The U.S. Department of Energy and the Washington state Department of Ecology are taking public comments through Sept. 16 on a proposed change to the dangerous waste permit for the Hanford Site.
If approved, the state permit modification would allow DOE to connect a backup waste transfer line from the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant’s Effluent Management Facility to an existing transfer line between the 242-A Evaporator and the Liquid Effluent Retention Facility.
The change would allow waste from the Effluent Management Facility (EMF) to be transferred to the Liquid Effluent Retention Facility.
Bechtel National is building the $17 billion Waste Treatment Plant to convert Hanford radioactive tank waste into a stable glass-like substance for disposal. The EMF is being built to help in sending low-activity waste from underground tanks directly to the low-activity waste vitrification facility at the plant. The Effluent Management Facility is the last major construction project for the WTP, according to DOE.
The Liquid Effluent Retention Facility, located near the center of the Hanford Site, has three liquid storage basins designed to hold about 23 million gallons of material. Built in 1977 to support defense-related production of material for nuclear weapons, the 242-A Evaporator’s current mission focuses on reducing the volume of liquid waste stored in the tank farms.
The change is sought by DOE and its tank waste contractor, Washington River Protection Solutions. Comments can be sent by email via this link.
A public meeting on the permit modification is set for Aug. 27 at the Richland, Wash., public library.
