The Department of Energy and its Central Plateau cleanup contractor at the Hanford Site have appealed a fine and order by the Washington state Department of Ecology over an unidentified white powder found on the floor and equipment of the PUREX processing plant.
The plutonium extraction plant was closed down in the 1980s, with periodic walkthroughs conducted since then. In May 2015 workers inspecting the facility noted the white powder. The state agency issued a fine of $16,000 on Aug. 31 after trying for more than a year to get DOE and CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Co. to identify the powder.
The Energy Department argues the state does not have the authority to require the powder to be cleaned up if it is hazardous. It says the material is a Superfund Site issue with federal regulation – Hanford hosts four separate Superfund locations.
The Department of Ecology says it has authority over the powder under its Hanford site-wide dangerous waste permit and also has authority to regulate hazardous waste generation within the state.
The Department of Ecology has agreed to extend the first of three deadlines under the order until Nov. 30. DOE and CH2M were required to sample the white powder by the end of October. They said they needed more time to collect multiple samples and get analysis results from an off-site lab. If the analysis shows the waste is hazardous, DOE is required to have a plan for cleanup by Nov. 15 and to complete cleanup by Jan. 29. No change has been made at this point to those deadlines.
