WIPP gets EPA green light for Panels 11 and 12

The Environmental Protection Agency has approved two new waste disposal panels for the Department of Energy’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, N.M.

The DOE Office of Environmental Management said in a Monday Aug. 18 press release that EPA has approved use of replacement Panels 11 and 12 for the nation’s only underground disposal site for defense-related transuranic waste.

Two years ago, the New Mexico Environment Department approved construction of Panels 11 and 12, with mining to develop space for Panel 11 starting in December 2023.

In addition, EPA has now given its approval to DOE and Bechtel-led contractor Salado Isolation Mining Contractors for Panels 11 and 12. EPA has been studying the two planned panels since March 2024.

WIPP crews are currently filling up Panel 8 at the underground salt mine.

After a waste drum ruptured in February 2014, contaminating some of the underground disposal facility and forcing WIPP offline for about three years, DOE eventually decided to forego plans for Panels 9 and 10.

Panel 11 could be ready to start receiving waste in mid-2027, according to the press release.

Each panel is made up of seven rooms, with each room being about 300 feet long, 33 feet wide and 13 feet high, DOE said in the release. Drums of transuranic waste are stacked within the rooms for permanent disposal.

“These additional panels support WIPP’s mission toward disposal of the congressional volume mandate,” said Michael Gerle, director of environmental compliance at DOE’s Carlsbad Field Office. “They are essential for ensuring WIPP can continue its critical role in supporting national security and environmental cleanup efforts.”