High-Level & Tank Waste

The Department of Energy considers 2,000 gallons of tank waste earmarked for the test-bed initiative at the Hanford Site in Washington state to be low-level radioactive waste and not high-level waste, the agency wrote in a Federal Register notice published this week. The notice, officially the final Waste Incidental to Reprocessing Determination, which is now […]

The Department of Energy said this week crews have fixed the cause of the recent leak at the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit at the Idaho National Laboratory and should start running the facility soon with a mixture of 90% simulant and 10% radioactive sodium-bearing waste. Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU) crews on Tuesday “completed key […]

The Department of Energy considers 2,000 gallons of tank waste earmarked for the test-bed initiative at the Hanford Site in Washington state to be low-level radioactive waste and not high-level waste, the agency wrote in a Federal Register notice published Monday morning. The notice, officially the final Waste Incidental to Reprocessing Determination, which is now […]

A contractor for the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state has, after an extended outage, restarted a cesium pretreatment pilot project critical to waste solidification at the site, the DOE said this week. Tank operations manager Washington River Protection Solutions has resumed operation of the Tank-Side Cesium Removal System (TSCR) at Hanford, DOE […]

A contractor for the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state has, after an extended outage, restarted a cesium pretreatment pilot project critical to waste solidification at the site, the DOE said via Twitter Monday. Tank operations manager Washington River Protection Solutions has resumed operation of the Tank-Side Cesium Removal System (TSCR) at Hanford, […]

A small leak of simulant, detected last week, has been cleaned up at a waste treatment facility undergoing commissioning at the Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory, a spokesperson said Wednesday. The “final preparations for the start of radiological operations” within the coming weeks, are continuing by DOE and its Jacobs-led contractor, Idaho Environmental Coalition, […]

The Amentum-led tank management contractor at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state has inked a $8.9 million subcontract with Richland-based Fowler General Construction to build an interim surface barrier over the U Tank Farm. Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS), which has Atkins as minority partner, announced the award Tuesday in a press […]

A small leak of simulant, detected last week, has been cleaned up at a waste treatment facility undergoing commissioning at the Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory, a spokesperson said Wednesday. The “final preparations for the start of radiological operations” within the coming weeks, are continuing by DOE and its Jacobs-led contractor, Idaho Environmental Coalition, […]

The Amentum-led tank management contractor at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state has inked a $8.9 million subcontract with Richland-based Fowler General Construction to build an interim surface barrier over the U Tank Farm. Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS), which has Atkins as minority partner, announced the award Tuesday in a press […]

PHOENIX — The Department of Energy anticipates the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit at the Idaho National Laboratory to treat its first batch of radioactive waste by early April, the agency’s top nuclear cleanup officials said here this week.  Environmental Management Senior Adviser William (Ike) White reiterated his message, on the project nearing the finish line, […]

PHOENIX —The chances of the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state making its first glass from radioactive tank waste by Dec. 31, 2023 is “very low” but reaching that milestone during 2024 is doable, site manager Brian Vance said at a Waste Management Symposia session Tuesday morning. Vance’s assessment was in response to […]

PHOENIX —The chances of the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state making its first glass from radioactive tank waste by Dec. 31, 2023 is “very low” but reaching that milestone during 2024 is doable, site manager Brian Vance said at a Waste Management Symposia session Tuesday morning. Vance’s assessment was in response to […]

PHOENIX — The Department of Energy anticipates the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit at the Idaho National Laboratory to treat its first batch of radioactive waste by the end of March, the agency’s top nuclear cleanup official said here Monday. Environmental Management Senior Adviser William (Ike) White reiterated his message to the Exchange Monitor on the […]

The Department of Energy needs to “prioritize” a 2019 policy change that said much high-level radioactive waste is not hazardous enough to require deep underground disposal, a Washington-based group said in a report Thursday. “DOE should re-energize its use of the HLW [high-level waste] interpretation, including pursuing a pilot implementation at Hanford for a single-specific […]

The Department of Energy and its cleanup contractor at the Idaho National Laboratory started operating the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit Monday with simulant, an agency official told a local citizens group on Thursday. After completing plant warm up over the weekend, “we are processing simulant as we speak,” DOE’s deputy manager of the Idaho Cleanup […]

In a Federal Register notice Tuesday, the Department of Energy said that glass logs produced from low-level radioactive tank waste at the Hanford Site in Washington state can be treated as low-level waste. DOE published that conclusion after consulting with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, tribes and other local stakeholders in the final “Waste Incidental to […]

The tank management prime at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state is shopping for a subcontractor to provide containers for immobilized low-activity radioactive waste produced by the new vitrification plant. Amentum-led Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) posted a request for proposals (RFP) notice Wednesday on the federal procurement website SAM.gov. A pre-proposal […]

Earlier this month a Department of Energy contractor started removing radioactive waste from an underground tank at the AX Farm at the Hanford Site in Washington state. Removal of radioactive and chemical waste from Tank AX-101 started Jan. 13, and should take about 18 months, the Department of Energy said in a Tuesday news release. […]

By John Stang Most viable options for cleaning up highly radioactive liquid waste at the Hanford Site in Washington involve abandoning a partly-built plant that cost billions of dollars, according to a recent Department of Energy analysis. Of 11 viable cleanup options DOE studied in an analysis of alternatives dated Jan. 12, only two include […]

Earlier this month a Department of Energy contractor started removing radioactive waste from an underground tank at the AX Farm at the Hanford Site in Washington state. Removal of radioactive and chemical waste from Tank AX-101 started Jan. 13, and should take about 18 months, the Department of Energy said in a Tuesday news release. […]

Key parts of a pretreatment system for the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant should hold up over decades, Department of Energy bosses and a contractor from the Hanford Site in Washington state told the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board last month.  Managers from DOE and Washington River Protection Solutions told the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety […]

Key parts of a pretreatment system for the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant should hold up over decades, Department of Energy bosses and a contractor from the Hanford Site in Washington state told the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board last month.  Managers from DOE and Washington River Protection Solutions told the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety […]

Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board inspectors at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington spotted a questionable safety practice, and a reluctance to talk about it, at one of the tank farms last month, according to a recent report. “A resident inspector observed an event investigation meeting after workers in the SX tank farm […]

Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board inspectors at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington spotted a questionable safety practice, and a reluctance to talk about it, at one of the tank farms last month, according to a recent report. “A resident inspector observed an event investigation meeting after workers in the SX tank farm […]

A contractor readiness review at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state has concluded the Liquid Effluent Retention Facility is about ready to start operations as a hazard category 3 nuclear facility, according to a Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board report. The readiness review that occurred in Novemebr is designed to check to […]

A contractor readiness review at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state has concluded the Liquid Effluent Retention Facility is about ready to start operations as a hazard category 3 nuclear facility, according to a Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board report. The readiness review that occurred in Novemebr is designed to check to […]

Long-idled design work resumed this summer on the high-level waste portion of the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state, according to the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. After August workshops, prime contractor Bechtel National and DOE created what they call the “HLW [High Level Waste] Firm […]

The text of the proposed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) released Tuesday approves spending up to $359 million on the High-Level Waste Vitrification Facility portion of the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant being built by Bechtel National. The administration of President Joe Biden proposed spending $316 million on the facility — a vital cog in […]

Long-idled design work resumed this summer on the high-level waste portion of the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state, according to the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. After August workshops, prime contractor Bechtel National and DOE created what they call the “HLW [High Level Waste] Firm […]

Amentum-led Washington River Protection Solutions is seeking a subcontractor to help ensure the quality of its cesium-removal system for low-level radioactive tank waste at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state. Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) is looking for a subcontractor to help with the “procurement, fabrication, and testing of replacement ion exchange […]