Cleanup & Remediation

Brian Bradley WC Monitor 10/2/2015 Workers at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site treated a record 2.1 billion gallons of groundwater in the last year, exceeding the last record of 1.9 billion gallons in fiscal 2014 during ongoing cleanup at the former plutonium production facility, DOE said yesterday in a press release. “We’re treating more […]

WC Monitor 10/2/2015   DOE Schedules Industry Day for SRS Liquid Waste Services Contract The Department of Energy on Tuesday said it had scheduled an industry day for its Savannah River Site liquid waste services contract for Wednesday, Oct. 14, at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Augusta in Augusta, Ga. The session is scheduled to […]

WC Monitor 10/2/2015 DOE Investigating Problems With Hanford Electronic Medical System The Department of Energy Office of Enforcement has notified Computer Sciences Corp. that it plans to investigate alleged problems with the electronic medical system being implemented at Hanford when CSC held the site’s occupational medicine contract. It also will consider taking enforcement action for […]

The three primary contractors for the Hanford Site’s Richland Operations Office have received national safety awards from the Voluntary Protection Program Participants Association, the Department of Energy announced on Tuesday. The VPP Star of Excellence was given to services contractor Mission Support Alliance (for both its HAMMER federal training site and its safeguards and security […]

The Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management on Wednesday announced six-month extensions of two contracts for cleanup of the Idaho Site.CH2M-WG Idaho (CWI) secured a $114 million extension for a contract that was due to lapse on Sept. 30 for the Idaho Cleanup Project, which involves remediation of contaminated facilities and radioactive waste produced […]

The Department of Energy Office of Enforcement has notified Computer Sciences Corp. that it plans to investigate alleged problems with the electronic medical system being implemented at Hanford when CSC held the site’s occupational medicine contract. It also will consider taking enforcement action for retaliation against two former CSC workers who raised the concerns. The […]

Workers at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site treated a record 2.1 billion gallons of groundwater in the last year, exceeding the last record of 1.9 billion gallons in fiscal 2014 during ongoing cleanup at the former plutonium production facility, DOE said yesterday in a press release. “We’re treating more groundwater and removing more contamination […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 09/25/2015 The Energy Department Office of Environmental Management has awarded Los Alamos National Laboratory contractor Los Alamos National Security a one-year cost-plus-award fee “bridge” contract with a maximum value of $309.8 million and two six-month options for legacy cleanup activities at the New Mexico facility. Oversight of LANL legacy waste cleanup […]

Chris Schneidmiller WC Monitor 9/25/2015 The Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management (EM) is striving to fit the right type of contract onto the right remediation projects, but that does not necessarily mean fixed-price agreements that are seen as a way of saving taxpayer money, senior DOE officiald said recently. “Fixed price is not […]

Brian Bradley WC Monitor 9/25/2015 The Energy Department Office of Environmental Management has awarded Los Alamos National Laboratory contractor Los Alamos National Security a one-year cost-plus-award fee “bridge” contract with a maximum value of $309.8 million and two six-month options for legacy cleanup activities at the New Mexico facility. Oversight of LANL legacy waste cleanup […]

Staff Reports WC Monitor 9/25/2015 The Department of Energy expects to have a new contractor operating the Hanford Site’s 222-S Laboratory by Nov. 21 after starting a 60-day transition period this week. The Government Accountability Office this week denied a protest against the May award of the $44.6 million contract to Wastren Advantage of Piketon, […]

Staff Reports WC Monitor 9/25/2015 The Hanford Advisory Board has sent a letter of congratulations to the Department of Energy on progress toward tearing down the Hanford Site’s Plutonium Finishing Plant. The project remains at risk of missing a Tri-Party Agreement milestone to reduce the plant to slab on grade by the end of fiscal 2016. But the state […]

Staff Reports WC Monitor 9/25/2015 A new epidemiological study has concluded that Hanford Site workers with the greatest exposure to the metal beryllium were most likely among personnel there to develop chronic beryllium disease. Those with the disease also were more likely to have worked at Hanford earlier, concluded the study, which was conducted by […]

WC Monitor 9/25/2015 The Energy Department on Monday said it has named three new members to serve on its Oak Ridge Environmental Management advisory board for two-year terms. The new members of the Oak Ridge Site Specific Advisory Board (ORSSAB) are Martha Deaderick, a retired teacher from Kingston, Tenn., who worked for the Oak Ridge […]

Jeremy L. Dillon RW Monitor 9/25/2015 The Department of Energy has rejected a request from members of Missouri’s congressional delegation that DOE authorize changes to the cleanup of a landfill that contains radioactive material. According to a Sept. 10 letter from Office of Legacy Management Director David Geiser, DOE has not obtained any new information […]

Fortum, a Finnish energy company, announced yesterday that it has received a “significant” additional order from EnergySolutions for ion exchange materials used in the treatment of contaminated water at the Fukushima Daiichi cleanup site in Japan. EnergySolutions has for the past three years operated its Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS) at the site to treat […]

The Energy Department said yesterday it has named three new members to serve on its Oak Ridge Environmental Management advisory board for two-year terms. The new members of the Oak Ridge Site Specific Advisory Board (ORSSAB) are Martha Deaderick, a retired teacher from Kingston, Tenn., who worked for the Oak Ridge city school system from […]

The Department of Energy has rejected overtures from members of Missouri’s congressional delegation requesting that DOE authorize changes to the cleanup of the West Lake Landfill. According to a Sept. 10 letter from Office of Legacy Management Director David Geiser, DOE has not obtained any new information from the cleanup that would qualify it for […]

Chris Schneidmiller WC Monitor 9/18/2015 Two more workers on remediation of the Hanford Site’s Plutonium Finishing Plant (PFP) underwent decontamination last month after coming into contact with radiological particles, according to the latest Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board site representative report. Both events occurred during the continuing effort to reduce the size of the HC-9B […]

Staff Reports WC Monitor 9/18/2015 The Department of Energy and state of Washington’s proposed new Tri-Party Agreement milestones for cleanup of solid waste at the Hanford Site may not be realistic, say critics of the proposal. The state of Oregon has sent a letter to DOE and Washington saying deferring much of the work to […]

Staff Reports WC Monitor 9/18/2015 A renewed emphasis is being placed on technology development for Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management projects, Monica Regalbuto said during her first visit to Hanford after being confirmed as the new assistant DOE secretary for environmental management. The projects have reaped benefits from significant past investments in technology […]

Chris Schneidmiller WC Monitor 9/18/2015 The contract operator of the Savannah River Site (SRS) has instituted a company-wide suspension of nonessential nuclear and non-nuclear operations following a breach of safety protocols in management of plutonium used in the facility’s HB Line. The HB Line is a unique chemical processing system that works with plutonium in […]

Chris Schneidmiller WC Monitor 9/18/2015 The Department of Energy’s Environmental Management Field Office at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is staffing up and taking other steps to ultimately assume full oversight of legacy waste cleanup operations at the New Mexico Facility, a senior DOE official said last week. The EM office was established last […]

WC Monitor 9/18/2015 DOE Extends Paducah Site Support Services Contract  The Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management (EM) on Tuesday announced a 2.5-month extension of Swift & Staley’s (SSI) contract for infrastructure support services at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Kentucky. The contract had previously been due to lapse on Sept. 15. "Today’s contract […]

WC Monitor 9/18/2015 WRPS President Announces Retirement Dave Olson, the president of Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS), announced his retirement Thursday and will be replaced by the Hanford Site contractor’s chief operating officer. Mark Lindholm will take over leadership Oct. 1, after having worked at WRPS, Hanford’s tank farm contractor, since January. As chief operating […]

WC Monitor 9/18/2015 IN THE INDUSTRY The Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management has scheduled its next business opportunity forum for 10 a.m. to noon Thursday, Oct. 1., at the Forrestal Building, 1000 Independence Ave. SW in Washington, D.C. “Topics will include a discussion on status of ongoing and upcoming procurement opportunities” with the […]

Jeremy L. Dillon RW Monitor 9/18/2015 Former Idaho Gov. Cecil Andrus blasted the Department of Energy this past weekend for failing to publicly disclose specifics of its planned shipment of spent nuclear fuel for research at the Idaho National Laboratory. Andrus’ op-ed, which appeared in the Idaho Statesman, criticized the department for rejecting his Freedom […]

Jeremy L. Dillon RW Monitor 9/18/2015 The Environmental Protection Agency late last week issued a request for information for companies capable of performing assessments and technical support activities related to the Navajo Area Uranium Mines cleanup, according to a notice in FedBizOpps. The draft scope of work says the winner of the Navajo Area Uranium […]

The contract operator of the Savannah River Site has halted a range of nuclear and non-nuclear operations following a breach of safety protocols in management of plutonium used in the facility’s HB Line. The HB Line is a chemical processing system that works with plutonium in tasks including the production of feedstock for the planned […]