EM Update | Vol. 14, Issue 31 | Aug. 9, 2022

• West Valley Worker Feedback Leads to Safe Deactivation on Path to Major Demolition
• Progress Continues on Disposal Facility to Support Hanford Tank Waste Treatment
• New EM Museum Exhibit Stems From Lecture About Cleanup Program
• Idaho Crews Build Proficiency With Heavy Equipment Before Tackling Demolition Work
• Hanford Prepares to Retrieve Waste from 21st Single-Shell Underground Tank
• Association Honors WIPP With Voluntary Protection Program Outreach Award
• Excellence Award Goes to EM-NNSA Partnership at Oak Ridge’s Y-12
• Hanford’s Brian Vance Joins Community Leaders for New Nuclear Development Forum

West Valley Worker Feedback Leads to Safe Deactivation on Path to Major Demolition

A floor-to-ceiling view of the Product Purification Cell-South within the Main Plant Process Building at the West Valley Demonstration Project. Workers have safely completed deactivation activities in the cell. They applied fixative for contamination control as part of the deactivation process. The cell had previously contained high levels of contamination from former fuel reprocessing operations. This successful deactivation effort has contributed to an overall reduction in radiological hazards that will support the demolition of the Main Plant, an EM 2022 priority.

WEST VALLEY, N.Y. – EM and its cleanup contractor at the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP) recently overcame unique challenges and successfully finished deactivating a highly contaminated cell resembling an elevator shaft in the Main Plant Process Building.

The successful cleanup of the Product Purification Cell-South by EM and CH2M HILL BWXT West Valley (CHBWV) contributed to an overall reduction in radiological hazards that will support the demolition of the Main Plant, an EM 2022 priority.

During former nuclear fuel reprocessing operations, the cell was used to house vessels associated with plutonium separation, concentration, material controls and batching for shipping.

Due to its configuration, the cell was a potentially oxygen-deficient workspace that required additional planning and work controls, including a trained confined space rescue team.

“Safety is our priority throughout any and all work activities at the site,” said Stephen Bousquet, EM WVDP federal project director for the Main Plant demolition. “This led to an impressive decontamination effort that involved a confined workspace, requiring layers of protective clothing, and numerous industrial and radiological hazard controls.”

The Product Purification Cell-South can be viewed in the upper left portion of this graphic of the Main Plant Process Building at the West Valley Demonstration Project.

After decades of deactivation work in the Main Plant, the cell remained the building’s largest source of radioactive material. Crews used liquid nitrogen — an aggressive, yet safe, cleaning application that included use of a decontamination wand — to decontaminate the cell, safely collecting material in a vacuum system for disposal. A unique benefit of the liquid nitrogen technology is that it did not create a secondary waste stream.

Site workers designed several mock-ups to train employees on the system, leading to improvements in safety, work controls and equipment.

Similar to an elevator, an in-cell mast climber was used to allow employees to safely access all areas of the 57-foot-tall cell. Portable ventilation units provided appropriate air exchanges to ensure a safe work environment. Operators also performed work in air-supplied bubble suits with air-supplied respirators.

Work plans incorporated previous site experience and corporate experience, industry best practices and lessons learned from similar deactivation projects to anticipate and mitigate potential adverse events. Work controls were implemented to reduce radiation exposure to workers during deactivation and waste packaging.

“This accomplishment demonstrates the importance that planning, work control and worker feedback have when it comes to high-hazard work activities,” said Tom Dogal, CHBWV facility disposition manager. “Working closely with employees, management and DOE, feedback was used to further improve processes and safety controls during the deactivation. It was this employee engagement that led to a safe, compliant and successful outcome.”

-Contributor: Joseph Pillittere

Progress Continues on Disposal Facility to Support Hanford Tank Waste Treatment

The Integrated Disposal Facility at the Hanford Site will provide safe, permanent disposal for vitrified, or immobilized in glass, low-activity tank waste from the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant. The facility is made up of two large disposal cells and features systems to detect leaks and collect leachate for treatment.

RICHLAND, Wash. – Processes, systems and workers continue to come together as the Hanford Site draws closer to a monumental step in cleanup — treating and disposing of tank waste.

One example is the Integrated Disposal Facility (IDF), where EM Richland Operations Office (RL) contractor Central Plateau Cleanup Company (CPCCo) is making significant progress preparing the landfill for disposal of waste, including containers of vitrified, or immobilized in glass, low-activity waste from the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP).

“The Integrated Disposal Facility is a key part of Hanford’s Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste Program, which is a step change in our capability to tackle tank waste,” said Gary Pyles, EM federal project manager. “As an engineered facility, IDF allows for safe and permanent disposal of low-level waste and mixed low-level waste produced during the waste-treatment process, while protecting the environment and the Columbia River.”

IDF consists of two expandable disposal cells totaling 1,345 feet wide, 2,151 feet long and 42 feet deep, with a disposal capacity of nearly 1.2 million cubic yards.

To protect groundwater under IDF, the disposal cells are lined and outfitted with systems to collect water from rain, snowmelt and dust suppression — known as leachate — that filters through the landfill.

This summer, crews are finishing upgrades to two 400,000-gallon storage tanks that will hold the leachate until it is sent to an onsite facility and treated to remove contaminants. Workers are also constructing a 120-by-140-foot concrete pad to temporarily store waste containers from WTP until they are cool enough to move them into IDF.

IDF is similar in design to the Environmental Restoration Disposal Facility (ERDF) at the Hanford Site, but on a smaller scale.

Andy Drom, director for the CPCCo waste projects and operations organization, said his team will bring the experience gained at ERDF and a strong commitment to safe and efficient operations to IDF. ERDF has safely operated for more than 25 years and disposed of nearly 19 million tons of low-level waste from cleanup activities.

“We’re excited about the opportunity to contribute to the tank waste treatment mission and look forward to the successful transition to 24/7 operations,” said Drom.

-Contributor: Mark McKenna

New EM Museum Exhibit Stems From Lecture About Cleanup Program

EM Senior Advisor William “Ike” White gives remarks during an event celebrating the opening of a new EM exhibit at the National Atomic Testing Museum in Las Vegas on Aug 2.

LAS VEGAS – In July 2021, Todd Shrader, then-principal deputy assistant secretary for EM, gave a lecture at the National Atomic Testing Museum in Las Vegas about the cleanup program’s critical work in managing sites across the nation impacted by decades of government-sponsored nuclear energy research.

His lecture led to a new exhibit created through a partnership between EM and the museum titled, “Beyond the Manhattan Project: Cleaning up the Legacy of America’s Nuclear Defense and Research Missions.” Spotlighting the past, present and future of EM, the exhibit was recently unveiled to the public in a ribbon-cutting ceremony where EM Senior Advisor William “Ike” White gave remarks.

“It was a pleasure to take part,” White said. “This exhibit is a reflection of our nation’s history, our mission success, and the work we do every day to keep communities safe. I am excited to share that legacy with the public.”

Congresswoman Dina Titus, whose district includes most of Las Vegas, said atomic testing has deep roots in Nevada and has played an important role in the social, economic and political history of the state.

“Although it helped us win the Cold War, we now know more about the long-term dangers it poses to our communities,” Titus said. “This exhibit is a valuable educational tool for teaching about the risks associated with nuclear weapon production and the continued efforts at the Department of Energy to clean up test sites that have been contaminated over the last half-century. We must continue to address these ‘national sacrifice zones’ and hold firm in our position to avoid nuclear weapons testing in the future.”

About 60 people attended the unveiling of EM's new permanent exhibit at the National Atomic Testing Museum in Las Vegas on Aug 2. Here, EM Senior Advisor William "Ike" White speaks during the ceremony.

Highlighting EM's cleanup across the DOE complex through an array of photos, displays, models, site equipment, and history, the permanent exhibit seeks to raise awareness of how EM cleans up former nuclear manufacturing and testing sites, ensures the safety and health of the public and workforce, and collaborates with local communities in the cleanup.

EM and museum officials hope the exhibit will help draw the attention of future candidates for EM's workforce who have interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers.

John Longenecker, chair of the Nevada Test Site Historical Foundation, shared that sentiment as he joined White to conduct the ceremonial ribbon-cutting at the event.

“We have thousands of student visitors coming through the museum each year, and our goal is to get them informed and excited about possible future careers in national security and environmental management,” Longenecker said.

Featured exhibit items include tools from the Nevada National Security Site, vitrified glass and beads from the Hanford Site in Washington state, waste canisters and models from the Savannah River Site in South Carolina and more.

“EM oversees nearly 600,000 acres of U.S. land,” White said. “We are the largest environmental cleanup program in the world, and that brings a responsibility to conduct missions with the upmost innovation, security and success.”

The EM Nevada Program contributed to EM's new exhibit at the National Atomic Testing Museum. Pictured is a spool of electronic e-tape, used in well drilling, well development, groundwater sampling and water level monitoring processes. It is lowered into a well and provides an audible signal when in contact with water or other fluid. A measurement is then taken from the tape at the top of the well casing or opening. When fully extended, this spool reaches a depth of 2,500 feet.

The EM exhibit features a sample of the glass that will be created at the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant at the Hanford Site. In a process called vitrification, liquid waste will be mixed with glass-forming materials, heated to 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit, and poured into stainless steel containers. Using this technology, the plant will immobilize millions of gallons of waste in glass, rendering it safe for long-term storage and disposal.

About 60 people attended the ribbon-cutting event. Following remarks from White, museum curator Parker Arecchi led a guided tour of the exhibit. That was followed by an interactive groundwater demonstration from Jeffrey Wurtz, hydrogeologist for EM Nevada Program contractor Navarro Research and Engineering. He demonstrated a dynamic model resembling an ant farm designed to illustrate the movement of groundwater under the soil’s surface. Watch this video for more about the demonstration.

Ceremony guests received complimentary pieces of rock salt dating back to the Permian geologic period. Mined from EM’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), 2,150 feet underground, the salt is more than 250 million years old and safe to handle. WIPP’s underground nuclear waste repository is cut from a 2,000-foot-thick layer of salt laid down by the shallow Permian Sea.

White said both the EM exhibit and the museum represent the preservation of the history of an effort that continues to be crucial to national security — and they were created in a way that invites and encourages community engagement.

"I’ve learned to very much appreciate the extraordinary level of community engagement that comes as an integral part of the effort to clean up the legacy environmental impacts affecting communities across the country," he said.

The exhibit is now open to the public at the National Atomic Testing Museum, located at 755 East Flamingo Road in Las Vegas.

-Contributor: Grant Johnson

Idaho Crews Build Proficiency With Heavy Equipment Before Tackling Demolition Work

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho – When preparing to use heavy equipment to decontaminate and demolish (D&D) Cold War-era buildings and structures, EM's cleanup contractor at the DOE Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Site believes practice makes perfect.

Idaho Environmental Coalition D&D Manager Mike Swartz and his team of operators cordoned off a 2-acre area at the Naval Reactors Facility (NRF) recently to practice with a host of equipment to be used to dismantle support structures, tear out a concrete slab, remove mercury contamination, and complete asbestos abatement. Swartz’s team will practice with all the equipment — from small skid steers to large universal processors to front-end loaders to huge excavators.

“We have all new equipment and a fairly new project team,” he said. “We’re giving them seat time to get familiar with the equipment.”

Operators are moving soil around a 2-acre area south of NRF dubbed “the play pen,” but later they will use shears to size-reduce large metal objects as practice for pulling sheet metal off buildings and cutting larger metal objects like girders.

“It’s a safe environment to practice, and no repercussions in the event they drop something,” Swartz said in jest.

Swartz said his operators have completed all computer-based training and certifications, but nothing compares to hands-on experience. To help with the realism, his team will also practice inside buildings on mock-ups to gain experience on asbestos removal techniques.

“We’re trying to refine their skills,” he said. “They are quickly gaining proficiency.”

While there are new operators with the project who are in the early stages of their careers, Swartz said seasoned D&D operators have also stepped in to give constructive advice and provide mentoring. That advice plus equipment practice time has been well received.

“The feedback I’ve received is they really appreciate the time we are investing in them to practice,” Swartz said.

The team will work with remotely operated equipment, including a remote excavator arm with unique attachments.

Teams are finalizing demolition preparations and conducting radiological and soil sampling. Demolition would be conducted under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act removal action process and agreements with the State of Idaho Department of Environmental Quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

An engineering evaluation and cost analysis are being prepared to analyze options for the end state of the Submarine 1st Generation Westinghouse (S1W) building and ultimately the S1W reactor vessel.

The S1W prototype was constructed in support of the world’s first nuclear-powered submarine, USS NAUTILUS. This land-based reactor was built inside a prototypic section of a submarine hull at the NRF on the Arco Desert west of Idaho Falls.

Once drafted, the evaluation and analysis will be issued for a 30-day public comment period prior to the selection of the final end state for the S1W building and reactor vessel.

-Contributor: Erik Simpson

Hanford Prepares to Retrieve Waste from 21st Single-Shell Underground Tank

The last of three extended-reach sluicers was recently installed in Tank AX-101 at the Hanford Site to break down the waste stored in the tank and flush it to a pump during retrieval. Shown here is a view of the sluicer entering the exterior of the tank for installation. The inset photo shows the sluicer installed inside the tank.

RICHLAND, Wash. – EM Office of River Protection tank operations contractor Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) is preparing to begin retrieving chemical and radiological waste from another massive underground storage tank at the Hanford Site.

Single-shell Tank AX-101 holds approximately 373,000 gallons of solid, salt-based waste called saltcake and sludge-like waste. It will be the last of the four 1 million-gallon tanks in the AX Tank Farm and the 21st single-shell tank at Hanford to have its waste retrieved and transferred to newer double-shell tanks.

“While the process of accessing underground tanks and moving waste is not easy, it is an important step in our risk-reduction mission,” said Jim Greene, program manager of the Tank Farms Program Division’s Single-Shell Tank Retrievals Program. “Moving waste from older single-shell tanks to newer double-shell tanks ensures continued safe storage of waste until it is treated for disposal.”

The single-shell tanks are made of carbon steel and reinforced concrete. They were built between 1943 and 1964 to store waste created during plutonium production operations in World War II and the Cold War era.

Crews with Washington River Protection Solutions will soon begin retrieving approximately 373,000 gallons of waste from Tank AX-101, shown here in an image from an inspection video shot inside the tank.

A tool known as a “wolverine” used water pumped through high-velocity nozzles to create a hole in the saltcake of Tank AX-101 to allow a sluicer to be installed.

This summer, workers installed the last of three extended-reach sluicers in the tank that will spray water on the waste to break it down so it can be pumped out of the tank.

Before installing the last sluicer, workers lowered video cameras through a tank riser — an opening in the top of the tank — and shot footage of the tank interior and waste surface. The images showed the waste level is uneven, ranging from about 11 feet to nearly 14 feet deep.

To avoid submerging the sluicer in about two feet of saltcake waste on the deeper, uneven side of the tank, potentially plugging its nozzles, the team modified a high-pressure washing system normally used to clean tank risers, nicknamed the “wolverine,” to make a hole in the saltcake waste for the sluicer nozzles to fit.

The sluicers, along with a slurry pump and other support equipment, are installed in several tank risers. During retrieval, workers will operate the equipment remotely from a nearby control trailer.

“We are excited to be nearing completion of a long preparation and installation process for this tank,” said Peggy Hamilton, single-shell tank retrieval and closure manager for WRPS. “The team will finish installing equipment and will thoroughly test it before starting to retrieve waste from the tank.”

The retrieval of waste from Tank AX-101 will take between one and two years.

-Contributor: Kristin M. Kraemer

Association Honors WIPP With Voluntary Protection Program Outreach Award

Andy Cooper applied what he learned in the WIPP Leadership Academy to move up in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant organization, taking on positions requiring more responsibility. Cooper currently serves as the deputy manager for the WIPP Remote Handled Waste Program.

An association recently named the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) as a recipient of the 2022 Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) Outreach Award in recognition of the EM site’s pursuit of safety excellence and community outreach through its first-of-a-kind leadership academy.

Inaugurated in 2015, the WIPP Leadership Academy was established by Nuclear Waste Partnership (NWP), WIPP’s management and operations contractor, as a joint effort with New Mexico State University to provide the WIPP management team and employees with high potential with the knowledge and skills to effectively support the WIPP mission. To date, an estimated 450 employees have graduated from the academy with over 60% of the graduates assuming new roles or accepting management positions within the company.

The award is from the Voluntary Protection Programs Participants' Association (VPPPA), which helps worksites advance safety and health goals. Working through cooperative efforts among labor, management, and government at DOE contractor sites, DOE’s VPP promotes improved safety and health performance through public recognition of outstanding programs.

Noting the academy’s successes, Sean Dunagan, NWP president and project manager, said, “I have heard of amazing stories from numerous graduates about how the program has not only changed their mindset, but provided them with the tools to make positive changes at work and home.”

The academy’s four-week program features a curriculum that includes such topics as nuclear safety culture, human performance improvement, communicating for leadership success, resolving workplace conflicts, time management, effective presentation techniques, and leadership styles and personality types. Topics involving WIPP operations include regulatory compliance, fire protection and engineering, transuranic waste handling and facility operations, work planning and maintenance, contractor and quality assurance, human and information resources, project management essentials, and emergency management procedures.

WIPP’s nomination and subsequent awarding of the VPP Outreach Award was a result of one of the academy’s graduating classes. Each graduating class chooses a topic or issue that best benefits and improves work at WIPP. One group, led by NWP employee Brenda Kirkes, decided to revitalize the effort of the VPP at WIPP with the goal of regaining VPP's Star Status for safety and health excellence.

“We were able to bring awareness to many safety functions at WIPP through events such as the safety fair, VPP pancake breakfast, and greeting at the gate,” Kirkes noted. “The VPP committee meetings created an open forum for safety issues to be discussed directly with management and traced issues through resolution.”

The academy graduates were successful. WIPP regained the VPP Star Status in 2020.

Kerri Usher, a member of the VPPPA Awards Committee, said the award recognizes those who achieve an outstanding level of outreach activity and seeks to share knowledge with others.

“This is truly an impressive and commendable accomplishment,” she said. “We believe you deserve credit and acknowledgement for placing such a high personal priority on the safety of everyone at your site.”

WIPP will be recognized at the VPPPA annual safety symposium, slated for Aug. 23-25, in Washington, D.C.

-Contributor: Rick Kelley

Excellence Award Goes to EM-NNSA Partnership at Oak Ridge’s Y-12

OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – An EM partnership at Oak Ridge was among several teams recently recognized for excellence by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Office of Safety, Infrastructure, and Operations.

The EM-NNSA team was honored for its exceptional integration at the Y-12 National Security Complex (Y-12) at Oak Ridge as part of 2021 Excellence Awards given by the NNSA Office of Safety, Infrastructure, and Operations. The team included EM Oak Ridge cleanup contractor UCOR and NNSA Y-12 management-and-operations contractor Consolidated Nuclear Security.

Watch this video to learn more about the EM-NNSA Y-12 award.

The annual awards program was established to recognize teams and individuals for accomplishments supporting the NNSA Office of Safety, Infrastructure, and Operations efforts to achieve the NNSA mission. Five teams at Y-12 were honored for their innovation, teamwork and collaboration.

EM was part of two projects at Y-12 that received awards. The first team safely removed three buildings without damaging or impacting an adjacent occupied facility. The second team demolished and disposed of the Biology Complex and cleared the area for future use.

“In order for us to modernize the site, to reduce risk to the site mission, to site personnel, and the surrounding area of Oak Ridge, we’ve got to get these facilities carefully, safely demolished and disposed of so we can accomplish all of our goals,” said Kevin Bradford with the Y-12 Excess Facility Disposition Program Management.

EM completed the Biology Complex demolition project in 2021. In total, that cleanup removed 11 structures covering an 18-acre footprint. The final building to come down was the largest.

Last year EM demolished the massive six-story, 255,000-square-foot Building 9207 and the three-story, 65,000-square-foot Building 9210. These projects marked the largest skyline changes to date at Y-12.

“I would just say without all of their hard work and dedication to communicating, to carefully planning together, we would not have been able to achieve this successful project,” Bradford said.

The cleared 18-acre footprint for the former Biology Complex is the planned location for the future Lithium Processing Facility at Y-12. Next month, EM expects to finish all soil work, including the removal of building slabs and soil backfilling, and transfer the land back to NNSA by the end of the year.

With demolition complete on the Biology Complex, EM is now advancing cleanup on numerous other facilities that will continue Y-12’s transformation. Crews are now deactivating Alpha-2, Beta-1, and the Old Steam Plant, and early preparation activities are also underway at Alpha-4.

-Contributors: Kathryn King, Ben Williams

Hanford’s Brian Vance Joins Community Leaders for New Nuclear Development Forum

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