Karl Herchenroeder
RW Monitor
12/11/2015
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) last week released its feasibility study and proposed plan for cleanup of the Niagara Falls Storage Site, a 191-acre property that contains radioactive material linked to Manhattan Project operations.
Though he said it could be some time before the cleanup project receives full funding, USACE Buffalo District special projects branch section chief John Busse described the plan’s release as a “huge step forward.”
In the 1980s, the DOE consolidated the site’s material into an interim waste containment structure on a 10-acre plot located in the southwest portion of the New York facility. The materials in storage are uranium ore processing residues, or “byproduct material,” including K-65 residues containing high concentrations of radium-226. The site, which is divided into three subunits, contains a total volume of 278,072 cubic yards of radium-226.
The Corps’ preferred alternative for the project is alternative 4, which will involve excavation, treatment, and off-site disposal. The organization said in its feasibility study that alternative 4 “provides the best overall protection of human health and the environment.” One key reason listed in agency documents is that the material in the interim waste containment structure will be consolidated with similar waste at an off-site, federally owned byproduct material disposal facility. Also, decreasing the overall number of byproduct disposal sites will reduce future spending on post-closure care of those facilities. Additionally, consolidation of disposal sites reduces the risk to the public from government-owned wastes, according to the agency.
Busse said the Corps expects a decision on cleanup budgeting for the Niagara Falls Storage Site around 2022. The full cleanup could take at least a decade, based on the feasibility study, which calls for funding of between $50 million and $70 million a year.
Busse said Buffalo District officials met with community members and stakeholders on Tuesday, and response to the proposed plan was supportive. The next step is a public meeting scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Jan. 13 at the Town of Lewiston Senior Center, 4361 Lower River Road, Youngstown, NY 14171. The public has until Feb. 6 to comment on the proposed plan.
As the project unfolds, federal remedial standards call for numerous Corps objectives, including the prevention of unacceptable uranium exposure to the public and workers. Crews also will be tasked with minimizing transportation of hazardous substances to soil, groundwater, surface water, sediment, and air. Finally, the list of objectives includes the minimization of releases and other impacts that could adversely affect human health and the environment, including ecological receptors.