Weapons Complex Vol. 25 No. 11 DNFSB: WIPP VENTILATION NOT A ‘CREDITED SAFETY SYSTEM’
-
High-Level & Tank Waste
WTP HAS ‘SERIOUS PROBLEM’ WITH ‘WHISTLEBLOWER CULTURE,’ SEN. SAYS
DOE IG Opens Investigation into Busche Termination Mike Nartker WC Monitor 3/14/2014 Lawmakers expressed skepticism this week that the Department of Energy is adequately ensuring workers at one of its largest projects—the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant—are free to raise concerns without fear of retaliation. The dismissal in recent months of two contractor managers who have […]
-
Contracts & Procurement
EM OFFICIAL SAYS HE DOESN’T THINK RISK SHIFT HAS LED TO REDUCED COMPETITION
Only Three Bids Submitted for New ETEC Contract Mike Nartker WC Monitor 3/14/2014 Despite recent procurements that attracted limited interest, the top acquisition official in the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management said last week that he does not believe DOE’s efforts to better balance risk and reward with its contractors are so far […]
-
High-Level & Tank Waste
MORE WORK SET TO RESUME AT HANFORD VIT PLANT’S HIGH-LEVEL WASTE FACILITY
Mike Nartker WC Monitor 3/14/2014 Bechtel National is soon set to begin moving forward with additional work at the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant’s High-Level Waste Facility. In late February, the Department of Energy authorized Bechtel National to begin performing “limited production engineering” activities at the facility, and DOE and Bechtel National are working to a […]
-
Contracts & Procurement
NNSA OFFICIAL LISTS NUMEROUS ISSUES WITH DOE SMALL BIZ CONTRACTING
Kenneth Fletcher WC Monitor 3/14/2014 A National Nuclear Security Administration official last week outlined a host of concerns with the way NNSA and Department of Energy small business contracting is impacting industry, including in the list reverse auctions, restrictive size standards, acquisition strategies and underutilization of contract vehicles. One concern is the consequence of using […]
-
Cleanup & Remediation
LANL LOOKS TO CAMPAIGN APPROACH FOR FUTURE CLEANUP WORK
Kenneth Fletcher WC Monitor 3/14/2014 Los Alamos National Laboratory will continue a short-term campaign approach based on risk with future cleanup efforts after the success so far of the aboveground transuranic waste campaign, officials said here last week. New Mexico Environment Department Secretary Ryan Flynn called for the continuation of such an approach in September […]
-
Uranium Enrichment & Fuel Cycle
GEORGE DIALS LEAVING B&W AT THE END OF THIS MONTH
Unclear Who Will Head DUF6 Contractor BWCS Going Forward Mike Nartker WC Monitor 3/14/2014 George Dials, a senior executive at Babcock & Wilcox, is leaving the company at the end of this month. Dials first joined B&W in 2006, when he served as president and CEO of B&W Y-12, LLC, and since late 2010 he has […]
-
International
INVESTIGATIONS LAUNCHED INTO THREE SELLAFIELD INCIDENTS
Kenneth Fletcher WC Monitor 3/14/2014 Investigations are underway into three recent incidents at Sellafield—two contamination events and an issue that caused the shutdown of the Magnox Reprocessing Plant. “On the 23 February the Magnox Reprocessing Plant underwent a controlled shutdown as a result of an anomaly in the chemical process. Initial investigations suggest that this […]
-
High-Level & Tank Waste
AT RIVER PROTECTION
STATE UNHAPPY WITH NEW DOE PUMPING PLAN WC Monitor 3/14/2014 A Department of Energy plan to wait at least two years to pump waste from a damaged double-shell tank at Hanford is unacceptable, according to the state of Washington. DOE’s plan “demonstrates the federal government’s lack of commitment to set a firm, near-term schedule for […]
-
Cleanup & Remediation
AT RICHLAND
DOE CHANGING WASTE HAULING PRACTICES WC Monitor 3/14/2014 The Department of Energy is making changes to improve the safety of how it moves mixed waste on 12.3 miles of roads open to the public on Hanford land and in north Richland, Wash. They include closing all lanes of those roads when waste shipments are moved […]
-
Cleanup & Remediation
AT IDAHO
DOE BEGINS IWTU READINESS ASSESSMENT WC Monitor 3/14/2014 Efforts to start up the Idaho Integrated Waste Treatment Unit took another step forward this week, with the Department of Energy launching a readiness assessment expected to take two weeks to complete. The purpose of the assessment is to help evaluate whether the facility is ready for […]
-
Cleanup & Remediation
AT OAK RIDGE
REMOVAL OF K-25 DEBRIS COMPLETE WC Monitor 3/14/2014 The Department of Energy’s unprecedented D&D effort at the Oak Ridge K-25 plant reached another milestone this week with the removal of all demolition debris from the site that once produced the majority of the nation’s enriched uranium. The demolition of the K-25 building—a U-shaped structure that […]
-
Cleanup & Remediation
WRAP UP: IN CONGRESS, IN DOE, IN THE INDUSTRY
WC Monitor 3/14/2014 IN CONGRESS This year’s set of House Cleanup Caucus briefings on the Department of Energy’s cleanup program is scheduled to get underway March 27, with an overview presentation from DOE cleanup chief David Huizenga. The briefing is scheduled to be held in Room 1324 of the Longworth House Office Building in Washington […]