High-Level & Tank Waste

The BWX Technologies-led nuclear remediation contractor for the Savannah River Site in South Carolina and the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management have inked an eight-year task order for the next stages of cleanup, the site’s Citizens Advisory Board heard Tuesday. Michael Budney, DOE’s operations manager for the Savannah River nuclear cleanup, said the […]

ARLINGTON, VA — A facility at the Idaho National Laboratory has solidified more than 68,000 gallons of sodium-bearing, liquid radioactive waste since starting operations in April and it will commence a maintenance outage later this month. That was the word shared with DOE’s National Cleanup Workshop Tuesday on the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU) by […]

ARLINGTON, VA — A facility at the Idaho National Laboratory has solidified more than 68,000 gallons of sodium-bearing, liquid radioactive waste since starting operations in April and it will commence a maintenance outage later this month. That was the word shared with DOE’s National Cleanup Workshop Tuesday on the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU) by […]

ARLINGTON, VA — A planned test to solidify 2,000 gallons of low-level radioactive tank waste from the Hanford Site into a concrete-like grout could pave the way for a second method of treating waste at the former plutonium production complex near Richland, Wash., the Department of Energy’s top nuclear-cleanup official said here Tuesday. During the […]

An unsealed status report filed with the U.S. Court of Federal Claims by the Department of Justice says the Department of Energy might seek updated proposals for the legally embattled liquid waste contract for the Hanford Site in Washington state, potentially worth $45-billion. This time around, a DOE contract officer would have discretion to treat […]

Months after a deal was announced, the Department of Energy and the Washington state Department of Ecology are still not ready to share details from recently-completed closed-door talks on future cleanup of the Hanford Site, though the feds are preparing to publish a new five-year plan for the former plutonium production property. Back in May, […]

A small fire ignited but did not last long last month at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state, according to a report from the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. The small blaze occurred at an area associated with heating up melter No. 1 at the Waste Treatment Immobilization Plant built by Bechtel, […]

An unsealed status report filed with the U.S. Court of Federal Claims by the Department of Justice says the Department of Energy might seek updated proposals for the legally embattled liquid waste contract for the Hanford Site in Washington state, potentially worth $45-billion. This time around, a DOE contract officer would have discretion to treat […]

A small fire ignited but did not last long last month at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state, according to a report from the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. The small blaze occurred at an area associated with heating up melter No. 1 at the Waste Treatment Immobilization Plant built by Bechtel, […]

Months after a deal was announced, the Department of Energy and the Washington state Department of Ecology are still not ready to share details from recently-completed closed-door talks on future cleanup of the Hanford Site, though the feds are preparing to publish a new five-year plan for the former plutonium production property. Back in May, […]

The Department of Energy is more than halfway toward its goal of removing cesium from a million gallons of liquid radioactive waste at the Hanford Site in Washington state, a prerequisite for solidifying the waste in the coming years, a DOE manager told the Hanford Advisory Board Aug. 23 Cesium removal should resume in September […]

The Department of Energy is more than halfway toward its goal of removing cesium from a million gallons of liquid radioactive waste at the Hanford Site in Washington state, a prerequisite for solidifying the waste in the coming years, a DOE manager told the Hanford Advisory Board Aug. 23 Cesium removal should resume in September […]

A $1.4-billion facility that since April has solidified more than 60,000 gallons of sodium-bearing waste at the Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory received “minor superficial damage” from a crane accident in July, an agency spokesperson said Wednesday. The Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU) was repaired and the IWTU maintenance crane was returned to service […]

The BWX Technologies-led team that won a $45-billion Department of Energy contract at Hanford Site in Washington state, only to see the award blocked by a federal court in June, should brief an appeals court in early October about why the trial court’s ruling was wrong. The team, Hanford Tank Waste Operations & Closure, should […]

Perma-Fix, Atlanta, turned a profit in the second quarter of the year as revenues rose and the company regained what its CEO called pre-pandemic momentum. On a call with investors last week, CEO Mark Duff also said that Perma-Fix is on a team fighting to force the Department of Energy and the court system to […]

Workers at the Hanford Site in Washington state last week practiced three early steps of solidifying liquid radioactive waste inside glass, a site contractor said Tuesday in a press release. Personnel poured glass beads called frit into a heated melter at the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, liquifying the glass in a first-ever trial run […]

The winner of a decade-long, $45-billion liquid-waste cleanup contract at the Hanford Site on Tuesday appealed a court order that blocked work on the deal at the behest of a losing bidder. Hanford Tank Waste Operations and Closure asked the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to overturn a June decision by the Court […]

The winner of a decade-long, $45-billion liquid-waste cleanup contract at the Hanford Site on Tuesday appealed a court order that blocked work on the deal at the behest of a losing bidder. Hanford Tank Waste Operations and Closure asked the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to overturn a June decision by the Court […]

Workers at the Hanford Site in Washington state last week practiced thee early steps of solidifying liquid radioactive waste inside glass, a site contractor said Tuesday in a press release. Personnel poured glass beads called frit into a heated melter at the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, liquifying the glass in a first-ever trial run […]

Perma-Fix, Atlanta, turned a profit in the second quarter of the year as revenues rose and the company regained what its CEO called pre-pandemic momentum. On a call with investors last week, CEO Mark Duff also said that Perma-Fix is on a team fighting to force the Department of Energy and the court system to […]

Earnings fell at BWX Technologies, Lynchburg, Va., in the second quarter, and the nuclear services company does not expect a quick resolution to a challenge of a $45-billion joint venture contract to manage the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state. “At this point, do not expect a contractor transition at the site until […]

Bechtel National’s $14.9-billion contract to build the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state was updated last month to keep the company on the job into September 2024, which is still before before the plant is expected to start solidifying low-level radioactive waste. An Aug. 31 contract […]

The first melter at the Department of Energy’s waste-solidification plant at the Hanford Site in Washington state has reached its operating temperature of 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit, the agency and contractor Bechtel National said this week. The milestone for the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) completed the heat up process that started June 24, DOE […]

At the request of the Government Accountability Office, the Department of Energy will start including costs for grouting some tank waste as part of its long-term planning for the Hanford Site in Washington state, according to a report released this week. In the report, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommends DOE consider, in consultation with […]

The Salt Waste Processing Facility at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina should treat 4.75 million gallons of salt waste in fiscal 2023, continuing to lag behind its 9-million-gallon annual target, a manager for the site’s cleanup contractor said Tuesday. But implementation of the next generation solvent in fiscal 2024, should […]

Parties fighting over a $45-billion Department of Energy radioactive tank waste cleanup contract at the Hanford Site in Washington say there is a good chance of ending up back before the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and, with that in mind, want the judge to hang onto key records. The parties made the motion in […]

The Salt Waste Processing Facility at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina should treat 4.75 million gallons of salt waste in fiscal 2023, continuing to lag behind its 9-million-gallon annual target, a manager for the site’s cleanup contractor said Tuesday. But implementation of the next generation solvent in fiscal 2024, should […]

The first melter at the Department of Energy’s waste-solidification plant at the Hanford Site in Washington state has reached its operating temperature of 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit, the agency and contractor Bechtel National said late Monday. The milestone for the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) completed the heat up process that started June 24, DOE […]

Parties fighting over a $45-billion Department of Energy radioactive tank waste cleanup contract at the Hanford Site in Washington say there is a good chance of ending up back before the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and, with that in mind, want the judge to hang onto key records. The parties made the motion in […]

The Department of Energy says no significant environmental impact should result from the Savannah River Site in South Carolina shipping contaminated process equipment, currently managed as a high-level radioactive waste, to a commercial disposal site for low-level waste. The DOE Office of Environmental Management released environmental assessment documents Wednesday backing its conclusion that the grouted […]