High-Level & Tank Waste

Staff Reports WC Monitor 9/4/2015 Two lawsuits were filed this week against the Department of Energy and Hanford tank farm contractor Washington River Protection Solutions seeking better protection for workers from chemical vapors. The state of Washington sued in its role as regulator, and the second lawsuit was filed on behalf of workers by advocacy […]

Two lawsuits were filed Wednesday in federal court against the Department of Energy and its Hanford tank farm contractor to better protect workers from chemical vapors. One lawsuit was filed by the state of Washington as a Hanford regulator and the other by the watchdog organization Hanford Challenge and Local 598, which represents Hanford pipefitters […]

Chris Schneidmiller WC Monitor 8/28/15 A team of experts found hundreds of design flaws that together could pose a serious risk to the operation of a key facility within the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) at the Hanford Site, according to a report leaked this week. “The review teams identified 362 design vulnerabilities that […]

The contractor tasked to dispose of legacy nuclear liquid waste at the Savannah River Site this month issued a request for proposals for a subcontractor to remove cesium from that waste. “The scope of this activity is for a supplier to provide a commercially-available ion exchange process (known as Tank Closure Cesium Removal (TCCR)) to […]

A team of experts found hundreds of design flaws that together could pose a serious risk to the operation of a key facility within the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) at the Hanford Site, according to a report leaked this week. “The review teams identified 362 design vulnerabilities that could limit [Low-Activity Waste] Facility […]

The Department of Energy said it is committed to meeting its new schedule for building and starting work at the Savannah River Site’s Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF). “The Department recognizes the past challenges with the construction of the Salt Waste Processing Facility and have worked with Parsons, the contractor on the project, to address […]

Construction of the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) at the Savannah River Site is expected to cost $1.4 billion more than originally planned and should open roughly a decade later than anticipated, the Department of Energy’s Inspector General’s Office said in a report released Wednesday. The South Carolina installation stores 37 million gallons of high-level […]

Chris Schneidmiller WC Monitor 8/7/2015 The contractor building the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) at the Hanford Site in Washington state has prepared a comprehensive but not complete analysis of possible hazards to one of the plant’s facilities, the Department of Energy’s Office of Enterprise Assessments said in a review made public on Tuesday. […]

WC Monitor 8/7/2015 Saltstone Operations Resume The Savannah River Site’s Saltstone facilities resumed operation in June after a suspension forced when elevated levels of mercury were detected in tank waste salt streams, according to a Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board report released this week. “Following DOE’s approval of the Evaluation of the Safety of the […]

The contractor building the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) at the Hanford Site in Washington state has prepared a comprehensive but not complete analysis of possible hazards to one of the plant’s facilities, the Department of Energy’s Office of Enterprise Assessments said in a review made public on Tuesday. The DOE report focuses on Bechtel […]

Chris Schneidmiller WC Monitor 07/31/2015 The Department of Energy has carried out nearly all commitments made in 2011 to strengthen the “nuclear safety culture” for the still-unfinished Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) at the Hanford Site in Washington state and the broader DOE defense nuclear enterprise, according to the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. […]

Chris Schneidmiller WC Monitor 7/31/2015 Bechtel National in June agreed to pay $800,000 and take additional steps rather than face possible enforcement action by the Department of Energy over quality-assurance problems and other shortcomings in the contractor’s construction of the Hanford Site’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP). The consent order between DOE and Bechtel […]

Lance Moore WC Monitor 7/31/2015 Completion of the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) at the Savannah River Site is well ahead of schedule, according to Parsons Corp., the Department of Energy contractor tasked with making the SWPF fully operational. The company expects to finish work ahead of the mandated deadline of Dec. 31, 2016. The […]

Bechtel National in June agreed to pay $800,000 and take other steps to head off possible enforcement action by the Department of Energy over quality-assurance problems and other shortcomings in the contractor’s construction of the Hanford Site’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP). The consensus order between DOE and Bechtel followed a multiyear investigation by the […]

Completion of the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) at the Savannah River Site is well ahead of schedule, according to Parsons Corp., the Department of Energy contractor tasked with making the SWPF fully operational. The company expects to finish work ahead of the mandated deadline of Dec. 31, 2016. The budget for the project has […]

The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board has scheduled an Aug. 26 hearing in Kennewick, Wash., to consider ongoing efforts to improve the “safety culture” at the Hanford Site’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP). The hearing will address the Department of Energy’s efforts to address measures included in the DNFSB’s “Recommendation 2011-Safety Culture at the Waste […]

Staff Reports WC Monitor 7/10/2015 Improvements have been made in the safety culture at the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant project, according to a follow up assessment conducted by the Department of Energy’s independent Office of Enterprise Assessments. Staff and management on the project said “things are better and going in a good direction,” although there […]

Jeremy L. Dillon WC Monitor 7/10/2015 The German waste that the Department of Energy proposed sending to the Savannah River Site’s H-Canyon facility “is not of a proliferation concern” where it currently resides in Germany, according to a DOE internal memo from Aug. 1, 2013, obtained by Savannah River Site Watch under the Freedom of […]

Lance Moore WC Monitor 6/26/2015 Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson (D) denounced the Department of Energy for its recent attempt to delay cleanup of tank waste at the Hanford site by an additional year to 2022. Washington filed a motion late last week to strike further proposed delays by the DOE in the consent […]

Jeremy L. Dillon WC Monitor 6/19/2015 Studsvik and AECOM have separated their partnership in the THOR Treatment Technologies joint venture, the company announced this week. The two companies had worked together for 13 years, but Studsvik President Howard Stevens said it believes the technology and the company can stand on its own. “There are several […]

Hanford ORP Tank Farm Work Slows WC Monitor 6/19/2015 The gear that is protecting Hanford tank farm workers from chemical vapors also is significantly slowing work, according to documents filed in Eastern Washington District Federal Court. A Department of Energy analysis found that the reduction in efficiency ranges from 30 to 70 percent, with an […]

WRPS Reaches Settlement With Whistleblower WC Monitor 6/12/2015 A settlement agreement has been reached between Hanford whistleblower Shelly Doss, a former environmental specialist at the tank farms, and Washington River Protection Solutions. Neither side has revealed the details of the settlement, which was approved by administrative law Judge Scott Morris of the U.S. Department of […]

DOE, Contractor, Expect Work to Fully Resume in ‘Early’ Summer Mike Nartker WC Monitor 6/12/2015 Some design-related activities have been suspended at the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant after the Department of Energy raised concerns with procedures developed by project contractor Bechtel National. The suspended activities include “work related to nuclear criticality safety design” and “nuclear […]

Jeremy L. Dillon WC Monitor 6/5/2015 The Department of Energy this week issued seven Basic Ordering Agreements for the treatment of Low-Level Waste and Mixed Low-Level Waste. Included among the seven BOAs are: Babcock Services, Environmental Dimensions, EnergySolutions, Omega Consultants, Perma-Fix Environmental Services, UniTech Services Group, and Waste Control Specialists. Each BOA covers a five […]

Mike Nartker WC Monitor 6/5/2015 The Department of Energy expects to complete within “the next several weeks” an evaluation of options for adding additional oversight capability at the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant, acting Assistant Secretary of Energy for Environmental Management Mark Whitney said late this week. In the wake of calls for DOE to enlist […]

Grouting Begins at Tank 16 Kenneth Fletcher WC Monitor 6/5/2015 The Savannah River Site is seeking an additional high-level waste tank treatment capability as part of a deal struck with regulators, this week releasing a draft request for proposals seeking companies able to remove cesium from tanks. The draft RFP and expression of interest comes […]

Lawmaker Wants DOE to Commit to Completing EIS for WTP Gas Pipeline WC Monitor 6/5/2015 Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.) is asking top Department of Energy officials for a written commitment to complete work on an environmental impact statement for a proposed natural gas pipeline to serve the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant. He wants the commitment […]

Jeremy L. Dillon RW Monitor 6/5/2015 The Department of Energy this week issued seven Basic Ordering Agreements for the treatment of Low-Level Waste and Mixed Low-Level Waste. Included among the seven BOAs are: Babcock Services, Environmental Dimensions, EnergySolutions, Omega Consultants, Perma-Fix Environmental Services, UniTech Services Group, and Waste Control Specialists. Each BOA covers a five […]

The Obama Administration is opposing a provision in the Senate version of the FY 2016 National Defense Authorization Act that would require the Department of Energy to employ an “owner’s agent” capability at the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant. As envisioned by the Senate bill, the owner’s agent for the WTP would be “a private third-party […]

Liquid Waste contractor Savannah River Remediation has begun grouting operations on Tank 16, the next high-level waste tank scheduled to be closed at the Savannah River site. Tank 16 has been emptied of the waste to the maximum practical extent, and is scheduled to be filled with a cement-like grout and closed by a regulatory […]