The Department of Energy’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, N.M., received 432 shipments of defense-related transuranic (TRU) waste during fiscal 2025, officials from DOE and its prime contractor said Thursday evening.
In addition, WIPP’s management said the new ventilation system at the facility is working well and work continues normally, so far at least, during the government shutdown.
The underground disposal site at the salt mine in Eddy County is 45% full and DOE’s goal is to average taking in four-to-five shipments of in-state waste weekly from the Los Alamos National Laboratory, WIPP managers said during the hybrid meeting. DOE continues to be under pressure in New Mexico to prioritize shipments from Los Alamos.
The presentation was led by Michael Gerle, who is regulatory compliance director for DOE Carlsbad, and Ronnie Lee. Lee is Salado Mining Isolation Contractors’ deputy operations and national TRU program manager.
In response to a question from Exchange Monitor, Gerle said WIPP’s Safety Significant Confinement Ventilation System came online shortly after receiving final approval in July. The facility, designed to more than triple underground airflow, has been “performing beautifully and doing what it is intended to do,” Gerle said. “I will use the term – a breath of fresh air in the underground.”
When asked about the government shutdown, Gerle said, “right now we know that we have been directed to stay open as long as funds remain available.” DOE has access to various multiyear and carryover funds that are helping keep things going, he added.
Public forums on WIPP are required on a regular basis by WIPP’s license from the New Mexico Environment Department. Participants heard that crews are currently emplacing waste in Panel 8, Room 3. Panel 8, which already holds more than 28,000 containers of waste, should be filled in May or June in 2028. At the same time Panel 8 is being filled up, crews are also preparing the next huge panel for waste disposal, Panel 11, once Panel 8 is filled.
Also during the session, the officials said DOE expects to file its second annual report to New Mexico officials by the end of the year on the department’s evaluation of additional TRU waste disposal sites outside of the state.