AECOM subsidiary URS Energy & Construction has begun demolition of the G2 building at the Separations Process Research Unit in Niskayuna, N.Y., the Energy Department’s Office of Environmental Management said in a Monday press release.
The Separations Process Research Unit, a Cold War-era plant used for researching the separation of plutonium from irradiated uranium that operated between 1950 to 1953, is colocated with the Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory.
AECOM’s seven-year demolition contract on the SPRU expires Dec. 21 and is worth up to $145.8 million. The contract was originally for four years and worth up to $67 million.
In 2010, open air demolition of the other building at the site, the H2 waste processing building, spread radiation to the nearby national lab.