CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Co. and the Washington state Department of Ecology have reached a settlement agreement over waste storage includes the waiver of a $50,000 penalty against the Hanford Site cleanup contractor. The state had accused CH2M in August 2016 of breaching requirements for the storage of five containers of waste at Hanford’s T Plant, including identifying waste and making records available to inspectors.
The state ordered the Department of Energy and CH2M last year to obtain detailed analysis of waste before storing it at T Plant and to maintain records properly. As part of the settlement agreement, CH2M will establish a temporary holding area for waste that has not been analyzed. It also will meet Ecology’s request for enhanced storage and record-keeping moving forward. The contractor has until Sept. 27 to make both improvements or could face another fine of up to $25,000, according to the settlement agreement filed with the Washington state Pollution Control Hearings Board.
The waste at issue included batteries, paint chips and concrete pieces, and grease. Some of the waste was from floor scrapings and could include low levels of radioactive contamination. The state said last year it was concerned that if Hanford officials were not following the rules on common wastes, such as batteries, the former plutonium production site could have more serious issues related to storing more complex wastes.
DOE and CH2M had no comment on the settlement agreement announced Friday. Jared Mathey, an Ecology compliance inspector, said “it is important to make sure that their cleanup work complies with regulatory requirements in order to make the site safer for people and to reduce environmental threats.”
