Office of Environmental Management (EM)
DOE’s Office of Environmental Management runs the cleanup of Cold War nuclear weapons production sites, the largest environmental remediation program in the world. Coverage tracks EM budgets, contract awards, tank waste treatment, and site closure milestones across Hanford, Savannah River, Oak Ridge, Idaho, Portsmouth, and Paducah.
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Contracts & Procurement
Jacobs Reports Increased Quarterly Revenue
Dallas-based Jacobs Engineering Group recorded $3.2 billion in revenue for the quarter ended June 28, up $300 million from $2.9 billion during the same period a year ago. Earnings from operations dropped from $113 million, or $0.79 per diluted share a year earlier, to $89 million, $0.65 per diluted share, for the fiscal third quarter, […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
Correction
An article in the July 26 issue of Weapons Complex Monitor, “Dueling Findings by DOE, University at Odds Over Safety of Ohio School,” should have said Energy Department dust samples taken during Memorial Day weekend detected no radioactivity above naturally occurring levels at a school near the Portsmouth Site.
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Decommissioning
Oak Ridge Landfill Draft ROD Delayed Until End of August
The Department of Energy has delayed the release of its draft record of decision (ROD) for a planned 2.2-million-cubic yard landfill for the Oak Ridge Site in Tennessee until the end of the month. The document had previously been anticipated today. The Energy Department postponed issuance after consulting with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and […]
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Transuranic Waste
Savannah River Site Plans Two More TRU Waste Shipments to WIPP in FY19
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site (SRS) anticipates sending at least two shipments of transuranic (TRU) waste to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico by the end of the current fiscal year on Sept. 30. “We’re getting pretty close to when we’ll be able to send out that waste,” said […]
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Innovation & Infrastructure
Energy Dept. IG Finds Cybersecurity Failings at Environmental Management Site
An unidentified U.S. Energy Department Office of Environmental Management nuclear facility needs to remedy shortcomings in its cybersecurity program, according to DOE’s Office of Inspector General. The Energy Department IG identified weaknesses in access controls, contingency planning, and continuous management, according to the memo dated July 19. The detailed report of the actual findings was not […]
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Contracts & Procurement
Wrap Up: Hanford Vendor Seeks Subcontractor
Washington River Protection Solutions, the radioactive waste tank management contractor for the Energy Department’s Hanford Site in Washington state, is seeking a subcontractor to fabricate three drop-deck trailers for moving vitrified waste. The solicitation for the firm-fixed-price subcontract was posted July 22 on the federal procurement website www.fbo.gov. Bids are due by 9 a.m. Pacific time […]
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High-Level & Tank Waste
SRS Liquid Waste Contractor Garners 94% of Fee in Latest Review
The AECOM-led contractor in charge of liquid waste management at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site earned $28.57 million of a potential $30.28 million for its latest fee period. That represents better than 94% of the possible fee, according to the DOE performance scorecard. During the period from June 1, 2018, through March 31 […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
NukeWatch Urges New Mexico Governor to Revisit Los Alamos Cleanup
The advocacy group Nuclear Watch New Mexico wants New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) to renegotiate a 2016 consent order with the U.S. Department of Energy on cleanup of the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). The organization in June urged Grisham to have the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) revisit the deal reached with […]
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Contracts & Procurement
Hanford Support Services Contract Award Imminent, Leidos CEO Says
Leidos Chairman and CEO Roger Krone predicted Tuesday the Energy Department could award a new contract for landlord services at the Hanford Site “within a couple of weeks.” There had been speculation it would be out this week, Krone said during the company’s quarterly earnings call, responding to a Wall Street analysts’ question on potential […]
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Transuranic Waste
DOE Office of Environmental Management Issues Three Contracts
The U.S. Energy Department’s nuclear cleanup office on Wednesday awarded a trio of small-business contracts that together could be worth over $62 million. The largest of the deals, a potential $49.5 million indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (ID/IQ) contract awarded to Oak Ridge, Tenn.-based BTP Services, is for technical support services throughout the Office of Environmental Management (EM) […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
All Options ‘On the Table’ at Fluor After $555M Loss: CEO
“All options are on the table” at Fluor after the company’s $555 million loss in the second quarter of 2019, CEO Carlos Hernandez said Thursday. The government contractor is becoming more selective about what projects it bids on, and will consider asset sales and staff reductions, Hernandez said during a teleconference call with Wall Street […]
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Budget & Policy
Senate Joins House in Passing Budget Caps Deal
The U.S. Senate on Thursday passed a budget caps deal that officially set defense funding toplines for the next two years, essentially doing away with future budget cuts via sequestration. H.R. 3877 sets the defense spending topline at $738 billion in fiscal 2020 and at $741.5 billion in fiscal 2021. The 2020 level is significantly […]
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National Laboratories
Sheep Fire Proves One for the Record Books at Idaho National Lab
The Sheep Fire, which burned more than 112,000 acres, is the largest blaze ever at the Energy Department’s Idaho National Laboratory, a spokeswoman confirmed Tuesday. It eclipsed the old record set by the Jefferson Fire, which in 2010 burned almost 109,000 acres, including 79,000 acres within the INL property, according to laboratory spokeswoman Sarah Neumann. […]
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Contracts & Procurement
Hanford Support Services Contract Award Imminent: Leidos CEO
Leidos Chairman and CEO Roger Krone predicted Tuesday the Energy Department could award a new contract for landlord services at the Hanford Site “within a couple of weeks.” There had been speculation it would be out this week, Krone said during the company’s quarterly earnings call, responding to a Wall Street analysts’ question on potential […]
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Transuranic Waste
DOE Office of Environmental Management Awards Three Contracts
The U.S. Energy Department’s nuclear cleanup office on Wednesday awarded a trio of small-business contracts that together could be worth over $62 million. The largest of the deals, a potential $49.5 million indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (ID/IQ) contract awarded to Oak Ridge, Tenn.-based BTP Services, is for technical support services throughout the Office of Environmental Management (EM) […]
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Contracts & Procurement
Hanford Tank Vendor Seeks Subcontractor for Canister Haulage
Washington River Protection Solutions, the radioactive waste tank management contractor for the Energy Department’s Hanford Site in Washington state, is seeking a subcontractor to fabricate three drop-deck trailers for moving vitrified waste. The solicitation for the firm-fixed-price subcontract was posted July 22 in the federal procurement website www.fbo.gov. Bids are due by 9 a.m. PT on […]
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National Laboratories
Sheep Fire Sets Record for Biggest Blaze in Idaho National Lab History
The Sheep Fire, which burned more than 112,000 acres, is the largest blaze ever at the Energy Department’s Idaho National Laboratory, a spokeswoman confirmed Tuesday. It eclipsed the old record set by the Jefferson Fire, which in 2010 burned almost 109,000 acres, including 79,000 acres within the INL property, according to laboratory spokeswoman Sarah Neumann. […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
NukeWatch Urges New Mexico Governor to Revisit Los Alamos Cleanup
The advocacy group Nuclear Watch New Mexico wants New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) to renegotiate a 2016 consent order with the U.S. Department of Energy on cleanup of the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). The organization in June urged Grisham to have the New Mexico Environment Department revisit the deal reached with the […]
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High-Level & Tank Waste
Energy Communities Alliance Details Case for HLW Reinterpretation
The Energy Communities Alliance says the U.S. Energy Department’s reinterpretation of the definition for high-level radioactive waste (HLW) could expedite disposal of such material now held at four nuclear cleanup sites. The ECA said it “can reasonably interpret that the waste streams to which this interpretation may apply” are the canisters of waste that have […]
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High-Level & Tank Waste
SRS Liquid Waste Contractor Garners 94% of Fee in Latest Review
The AECOM-led contractor in charge of liquid waste management at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site earned $28.57 million of a potential $30.28 million for its latest fee period. That represents better than 94% of the possible fee, according to the DOE performance scorecard. During the period from June 1, 2018, through March 31 […]
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Innovation & Infrastructure
Cybersecurity Found Lacking at DOE Environmental Management Site
An unidentified Energy Department nuclear facility needs to remedy shortcomings in its cybersecurity program, according to DOE’s Office of Inspector General. “Furthermore, we found that limited cybersecurity resources at the site impacted the ability of the site to ensure that all security controls were fully implemented,” the Energy Department IG said in the memo dated […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
Fluor to Report Earnings Thursday
Executives from Fluor, one of the larger contractors in the Energy Department’s nuclear weapons complex, are scheduled to discuss second-quarter earnings at 5:30 p.m. Eastern time Thursday. The financial numbers for the quarter ending June 30 will be posted after the market closes on Thursday. The call with Wall Street analysts will be webcast. Fluor […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
EPA Decision Expected in August on Radionuclide Effluent Standard at Oak Ridge
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler is expected to rule in August on a dispute over waste discharge standards at the Energy Department’s Oak Ridge Site in Tennessee. Mary Walker, administrator for EPA Region 4, said in March the new on-site waste landfill planned at Oak Ridge lacks adequate protections against discharges of contaminated wastewater […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
Former Employee Sues SRS Security Contractor For Discrimination
In a federal discrimination lawsuit seeking $3.5 million, an African-American woman formerly employed by the Savannah River Site’s security contractor says she was terminated for accidentally leaving her gun in a bathroom, while a white employee kept her job after making the same error. In the complaint, filed Monday in U.S. District Court for South […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
Corroding Air Tunnel at SRS Facility Should Withstand Earthquake, Analysis Finds
An air tunnel at a degrading Savannah River Site nuclear materials processing facility should be able to withstand an earthquake, according to a detailed analysis for the Department of Energy, despite concerns raised two years ago by a federal safety board. Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS), management and operations contractor for the 310-square-mile DOE facility […]
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Contracts & Procurement
Jacobs Rumored to be Interested in Acquiring Fluor
Three industry sources said recently Fluor’s government services group, if not the entire company, could be an acquisition target for another player in the nuclear cleanup industry, Jacobs Engineering. Such a deal could further consolidate Jacobs’ hold on the business of environmental remediation for the U.S. Department of Energy, following its December 2017 purchase of […]
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Uranium Enrichment & Fuel Cycle
Dueling Findings by DOE, University at Odds Over Safety of Ohio School
Conclusions drawn by Northern Arizona University (NAU) researchers and the Department of Energy provide opposing views of whether a middle school near the Portsmouth Site in Ohio is safe for students to attend this fall. Local officials, citing analysis by NAU, said Thursday dust samples taken over Memorial Day weekend at Zahn’s Corner Middle School […]
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Budget & Policy
Trump Administration Considering DOE Cleanup Leadership Options, Sources Say
The Donald Trump administration could already be planning for a new permanent head for the Department of Energy’s nuclear cleanup office. While Energy Department senior adviser William (Ike) White is apt to stay in charge of the Office of Environmental Management for a number months, names of potential successors to Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management Anne […]
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Contracts & Procurement
Nevada Environmental Contract Bids Due to DOE on Aug. 21
The Department of Energy on Monday issued a request for proposals for the next Nevada Environmental Program Services contract, which could be worth up to $350 million over 10 years. Navarro Research and Engineering holds the current $80 million contract, which began in March 2015 and runs through January 2020. The RFP for the indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity […]
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High-Level & Tank Waste
Wrap Up: DOE Seeks Tweaks to State Permit for Hanford Waste Treatment Plant
The U.S. Department of Energy and the Washington state Department of Ecology are taking public comments through Sept. 16 on a proposed change to the dangerous waste permit for the Hanford Site. If approved, the state permit modification would allow DOE to connect a backup waste transfer line from the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant’s […]









