Vol. 36, No. 38 
Hot commissioning gets underway at Hanford vitrification plant
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Budget & Policy
Walsh confirmed by Senate to head DOE Environmental Management
Tim Walsh, a combat veteran and Colorado real estate developer, was confirmed by the full U.S. Senate Tuesday to head the Department of Energy’s $8-billion Office of Environmental Management. Walsh was confirmed 51-to-47 by the Senate Tuesday as part of a bloc of dozens of nominees from President Donald Trump who have been awaiting a […]
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Budget & Policy
Oregon panel looks at fed shutdown impact on Hanford WTP
The current government shutdown should not affect startup and early operation of a new multi-billion-dollar plant to convert radioactive tank waste into glass at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site at Richland, Wash., an Oregon panel heard Tuesday. Separately, the Tri-City Herald newspaper reported Thursday that the Hanford tank waste contractor, BWXT-led Hanford Tank Waste […]
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Nuclear Weapons & Stockpile
DNFSB Acting Chair Summers enters home stretch
Thomas Summers, the acting chair of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB), is scheduled to see his tenure on the safety watchdog for Department of Energy defense nuclear sites come to an end later this month. Summers, a retired Air Force colonel who has also served as a senior adviser in the Office of […]
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Budget & Policy
Cortez Masto introduces legislation to help federal contractors during shutdown
Last week, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) introduced the Emergency Relief for Federal Contractors Act to allow federal contractors working without pay to withdraw pay from their retirement savings without penalty. Cortez Masto’s district includes the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) Nevada National Security Site. It is the largest NNSA site that […]
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Budget & Policy
NNSA funded until Oct. 10, EnergySec Wright says, Rosen begs to differ
The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration will move into “emergency shutdown procedures” Friday if the government does not reopen, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright said last week on Fox News. “We have about eight more days of funding for the National Nuclear Security Administration [NNSA],” Wright said in an Oct. 2 interview with […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
Veolia appoints new North American executive
Veolia said this week it has selected Nadège Petit as CEO of the North America Zone, effective Dec. 1. Petit will join the group’s executive committee in a move to support Veolia’s expansion efforts in the United States. Petit is a prominent international executive with much experience in energy, new technologies and business development, Veolia […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
High court agrees to hear arguments in radiation contamination case
The United States Supreme Court has agreed to hear arguments concerning litigation brought by two sisters who claim their cancer is connected to radioactive contamination in the St. Louis area dating back to the Manhattan Project. In a notice made public Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court “invited” the U.S. Solicitor General to file written arguments […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
EM takes down Test Cell C at Nevada National Security Site
The Department of Energy’s nuclear cleanup office said last week it has taken down a major 1960s era contaminated facility at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS). After three years of labor intensive work, crews directed by DOE’s Office of Environmental Management (EM) have dismantled Test Cell C at the Nevada site’s Area 25, according […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
Nuclear cleanup advisory chairs scheduled to meet later this month
For the time being at least, the Department of Energy plans to hold a virtual meeting of the chairs for its Environmental Management Site-Specific Advisory Boards later this month. The online meeting is currently scheduled from 10:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday, Oct. 28. That is according to a Sept. 25 Federal Register notice. […]
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Cleanup & Remediation
Wrap Up: Holtec drops N.M. interim storage plan; DNFSB reports on Y-12 emergency system; Charter extended for radiation panel
Holtec International has canceled plans to build an interim nuclear waste storage facility in New Mexico, months after an U.S. Supreme Court ruling that made way for such projects in New Mexico and Texas. “After discussions with our longtime partner in the HI-STORE project, the Eddy-Lea Energy Alliance [ELEA], and due to the untenable path […]