud of our workforce and their contribution to the Department’s vision to safely remove a million tons of residual radioactive material this year while keeping our commitment to work without injury.”
Project Manager Greg Church said the latest achievement illustrates the commitment of the Moab UMTRA Project team.
“The ability to adapt to this year’s changing conditions and continue safe operations through these uncertain times is to be commended,” Church said. “Everyone who has contributed to this milestone, and the continued success of this project, can be proud of what they have accomplished.”
At the center of this photo is what remains of the tailings pile at the Moab Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project’s Moab, Utah site. Debris from the former mill is seen on the lower right. In the distance are the Sand Flats Recreation Area and La Sal Mountains.
Site employees also recently surpassed a safety milestone, exceeding 1,500 work days without a lost-time injury or illness.
McCallister was joining the Grand County Commission today to recognize the project's latest achievements. McCallister and Mary McGann, the commission’s chair, were to present plaques representing the cleanup progress.
North Wind Portage, the Moab Project's remedial action contractor, planned boxed lunches for employees at both the Moab and Crescent Junction site locations this week to celebrate the milestone.
When EM began its cleanup at the Moab Site, there was an estimated 16 million tons of soil, or mill tailings, left from a former mill that processed uranium ore. About 32 percent of that tailings pile currently remains to be shipped from the Moab Site to the Crescent Junction disposal cell.
The project had reached 10 million tons removed in September 2019.
To prepare tailings for removal, workers excavate and condition them in drying beds to reach the optimal moisture content for disposal and to reduce shipping excess water. Excavators load tailings in steel containers with locking lids for transport.
When tailings arrive at the Crescent Junction Site, they are end-dumped from the containers, loaded into dump trucks, and driven to the disposal area where a dozer spreads them for compaction. They are compacted in place in layers. After placement has reached the design thickness, they are capped with a multi-layered cover composed of native soils and rock.
-Contributor: Stephanie Lein, Honora Thompson
EM Makes Progress on 2020 Priorities at Portsmouth, Brookhaven, ETEC Sites
EM continues progress toward its key priority to begin demolition at the Portsmouth Site’s X-326 Process Building, pictured here.
While adapting operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, EM has continued closing in on a key 2020 priority to begin demolition at the Portsmouth Site’s X-326 Process Building, and is making headway in cleanup projects at other sites.
At the Portsmouth Site, EM recently verified the half-mile-long building, used for uranium enrichment from the 1950s to 2001, as radiologically safe for demolition. View this video footage of recent work on the project.
“A lot of painstaking preparation will ensure X-326 is taken down in a manner protective of human health and the environment,” said Robert Edwards, manager of EM’s Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office. Edwards added that lessons learned and techniques developed at X-326 are helping facilitate deactivation of the site’s other two large gaseous-diffusion buildings.
Having removed thousands of process gas components, EM and its contractors, led by Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth, documented millions of measurements to ensure the building and its contents would meet criteria for demolition and disposal. More recently, the building’s large tan-gray transite siding panels have begun to turn blue with a fixative coating to lock in dust and any potentially friable asbestos, allowing them to be removed and wrapped safely. A newly constructed and lined water-detention system will capture dust-control and rain runoff water for onsite treatment.
Edwards said these and other recent projects at X-326 and elsewhere continue to move the Portsmouth Site on its path to final closure.
“With the safe demolition of X-326 likely beginning in fiscal year 2021, we will start to see a fundamental transformation of the Portsmouth skyline,” he said.
Demolition of the Brookhaven National Laboratory’s High Flux Beam Reactor exhaust stack is scheduled for completion by the end of 2020.
Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) is the site of an EM project to demolish the High Flux Beam Reactor (HFBR) exhaust stack, a prominent part of the BNL skyline since 1949.
Anticipated for demolition by the end of this year, the 320-foot-tall, red-and-white stack was used for a small research reactor that DOE shut down more than 20 years ago. The HFBR provided a source of neutrons for multidisciplinary scientific research in materials science, chemistry, biology, and physics.
Crews are on track to finish the east 180-degree side of the HFBR stack and begin asbestos abatement on the remaining west 180-degree side. They remain on schedule to finish the exterior lead-contaminated paint coating abatement in early November, and full demolition by the end of 2020.
Crews remove asbestos siding at Building 4022 at the Energy Technology Engineering Center’s Radioactive Materials Handling Facility.
Workers continue to make headway at the Radioactive Materials Handling Facility (RMHF) at the Energy Technology Engineering Center (ETEC) in Ventura County, California.
The DOE and the state of California signed a consent order in May to demolish 10 of the remaining DOE-owned buildings at the ETEC site. Demolition started at the nuclear and liquid metals research site in July, and since that time, DOE has safely taken down nine of the 10 buildings. Demolition of the 10th building — Building 4022, formerly used for materials storage and processing prior to offsite shipment — is on track to be completed in December.
Removing all 10 RMHF facilities, which were constructed in 1959 and used for the processing, packaging, and shipment of radioactive and mixed hazardous wastes during site operations that ended in 1988, will reduce potential risk of release of hazardous substances due to wildfires or erosion from severe storms.
-Contributors: Brad Mitzelfelt, Stephanie Shewmon, Christina Swanson, Michelle Teeters
Facility for Treating Hanford Waste Nears 65 Percent Construction Completion
Pictured from left are Waste Treatment Completion Company’s Effluent Management Facility startup team members Greg Westby, Roger Tillenburg, James Jones, Duane Almond, Rhonda De Jonghe, and Pete Hingston.
RICHLAND, Wash. – Workers at EM Hanford’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant have completed construction of six more systems in the plant’s Effluent Management Facility (EMF) and turned them over to startup testing.
That progress over recent months means nearly 65 percent of EMF systems have been completed and turned over to startup testing.
EMF is a key new plant facility in the assembly of existing and new facilities that will enable the start of Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste (DFLAW) treatment operations at Hanford, an EM 2020 priority.
“The team is doing an amazing job working as an integrated construction and startup team — everyone onsite and teleworking,” said Rick Holmes, general manager for the Waste Treatment Completion Company, which is working for prime contractor Bechtel National Inc. “We’re receiving quality constructed systems from our construction teammates, which are making walk-downs and turnover packages seamless for the startup team.”
The construction team’s efforts to deliver quality systems allowed the startup team to begin testing the systems earlier than planned. In turn, this approach is pacing the startup team to hand over tested systems to plant management earlier than expected.
During DLAW operations, secondary liquid, called effluent, is generated from the plant’s low-activity waste vitrification melter off-gas system and when transfer pipes are flushed. These liquids go to the EMF main processing building, where excess water is evaporated and transferred to Hanford’s nearby Liquid Effluent Retention Facility, and the remaining concentrate is sent back into the vitrification process. The EMF also includes electrical powerhouse and utility support buildings.
The EMF encompasses 77 integrated systems. As of early October, startup testing is complete for 11 systems which have been handed over to plant management to prepare for the commissioning phase. Startup testing is underway for 48 systems, and construction is nearing completion for the remaining 18 systems.
-Contributor: George Rangel
New Well Set to Enhance Groundwater Treatment at Idaho Site
Equipment used for treatment of a groundwater plume containing trichloroethylene beneath the Test Area North facility at the Idaho National Laboratory Site.
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho – EM and cleanup contractor Fluor Idaho will assist the U.S. Geological Survey in drilling a well at the north end of the 890-square-mile Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Site early next year to enhance the effectiveness of a groundwater treatment system that removes hazardous waste from the underlying aquifer.
For nearly two decades, crews have employed a pump-and-treat technology to reduce concentrations of trichloroethylene (TCE) and other hazardous organic compounds from beneath the former Test Area North (TAN) facility.
The program also uses a simple, effective method called bioremediation to inject a sodium-lactate and fatty-acid solution directly into the aquifer to encourage naturally occurring microorganisms to consume the common industrial solvent TCE.
Fluor Idaho Environmental Restoration Program Director Rich Abitz said a new well is needed to target a residual TCE source zone in the aquifer that is inaccessible using current bioremediation injection wells.
“The new well will allow us to target an area of the aquifer that shows a weak response to the bioremediation efforts that have been successful in shrinking the source zone of the contaminant plume,” he said.
The aquifer depth at the north end of the INL Site is about 225 feet below the ground surface. The area of the aquifer near the TAN facility is not used as a source for drinking water.
TAN was established in the early 1950s to build and test nuclear-powered jet aircraft engines for an aircraft nuclear propulsion program that ended in 1961. The facility was later used to study the effects of the loss of coolant from commercial reactors.
Abitz said it will take some time to determine the effectiveness of lactate injections at the new well to reduce TCE in the suspected source zone, but he’s optimistic.
“Going at this problem using several locations for lactate injections is the best solution,” he said. “We have to deal with a complex subsurface flow regime controlled by fractured basalt, which requires multiple injection points to deliver the lactate over the entire TCE source zone.”
DOE, the Environmental Protection Agency, and state of Idaho agreed to implement the pump-and-treat and bioremediation systems in a record of decision signed about 20 years ago.
“Once we treat the TCE source zone, we can begin the final rebound test to determine if the remedy met the conditions of the record of decision,” Abitz said. “After those conditions are met, we can shut off the treatment systems permanently.”
-Contributor: Erik Simpson
Crews Implement Upgrades Before Resuming U-233 Processing at Oak Ridge
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – After a pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic, DOE’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM) and its contractor Isotek are resuming uranium (U)-233 processing and downblending operations using gloveboxes.
During the recent pause in operations, OREM and Isotek worked collaboratively to install upgrades and identify and implement numerous prevention methods to ensure workers remain safe while they eliminate the inventory of U-233 from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), which is EM’s highest priority at that site.
The project is removing a significant risk by eliminating the inventory of highly enriched fissile material stored in Building 3019, the world’s oldest operating nuclear facility located in the heart of one of the nation’s most important scientific research sites.
Employees, known as fissile material handlers, use shielded gloveboxes to dissolve U-233 into a low-level form so it can be mixed with grout for safe transportation and disposal. The material dates back decades and was originally pursued as a fuel for reactors; however, it did not prove to be a viable option.
Through an innovative partnership, the Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, Isotek, and TerraPower make use of uranium-233 to support next generation cancer treatment research.
Last year, OREM, Isotek, and TerraPower announced an innovative public-private partnership that makes use of the U-233 inventory before it is disposed. Isotek employees extract thorium before the material is processed into a disposal-ready form. Nuclear innovation company TerraPower is using the extracted thorium to support next generation cancer treatment research.
At the restart of U-233 processing, employees went through training again to ensure they were prepared and mindful to handle the radioactive material. They also trained on new procedures that incorporated COVID-19 related safety precautions.
During the suspension of work, a new filter was implemented for the dissolved U-233 that would catch undissolved particles. This filter will prevent undissolved particles from plugging up transfer lines, decreasing the time employees use the gloveboxes.
Another new implementation is an extended waste transfer line. This new line extends from the glovebox all the way to a negative pressure area so waste can be transferred directly to a safe zone. Before this, employees transferred waste to a drum and then moved the drum to the safe zone.
In conjunction with glovebox processing restarting, construction continues on getting Building 3019 ready for hot cell processing. Hot cells are needed to handle high-dose U-233 canisters, while gloveboxes are used for the low-dose portion of the inventory. Entry tubes are being fitted for remote manipulators that will handle material inside the hot cells. And an entire floor has been reconstructed for an air pallet that will be able to move 30 tons of waste after it has been processed for disposal.
Hot cell processing is expected to begin next year. Until then, Isotek will continue addressing the low-dose inventory using gloveboxes.
-Contributor: John Gray
Oak Ridge, UCOR are Finalists for Government Team Award
At the height of the Cold War, the Ford Building was used to test components used in five nuclear reactors at the Savannah River Site. An excavator is shown here removing a section of the facility’s metal roof.
AIKEN, S.C. – EM has completed demolition of a large metal storage building at the Savannah River Site (SRS) that formerly contained mechanical systems used to remotely raise and lower control rods within nuclear reactor vessels during the Cold War.
Made by the Ford Motor Company, these control systems played an important role within the site’s now dormant reactors.
The teardown of the facility, known as the Ford Building, brings the number of structures that have been deactivated and decommissioned at SRS to 292.
“We no longer need to incur the ongoing costs associated with maintaining obsolete structures like the Ford Building. We can safely and efficiently demolish unneeded buildings to eliminate the need for surveillance and maintenance, while preventing any potential release of hazardous substances to the environment,” said Steve Conner, a project manager with Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS), the site’s management and operations contractor. “These are all good reasons to move forward and prepare for the next building to be safely demolished.”
Workers will seal the Ford Building’s original concrete flooring with six inches of new concrete.
Decades ago, employees at the Ford Building worked daily on hundreds of control rod assemblies, which were used to ensure a stable nuclear criticality within reactor vessels, said Grady Friday, SRNS decontamination and decommissioning project lead.
“Ford was making more than cars in those days,” Friday said.
A system at the facility could insert or withdraw a control rod at a slow, steady rate to fine tune reactor operations. In the event of an emergency, the system allowed neutron-absorbing rods to drop, using gravity in the reactor core to slow or stop the reactor.
Later, the Ford Building was reconfigured to function as a repair facility for nuclear reactor heat exchangers. These devices removed heat from heavy water used to control the temperature within a reactor vessel by transferring the heat to water circulating inside the exchanger.
“Along with the heat exchangers came the potential for radioactive contamination,” said Friday. “A large metal-walled containment room was built within the Ford Building with a negative air flow system that exhausted air through HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filters to remove any potential radioactive particles. The room was about 100 feet long and 40 feet wide.”
-Contributor: DT Townsend
Virtual Field Trips to Savannah River Site Become Reality
AIKEN, S.C. – With popular environmental field trips to the Savannah River Site (SRS) on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, EM contractor Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) is bringing the site visit experience to the students virtually.
SRNS has hosted local students as part of its Science and Technology Enrichment Program (STEP) for many years. Now, SRNS is conducting virtual field trips to benefit students from elementary school to high school, and the first lesson is called “Wet Wonders.” It allows students to study biotic factors that determine the health of a pond by capturing and examining macro invertebrates.
“This lesson provides a great demonstration of the groundbreaking work of environmental research pioneer Dr. Ruth Patrick who was hired by SRS in the 1950s to do a baseline study of the environmental health of the site prior to construction,” said Kim Mitchell, with the SRNS education outreach division.
Mitchell noted that educators can play a series of videos for their students or request representatives from the University of South Carolina Aiken Ruth Patrick Science Education Center (RPSEC) to visit their classrooms. Teachers or the RPSEC representatives can also provide materials such as water samples containing aquatic creatures. Combined with the videos, this classroom “virtual field trip” creates an experience comparable to a real-time visit to a pond at SRS.
Since the in-person field trips were paused earlier this year, Mitchell and her team have been reorganizing nearly all of their outreach programs in an effort to remain relevant to the education community.
“We’re definitely going virtual within our competitive programs such as Future City, Science Bowl, and Science Fair,” said Mitchell. “We may use a combination of options related to our science and literacy outreach programs involving teach-ins at area middle schools and the Innovative Teaching Mini-Grants Program for educators.”
The virtual approach to field trips allows organizers to reach a larger number of students, said Francine Burroughs, manager of the SRNS talent management and education outreach divisions.
“Even our employee volunteers have been stepping it up, eager to assist in finding new ways to reach students in this new virtual world, particularly regarding our STEM-based (science, technology, engineering and math) programs and events,” Burroughs said.
STEP provides hands-on STEM opportunities through real-world, issues-oriented investigations that focus on responsible environmental stewardship. Supported by DOE-Savannah River, SRNS, RPSEC, the National Audubon Society, and the U.S. Forest Service, the program is offered to educators and students in the region around SRS.
-Contributor: DT Townsend
Hanford Tank Contractor Receives Community Safety Award
Hanford tank operations contractor Washington River Protection Solutions recently received an award from the National Safety Council, recognizing workers for their engagement in workplace safety programs and commitment to sharing a safety mindset in the local community.
RICHLAND, Wash. – EM Hanford tank operations contractor Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) recently received the National Safety Council’s Community Advancement Award, an honor that recognizes companies for a commitment to safety performance in two distinct areas: employee-led safety programs, and safety outreach and engagement in the community.
WRPS has been involved in the DOE Voluntary Protection Program, accident prevention councils, and creation of employee-generated safety videos.
“This award is well earned,” said Bradley Eccleston, safety and health manager for EM’s Office of River Protection. “WRPS has a critical role in the Hanford cleanup mission and has consistently provided safety innovation and leadership amongst the workforce and within the community.”
WRPS employees also support the community after work hours through conducting safety briefings for local Habitat for Humanity projects; sharing use of robotics and engineering innovations with local schools, colleges, and universities; and volunteering with food drives and fundraising initiatives to aid programs focused on families.
“Our team continues to safely complete mission-critical work, increase safety performance, and collaborate with our community partners to promote the safety and well-being of others,” said John Eschenberg, WRPS president and CEO. “I am proud to be part of this team and see our workers’ dedication recognized by a distinguished national organization.”
WRPS has been safely completing significant projects at the tank farms for the past 12 years, with a focus on the EM 2020 priority of completing Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste construction and turnover to commissioning. Recently, WRPS completed successful testing of the Tank-Side Cesium Removal system, which will pretreat low-activity waste.
-Contributor: Jack Donnelly
West Valley Removes Acid Recovery Cell Airlock
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EM Update | Vol. 12, Issue 31 | Oct. 20, 2020 |
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Moab Marks Milestone of Moving 11 Million Tons of Mill Tailings for Disposal |
A view of demolition on the final uranium enrichment building at the East Tennessee Technology Park at Oak Ridge.
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – The Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM) and cleanup contractor UCOR are finalists in the 2020 WashingtonExec Pinnacle Awards for Government Team Project of the Year. Winners in the third-annual Pinnacle Awards will be announced at a Nov. 12 virtual event. This program highlights successful executives and businesses saving money and fostering innovation for federal clients. OREM and UCOR are responsible for environmental cleanup across DOE’s Oak Ridge Reservation, and this month, they completed the first-ever cleanup of a former uranium enrichment complex. Through their work, major cleanup at the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP) was finished $80 million under budget and four years early — avoiding $500 million in costs to taxpayers. OREM and UCOR were able to safely and efficiently:
The acceleration and ultimate completion of cleanup at ETTP has allowed OREM and UCOR to begin ramping up major cleanup at Oak Ridge’s other two sites — the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12 National Security Complex. Cleanup at these sites will eliminate hazards, enable modernization, and open land for new missions at two of the nation’s premiere research and national defense sites. A contributing factor to Oak Ridge’s cleanup success and nomination for this award is its shared governance model. This model promotes a work environment that operates with a high degree of stakeholder engagement among OREM, UCOR, employees, labor unions, subcontractors, regulators, and the community. -Contributor: Wayne McKinney, Christina Swanson |
SRS Crews Successfully Demolish Facility Once Critical to Cold War Reactors |
WEST VALLEY, N.Y. – Demolition crews at the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP) recently demolished an acid recovery cell airlock and lift table. The cell was used in reprocessing, where processed liquids, such as acid, were recovered and filtered for reuse. This 100-square-foot structure was constructed in early 2009 to support asbestos-containing material abatement, decommissioning, and vessel removal from the cell. The airlock had a lift table that brought containers to the top of the acid recovery cell; waste containers were loaded and then lowered back down. A fork truck could then lift and remove the waste box out of the airlock. The photo at top shows the project underway, while the photo immediately above shows completion of the demolition. -Contributor: Joseph Pillittere |
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