High-Level & Tank Waste

The Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant at the Hanford site will begin processing non-radioactive simulant waste in ‘a few weeks,’ a site spokesperson said Monday. The non-radioactive simulant, which is still chemically hazardous, is a stand-in for the liquid radioactive waste the facility was built to solidify, according to the site. Processing the non-radioactive liquid […]

Feds and state regulators at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state have agreed on new steps to address leaking tanks of radioactive waste, including a new presumed leaker acknowledged in August. The steps include more leak detection and reconsidering the date for emptying a leaky tank. The deal announced this week between […]

A joint venture led by BWX Technologies started its transition Oct. 21 to take charge of the roughly 56 million gallons of radioactive and chemical liquid waste at the Department of Energy Hanford Site in Washington state, an advisory board heard Wednesday. The 120-day transition to Hanford Tank Waste Operations & Closure (H2C) should be […]

A joint venture led by BWX Technologies started its transition Oct. 21 to take charge of the roughly 56 million gallons of radioactive and chemical liquid waste at the Department of Energy Hanford Site in Washington state, an advisory board heard Wednesday. The 120-day transition to Hanford Tank Waste Operations & Closure (H2C) should be […]

The Department of Energy said Tuesday it has removed cesium and solids from about 2,000 gallons of radioactive tank waste at the Hanford Site in Washington state in preparation in connection with the Test Bed Initiative demonstration project. In a news release, DOE said Hanford tank contractor Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) has pretreated the […]

A federal judge recently rejected a motion to reconsider a September ruling upholding the Department of Energy’s award of a liquid waste contract, potentially worth $45-billion, to a team led by BWX Technologies. Judge Marian Horn in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims rejected the motion for reconsideration by AtkinsRéalis Nuclear-led Hanford Tank Disposition Alliance […]

The environmental cleanup contractor at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina told a federal nuclear safety panel recently it now has only 50% confidence of substantially finishing liquid radioactive waste cleanup at the site by 2037. That’s the bottom line of a Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) staff report dated […]

The Department of Energy said Tuesday it has removed cesium and solids from about 2,000 gallons of radioactive tank waste at the Hanford Site in Washington state in preparation in connection with the Test Bed Initiative demonstration project. In a news release, DOE said Hanford tank contractor Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) has pretreated the […]

Judge rejects motion to reconsider ruling on Hanford liquid waste contract A federal judge recently rejected a motion to reconsider a September ruling upholding the Department of Energy’s award of a liquid waste contract, potentially worth $45-billion, to a team led by BWX Technologies. Judge Marian Horn in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims rejected […]

Since it resumed operations in late August, the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit at the Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory has treated more sodium-bearing waste than it did during its first year of operations, an advisory board heard Wednesday. Since exiting a long-running outage this summer the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU) has solidified about […]

The BWX Technologies-led team taking over the Hanford Site on Wednesday made public introductions of five senior leaders. After getting the go-ahead from the Department of Energy last week, Hanford Tank Waste Operations & Closure (H2C) began the four-month process of formally taking over management of Hanford’s liquid-waste programs from the Amentum-led incumbent, Washington River […]

The BWX Technologies-led team taking over the Hanford Site on Wednesday made public introductions of five senior leaders. After getting the go-ahead from the Department of Energy last week, Hanford Tank Waste Operations & Closure (H2C) began the four-month process of formally taking over management of Hanford’s liquid-waste programs from the Amentum-led incumbent, Washington River […]

Since it resumed operations in late August, the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit at the Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory has treated more sodium-bearing waste than it did during its first year of operations, an advisory board heard Wednesday. Since exiting a long-running outage this summer the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU) has solidified about […]

The Department of Energy on Tuesday told a BWX Technologies-led team to proceed with the takeover of the Hanford Site’s liquid waste cleanup mission under a $45 billion contract. The 120-day transition from Amentum-led incumbent Washington River Protection Solutions will begin Oct. 21, more than a year after DOE first awarded the Hanford Integrated Tank Disposition […]

The Department of Energy on Tuesday told a BWX Technologies-led team to proceed with the takeover of the Hanford Site’s liquid waste cleanup mission under a $45 billion contract. The 120-day transition from Amentum-led incumbent Washington River Protection Solutions will begin Oct. 21, more than a year after DOE first awarded the Hanford Integrated Tank […]

The Integrated Waste Treatment Unit is again solidifying sodium-bearing liquid waste at the Idaho National Laboratory, a Department of Energy spokesperson said Thursday in an email. “During maintenance, engineers replaced granulated activated carbon beds, which remove mercury during the waste treatment process, replaced process gas filter bundles, and completed minor maintenance operations,” the spokesperson wrote […]

The Integrated Waste Treatment Unit is again solidifying sodium-bearing liquid waste at the Idaho National Laboratory, a Department of Energy spokesperson said Thursday in an email. “During maintenance, engineers replaced granulated activated carbon beds, which remove mercury during the waste treatment process, replaced process gas filter bundles, and completed minor maintenance operations,” the spokesperson wrote […]

Jeffrey Baran, who lost his job at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2023, will join the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management on Sept. 8, according to an internal email. When he arrives at DOE headquarters in Washington, Baran will be deputy assistant secretary for waste and materials management, or EM-4.2, in the Office […]

The Department of Energy expects a batch of specially engineered replacement parts should help curb maintenance downtime at the Salt Waste Processing Facility at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, according to a press release. The shipment of 16 replacement centrifugal contactors by Office of Environmental Management cleanup prime Savannah River Mission Completion should […]

The Department of Energy confirmed Thursday that “more likely than not” another underground tank at the Hanford Site in Washington state is leaking radioactive waste. “Based on conservative estimates, it has been determined that T-101 is more likely than not leaking a small amount of contamination to the soil beneath the tank,” DOE managers at […]

The Department of Energy’s tank waste contractor at the Hanford Site in Washington state is installing gear for the planned Test Bed Initiative where about 2,000 gallons of liquid radioactive waste will be shipped out of state for disposal in a concrete-like grout form. DOE contractor Washington River Protection Solutions  is installing in-tank pretreatment equipment, […]

A federal district court judge in Washington state last week formally approved giving the Department of Energy four more months to start cold commissioning of a facility to turn some of the less radioactive waste at the Hanford Site into a solid glass form. The prior deadline was Thursday Aug. 1 for startup of cold […]

A federal district court judge in Washington state last week formally approved giving the Department of Energy four more months to start cold commissioning of a facility to turn some of the less radioactive waste at the Hanford Site into a solid glass form. The prior deadline was Thursday Aug. 1 for startup of cold […]

An amended Department of Energy competition for a $45-billion liquid waste contract permitted bidders with gaps in their federal procurement registration, the company twice awarded the work argued last week in court.  That fact alone should sink the losing bidder’s claim that the DOE award should be thrown out because of a ruling in a […]

An Amentum-led Department of Energy contractor at the Hanford Site in Washington state is starting to remove radioactive waste from single-shell Tank A-101 and transfer it to a newer double-shell tank, DOE said in a Tuesday press release. Removal began of the 325,000 gallons of radioactive and chemical waste in Hanford’s A Tank Farm a […]

An Amentum-led Department of Energy contractor at the Hanford Site in Washington state is starting to remove radioactive waste from single-shell Tank A-101 and transfer it to a newer double-shell tank, DOE said in a Tuesday press release. Removal began of the 325,000 gallons of radioactive and chemical waste in Hanford’s A Tank Farm a […]

The Amentum-Atkins partnership in charge of radioactive tank waste operations at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state is shopping for a small business to assist with regulatory documents and closure plans for single-shell tank farms. Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) issued a request for proposals in an online notice Tuesday for a […]

The Washington state Department of Ecology in June formally signed off on a Department of Energy plan to solidify into a concrete-like grout up to 2,000 gallons of low-level liquid radioactive waste from the Hanford Site. Filtering of cesium and other radionuclides, what DOE calls pretreatment, will happen onsite at the former plutonium production complex, […]

The Washington state Department of Ecology in June formally signed off on a Department of Energy plan to solidify into a concrete-like grout up to 2,000 gallons of low-level liquid radioactive waste from the Hanford Site. Filtering of cesium and other radionuclides, what DOE calls pretreatment, will happen onsite at the former plutonium production complex, […]

Environmental crews at the Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory have discovered three broken ceramic filter elements are to blame for stalling operations at a plant built to solidify liquid sodium-bearing radioactive waste. In March, DOE and its Jacobs-led contractor Idaho Environmental Coalition, decided to suspend restart of the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU). While […]