Best Practices for Risk-Informed Decision Making Regarding Contaminated Sites Summary of a Workshop Series (2014) / Chapter Skim
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1 Introduction and Background
1 Introduction and Background
Pages 55-72
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A discussion was held after each presentation. The fourth session involved a round-robin discussion, which allowed the invited speakers representing tribal, federal, state, regulatory, academic, and practitioners to express viewpoints on best practices for effective site remediation.
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the highly radioactive waste material resulting from the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel, including liquid waste produced directly in reprocessing and any solid material derived from such liquid waste that contains fission products in sufficient concentrations; and ( B) other highly radioactive material that the Commission, consistent with existing law, determines by rule to require permanent isolation.
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legacy sites in tanks. Buried wastes include radioactive and chemically contaminated wastes disposed of in near-surface pits and trenches (see Box 1.1)
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Remediation decisions for closure and post-closure controls are site specific because of the complexities of each site. Several factors contribute to a site's remediation complexity, including its size, location, geology, and climate; activities associated with its original and current missions; relationships with local regulators and stakeholders; and the type and scope of the principal legacy wastes.2 Several DOE nuclear legacy sites provide background on the complexities and diversity of sites, wastes, and challenges related to long-term remediation issues (DOE 2001a, 2001b)
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. Legacy Wastes The chemical separation processes in the 200 Area generated the largest volume of stored legacy waste at Hanford (DOE 2001b)
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. Additional tank wastes and wastes from chemical processing operations were intentionally or accidentally discharged into the subsurface (DOE estimates that up to 67 of the single-shell tanks have leaked waste into the subsurface)
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in the 200 Area. This decision requires consideration of different tank waste retrieval technologies in contaminated soil.5 The WMA C decisions may impact future single-shell tank farm remediation decisions.
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SRS remains an active DOE research site with research and development activities conducted at the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) and other laboratories on site.6 Legacy Wastes At the start of cleanup activities in the late 1980s, SRS reported approximately 35 million gallons of liquid high-level waste stored in 51 underground tanks (DOE 2001b)
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. Circles indicate location of other major facilities including A: the Savannah River National Laboratory and the Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, M: fuel fabrication facilities, E: onsite disposal of low-level waste, H: H-canyon and the Tritium Extraction Facility (TEF)
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SRS has built and operated several large-scale facilities to process stored tank wastes: the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF, see Area S in Figure 1-2) and two Saltstone facilities (see Area Z in Figure 1-2)
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The government established the Naval Proving Ground in the 1940s to test fire World War II Pacific Fleet guns.12 In 1949, the site was expanded and converted to the Nuclear Reactor Testing Station, where approximately 100 reactor concepts were built, tested, and operated including reactors for naval nuclear propulsion. From 1953 to 1992, the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant reprocessed and extracted uranium and plutonium from U.S.
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, WAG 3 (the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant and the Idaho CERCLA [Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act] Disposal Facility)
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Its current mission is to conduct research and testing of new nuclear fuel concepts and to conduct a safe environmental remediation of the legacy wastes within the site. Legacy Wastes INL has actively addressed its tank wastes on site.
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These include some of the fuel storage pools, hot cells and hot shops, a fuel reprocessing plant, warehouses, and waste storage buildings.15 Three nuclear reactor vessels have been disposed of in the Idaho CERCLA Disposal Facility (ICDF) , located in WAG 3.
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is the only field site that performs every mission under the DOE's portfolio -- energy research, environmental restoration, national security, nuclear fuel supply, reindustrialization, science education, science and technology, and technology transfer" (see http://www. oakridge.doe.gov/external/Home/AboutUs/tabid/24/Default.aspx)
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Underground tanks containing legacy waste remain on site including 12 gunite tanks18 (containing wastes from plutonium separation research and pilot experiments) and 5 storage tanks (constructed as feed tanks for the Hydrofracture Facility, see below)
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. TRU waste is to be addressed in the TRU Waste Processing Facility (not yet operational)
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