EM Update December 22, 2020

banner EM Update | Vol. 12, Issue 39 | Dec. 22, 2020 GreenBar DOE Successfully Transfers SPRU Site, Achieving EM 2020 Priority ‘2020 Year in Review’ Highlights EM Accomplishments, Cleanup Priorities Crews Begin Pre-Demolition Work for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Reactor Oak Ridge's UCOR Earns 98% of Fee for Second Half of Fiscal 2020 EM Leaders Focus on Engaging Communities During STGWG Meeting DOE, FIU Welcome New Fellows Into Program Shaping Cleanup Workforce Hanford Workers Complete Construction of Capsule Transfer Mock-Up Idaho Site Crews Inspect 1970s-Era Vaults, Spent Nuclear Fuel Assemblies 2020 a Year of Completions and Beginnings at Oak Ridge The Art and Science of Welding at Hanford’s WTP New Cranes Ready to Support Cleanup at Hanford Site Paducah Site Contractor Receives Environmental Leadership Award Next EM Update Scheduled Jan. 12 DOE Successfully Transfers SPRU Site, Achieving EM 2020 Priority NISKAYUNA, N.Y. – DOE officials approved the transfer of the former Separations Process Research Unit (SPRU) areas to the Office of Naval Reactors (NR) on Dec. 16, capping a successful remediation and completing an EM 2020 priority. The milestone resulted from a joint effort between DOE, NR, and the Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory, and advanced EM’s legacy cleanup mission. The former SPRU nuclear facilities were located at the laboratory. “Completing the SPRU project removes the longstanding liability of a Cold War-era nuclear facility and enables returning the former SPRU areas to the Naval Reactors landlord for future site operations. Significant credit is due to the government-contractor team that completed this project,” said Hugh Davis, program manager for SPRU. p This 1948 photo shows construction of tank vaults at the former Separations Process Research Unit. p A view of the restored site of the former Building H2 at the former Separations Process Research Unit. Prior to the transfer, the joint team restored and revegetated the former building grounds, issued final radiological and chemical cleanup reports, and constructed a temporary storage area for 24 containers of waste that will be treated and disposed offsite. The SPRU nuclear facilities consisted of a main processing facility known as Building G2, a waste processing facility called Building H2, underground tank vaults, and an underground pipe tunnel connecting the two buildings. Buildings G2 and H2 housed process cells with thick concrete shield walls and contained more than 8 miles of process piping and 85 process vessels with capacities ranging from 5 to 10,000 gallons. SPRU operated from 1949 to 1951 as a pilot plant for researching plutonium production methods. The SPRU facilities were decommissioned in 1953. That work included flushing the process equipment and placing the facilities in safe caretaking status. The deactivation, decontamination, and demolition work began in 2007 and was completed last year. -Contributor: Stephanie Shewmon ‘2020 Year in Review’ Highlights EM Accomplishments, Cleanup Priorities p WASHINGTON, D.C. – EM has published its 2020 Year in Review, summarizing the accomplishments of cleanup work across the DOE complex over the course of the year, including numerous major program priorities. The Year in Review highlights achievements at each EM site and at EM headquarters, including: Completing the East Tennessee Technology Park Vision 2020 at Oak Ridge, which became the first site in the world to remove an entire uranium enrichment complex. Starting operations at the first-of-a-kind Salt Waste Processing Facility at the Savannah River Site (SRS) — the last major piece of the site’s liquid waste treatment system — with the potential to process as much as 9 million gallons of liquid waste per year. Achieving significant advancement of two other key components of DOE’s tank waste treatment mission: Increasing progress in construction, startup, and commissioning critical to the Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste system at the Hanford Site. Continuing modifications at the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit, which will turn about 900,000 gallons of liquid radioactive waste into a granular solid at DOE’s Idaho National Laboratory Site. Completing demolition of the Plutonium Finishing Plant, which was once the highest-risk building at the Hanford Site. Breaking ground on a 2,275-foot deep utility shaft at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, a key infrastructure piece to support future operations at the site. Resuming cleanup at the Energy Technology Engineering Center after more than a decade, including demolition of a dozen buildings and setting a path to completing demolition of all DOE-owned buildings at the site in 2021. Reaching a milestone 11 million tons of mill tailings shipped from a former uranium ore processing site in Moab, Utah, to a disposal cell near Crescent Junction, Utah. Completing remediation activities on and around the historic Tonopah Test Range in Nevada, and conveying 70 sites to the DOE Office of Legacy Management (LM) for long-term stewardship — the first EM-to-LM transfer in more than a decade. Completing site restoration at the Separations Process Research Unit in New York state and turning the site back to the DOE Office of Naval Reactors. Implementing the full Interim Measure for addressing the chromium plume at Los Alamos to hold the spread of chromium contamination within the site boundaries as a final solution is developed and put in place. Successfully implementing the Department’s first application of its science-based high-level radioactive waste interpretation through the shipment of a small quantity of waste from SRS for safe off-site treatment and disposal. Putting in place the first end-state style contracts at the Hanford and Nevada sites, with several others progressing across the EM complex. Click here to read EM’s complete 2020 Year in Review report. Crews Begin Pre-Demolition Work for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Reactor p Crews from the U.S. Army Corp Engineers perform pre-demolition activities at the Livermore Pool Type Reactor at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. LIVERMORE, Calif. – Workers have begun activities to prepare for the demolition of a nuclear reactor at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), accomplishing one of EM’s 2020 priorities. A team from EM, the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), and the U.S. Army Corp Engineers (USACE) performed core drilling, surveying, sampling, and a study of potential demolition impacts this month. “Hitting this significant cleanup milestone took a lot of cooperation between the NNSA, EM, and USACE teams, particularly given the challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic,” EM LLNL Federal Project Director Kevin Bazzell said. “But everyone came together with a commitment to safety, and to ensure we met EM’s commitment to start pre-work for demolition by the end of 2020.” p A view of the Livermore Pool Type Reactor, which was deactivated and decommissioned in 1981. p U.S. Army Corp Engineers crews conduct surveys within Building 280, which houses the Livermore Pool Type Reactor. p Workers conduct a simulated demolition as part of a study to determine potential impacts from the Livermore Pool Type Reactor demolition scheduled to begin in spring next year. The Livermore Pool Type Reactor operated for more than 20 years, supporting radiation research at what was then known as the Lawrence Radiation Laboratory. The reactor was cooled and moderated with light water, and its power came from a uranium chain reaction. The reactor was defueled and decommissioned in 1981. The remaining reactor vessel sits within a concrete-and-steel shielding structure inside Building 280. Removal of the reactor from Building 280 is scheduled to begin in spring next year, with completion of the demolition expected in fall 2021. “We will be removing a significant risk from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory by demolishing the Livermore Pool Type Reactor,” Bazzell said. Following the demolition, EM will focus on tearing down Building 280 and other high-risk excess facilities at the site. -Contributor: Stephanie Shewmon Oak Ridge's UCOR Earns 98% of Fee for Second Half of Fiscal 2020 p UCOR completed demolition on the final structures at the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP) during the performance evaluation period of April 2020 through September 2020. Pictured is Building K-1600, the final structure to fall at ETTP. It was previously used for centrifuge technology research and development. OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – EM recently awarded Oak Ridge cleanup contractor UCOR $28 million for its performance from April 2020 through September 2020, amounting to 98% of the available fee for the evaluation period. The Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM) issued its fee determination scorecard for UCOR for the second six-month period of fiscal 2020 after completing its evaluation of the contractor. EM releases information relating to contractor fee payments — earned by completing work called for in the contracts — to further transparency in its cleanup program. The contractor received “excellent” ratings for project management and business systems, quality and safety culture, and regulatory and stakeholder activity; a “good” rating for operations management; and “high confidence” for cost and schedule incentive, according to the scorecard. Among UCOR’s significant accomplishments: Achieved all performance-based incentives designed to complete Vision 2020, resulting in the world’s first demolition of a former uranium enrichment complex at the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP). The project finished ahead of schedule and under budget. Seamlessly transitioned to limited operations and implemented the Phase 1 resumption-of-work plan during the COVID-19 pandemic, with effective safety protocols and no confirmed workplace COVID-19 cases. Successfully transitioned approximately 250 workers from ETTP to perform cleanup work at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12 National Security Complex upon achieving Vision 2020. Implemented effective safety and health programs, and received the DOE “Legacy of Stars Award,” which is provided to sites that have earned the DOE Voluntary Protection Program Star of Excellence for three consecutive years. Maintained regulatory compliance. UCOR had no regulatory permit infractions, non-compliances, reportable spills, or notices of violation. The contractor also met all enforceable regulatory milestones or supported renegotiation of them. UCOR hosted numerous visits and formal regulatory inspections by Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency personnel with no violations identified. Provided excellent support as part of the Regulatory Partnership initiative, enabling the Executive Leadership and Emerging Issues Teams to proceed more quickly to address longstanding issues, fostering improved relationships between OREM and regulators. OREM also noted areas for improvement. UCOR experienced several issues with work planning and controls, including conducting a task without an approved work plan. Additionally, there were several transportation collision incidents. In response, the contractor promptly established a collision taskforce to evaluate options for improving the transportation program’s performance. View the fee determination letter and UCOR's scorecard here. -Contributor: Ben Williams EM Leaders Focus on Engaging Communities During STGWG Meeting EM Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Todd Shrader emphasized the importance DOE places on input from communities in determining the end state for cleanup sites in remarks to the recent fall meeting of the State and Tribal Government Working Group (STGWG). Shrader said communication among DOE, state and local governments, and tribes is critical to moving forward with EM’s mission. “We all have the same shared goal ultimately, and that is the safe cleanup of our sites,” Shrader said. “We of course want to do it as soon as possible and as efficiently as possible. So working with stakeholders and working together to do things like define end states and understand where you are going from Day One is critical. “Probably the number one feedback we can get from stakeholders is what do you want the end state of the site to be,” Shrader said. Mark Gilbertson, EM Associate Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Regulatory and Policy Affairs, and Mary Kruger, EM Office of Regulatory, Intergovernmental, and Stakeholder Engagement Director, joined Shrader in underscoring the importance of EM’s engagement with stakeholders. Kruger emphasized the need to continue EM’s dialogue with STGWG. “Since we have been working together for over three decades, both EM and STGWG have grown up together, helping each other navigate the complex world that is the nuclear weapons cleanup,” Gilbertson said. “I value and appreciate the partnership that has grown with time. We are dealing with one of the most sophisticated challenges in history.” STGWG brings together representatives from states and tribes. The working group is focused on three priorities: long-term stewardship, natural resource damage assessment and restoration, and tribal issues related to the cleanup and closure of DOE sites. STGWG provides a forum for communication among states and tribes affected by EM sites and activities. Shrader noted significant accomplishments in EM’s cleanup mission this past year, including the start of operations of the Salt Waste Processing Facility at the Savannah River Site, continued progress on the Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste system at the Hanford Site, and advancements in demolition work at the Energy Technology Engineering Center and the Brookhaven National Laboratory. Shrader noted in particular the progress of the Long-Term Stewardship Working Group. That group is a cross-program team established by EM, the DOE Office of Legacy Management, and the National Nuclear Security Administration to address national and cross-cutting site-level long-term stewardship activities and issues. “We have a real chance to continue a lot of good momentum here,” Shrader said. The coming year expects to see the initiation of tank waste treatment at the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit at the Idaho Site, and continuing progress at Hanford that will soon lead to the treatment of tank waste there as well. “Those are really big achievements and really moves us down the line to addressing our needs across the complex,” he said. -Contributor: Elizabeth Lisann DOE, FIU Welcome New Fellows Into Program Shaping Cleanup Workforce p DOE and Florida International University (FIU) officials recently introduced FIU science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) students as the new DOE Fellows Class of 2020 in a virtual ceremony. Top row, from left, Fellows Brendon Cintas, Eduardo Rojas, Stevens Charles, and Sebastian Story; second row, from left, Fellows Christian Dau, Joel Adams, Ryan Ocampo, Phuong Pham, and Christian Gonzalez Lopez; third row, from left, Fellows Josue Estrada, Alicia Maratos, Adrian Muino, and Lorryn Andrade, and FIU Applied Research Center Executive Director Inés Triay; fourth row, from left, EM Minority Serving Institutions Partnership Program Manager Genia McKinley, Fellow Thi Tran, FIU DOE Fellows Program Director and Director of Research Dr. Leonel Lagos, DOE Fellows Program Manager Ravi Gudavalli, and DOE Office of Legacy Management (LM) Site Manager Jalena Dayvault; and fifth row, from left, LM Director Carmelo Melendez, Fellow Olivia Bustillo, Class of 2019, Fellow Aurelien Meray, and Fellow Gisselle Gutierrez-Zuniga, Class of 2019. MIAMI – DOE and Florida International University (FIU) officials recently introduced the EM Fellows Class of 2020 — 15 science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) students inducted into a program intended to shape future candidates for the cleanup workforce. The FIU students join current fellows in the university’s Science & Technology Workforce Development Program, also known as the DOE Fellows program. An additional FIU STEM student was inducted as a DOE Office of Legacy Management (LM) Fellow. Undergraduate and graduate minority STEM students at FIU are usually welcomed into the program annually in a ceremony hosted at FIU’s Modesto Maidique campus. This year, due to health and safety concerns in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was held virtually. The Fellows program strives to attract, train, and retain the next-generation workforce in nuclear, engineering, science, and construction fields to assist in addressing EM's many long-term scientific and basic research needs, and complex cleanup challenges. Students in the Fellows program work with DOE scientists and researchers at FIU’s Applied Research Center (ARC) — which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year — to learn about EM and LM technical areas of need. In an address during the ceremony, EM Associate Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Field Operations Nicole Nelson-Jean reflected on her experience in a similar mentorship program, which helped steer her on the path to a successful federal government career. Nelson-Jean stressed the importance of such programs to the environmental missions of EM and LM. She commended the DOE Fellows program’s success stories, highlighting former DOE Fellows hired by DOE and its national laboratories, including EM’s Savannah River National Laboratory. Gisselle Gutierrez-Zuniga, who was inducted into the program last year as an undergraduate student, delivered a message to the new Fellows highlighting her personal experience, which she found fulfilling academically and professionally. Also participating was LM Director Carmelo Melendez, who delivered a keynote address to the new DOE Fellows. Since its inception in 2007, the Fellows program has inducted 179 STEM students mentored in research, development, and deployment of new cleanup technologies. The Fellows program has resulted in a 95% hiring rate for students who complete the program, including three Fellows hired by DOE, nine by DOE contractors or national laboratories, 19 hired by other government agencies, and 74 hired by the STEM industry. “FIU continues to train and mentor future leaders,” said DOE Fellows Director Dr. Leonel Lagos, the DOE-FIU Cooperative Agreement’s principal investigator. “This program provides the opportunity for many first-generation students to complete their degrees at FIU, obtain hands-on research and work experience, and participate in internships across the DOE complex.” -Contributors: Ravi Gudavalli, Angelique Lawrence, Genia McKinley Hanford Workers Complete Construction of Capsule Transfer Mock-Up p Workers with EM Richland Operations Office contractor CH2M HILL Plateau Remediation Company recently finished building a replica of areas of a Hanford Site facility where workers will use specialized equipment to remove highly radioactive capsules of cesium and strontium from a water-filled basin, load the capsules into stainless steel and concrete casks, and transport the casks to a nearby concrete pad for safe, dry storage. RICHLAND, Wash. – EM Richland Operations Office (RL) and contractor CH2M HILL Plateau Remediation Company (CHPRC) recently completed construction of a full-scale mock-up of the system that will be used to transfer nearly 2,000 radioactive capsules from an underwater basin to safer, dry storage on the Hanford Site. The mock-up, which was built at Hanford’s Maintenance and Storage Facility (MASF), replicates the areas of the Waste Encapsulation Storage Facility (WESF) where the capsules of cesium and strontium will be loaded into dry storage casks, sealed inside, and loaded onto trucks for transportation to a nearby concrete storage pad. Check out this time-lapse video of construction of the mock-up in MASF. Transferring the capsules from the water-filled basin in WESF to dry storage in stainless steel and concrete casks reduces the risk of a radioactive release in the unlikely event of loss of water from the basin. ”Finishing the mock-up is another important step toward transferring the capsules to dry storage,” said Gary Pyles, RL project director for the WESF project. “Moving the capsules will enable the planned deactivation of WESF and will reduce the risk and costs for the storage of the capsules.” p Hanford Site electrician Fonzie Lopez looks inside a simulated radiation containment chamber called a hot cell during construction of a mock-up to prepare workers to safely move nearly 2,000 capsules of highly radioactive cesium and strontium from a water-filled basin into dry storage casks in Hanford’s Waste Encapsulation Storage Facility. p A view of the hot cell inside Hanford’s Waste Encapsulation Storage Facility through which workers will safely move nearly 2,000 capsules of highly radioactive cesium and strontium from a water-filled basin into dry storage casks. Over the past several months, workers followed strict COVID-19 protocols as they built the 1,400-square-foot mock-up, where they will test and train on the actual equipment that will be used for the transfer from WESF. Over the next year, workers will install hot-cell manipulator arms, capsule transfer equipment, and welding systems in the mock-up, and they will develop procedures to work with the radioactive material. “I am so proud of the employees and the hard work that brought this mock-up to life,” said Marie Gillespie, CHPRC project manager. “The mock-up allows employees to train in a safe environment to gain confidence in using the equipment before they perform work in the radiological environment at WESF.” Mock-ups have been used successfully at Hanford to prepare workers, equipment, and procedures to work safely and efficiently with radioactive materials in hazardous facilities. The most recent example is a mock-up constructed at MASF to prepare to safely retrieve 35 cubic yards of radioactive sludge from an underwater storage basin near the Columbia River, package the sludge in shielded containers, and transfer the containers from the K West Reactor to interim storage at Hanford’s T Plant. The cesium and strontium in the capsules were removed from Hanford tank waste in the 1970s to reduce the temperature of that waste. -Contributor: Joan Lucas Idaho Site Crews Inspect 1970s-Era Vaults, Spent Nuclear Fuel Assemblies IDAHO FALLS, Idaho – EM’s spent nuclear fuel program at DOE’s Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Site recently determined that fuel canisters identified as high risk continue to be safely stored in five underground vaults following inspections to characterize the integrity of the fuel packages. No water was present, hydrogen levels remain acceptable, and minimal fuel canister degradation due to corrosion was observed in the inspections inside the vaults at the Idaho Nuclear Engineering and Technology Center (INTEC). “The results were very encouraging,” said Robert Gentry, the INTEC nuclear operations director for Fluor Idaho, EM’s cleanup contractor at the INL Site. “Our teams were able to gain valuable video information that showed the integrity of the vaults and fuel canisters remains satisfactory.” p A shield plug is removed to gain access to a Peach Bottom spent nuclear fuel basket. The fuel canisters were shipped from Pennsylvania to the INL Site following the closure of the Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station, Unit 1 in 1974. Due to concerns of corrosion to fuel canisters in long-term pool storage, the canisters were placed in underground carbon-steel vaults at INTEC. During the inspection, a mobile boom crane was used to lift the fuel baskets up to 12 inches, allowing a remote camera to capture video footage of the bottom of the baskets. Inspectors also obtained video footage of the fuel package tops and accessible surfaces, along with the interior surfaces of the vaults. Gentry said long-term plans call for moving all Peach Bottom spent nuclear fuel canisters to new vaults that have welded, drainable steel-plate bottoms unlike the grouted bottoms of the current vaults. The steel plates prevent fuel packages from being in contact with pooled water, thereby mitigating elevated hydrogen concentrations and corrosion concerns. The new vaults are lined with steel and have purge and water removal capabilities. -Contributor: Erik Simpson 2020 a Year of Completions and Beginnings at Oak Ridge p In October, Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette was joined by congressional, state, and local leaders to celebrate the completion of Vision 2020 at Oak Ridge. It marked the first time in the world an entire enrichment complex was removed. OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – While 2020 was an unusual and challenging year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was also one of the most notable and accomplished for DOE’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM) and its contractors. Together, they competed the Department’s largest-ever cleanup effort and began a new chapter of work at Oak Ridge’s research and national security sites. Check out this video on Oak Ridge's 2020 accomplishments. “I’m very proud of what our incredible workforce was able to accomplish despite all of the challenges and adjustments required to perform their jobs this year,” OREM Manager Jay Mullis said. “They made history and positioned us for another year of success and transformation in 2021.” This year, Oak Ridge became the first site in the world to remove an entire uranium enrichment complex. This milestone was the culmination of two decades of decontamination, demolition, and soil remediation at the