CRESP Newstories and Links related to risk-based cleanup of the nation’s nuclear weapons production facility waste sites and cost-effective, risk-based management of potential future nuclear sites and wastes. CRESP seeks to improve the scientific and technical basis for environmental management decisions by the Department of Energy (DOE) and by fostering public participation in that search.
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Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Obama Moves Quickly To Heal NRC
The Obama Administration moved quickly today to replace the controversial head of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Chairman Jaczko, by nominating Dr. Allison Macfarlane to lead that agency. Macfarlane, who received her PhD in geology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technologyin 1992, is currently a professor of Environmental Science and Policy atGeorge Mason University in Fairfax, VA. She has long been affiliated with programs such as the Program in Science, Technology and Society at MIT and the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University. The immediate uproar in the nuclear community to her not being a nuclear engineer or physicist was expected. Instead, her specialties include nuclear nonproliferation and other policy issues, but in this new position it will be her experience with nuclear waste and the back-end of the nuclear fuel cycle involving deep geologic disposal of high level waste and interim storage of spent fuel, that will be her biggest contribution to the group, and is particularly timely with the focus on spent fuel in the wake of Fukushima. As a geologist myself working in the nuclear field, I know how geology provides a uniquely global and multidisciplinary view to the field and to science in general, and Dr. Macfarlane will bring this valuable addition to the NRC’s toolbox. More
Workers Pour 1 Million Gallons of Grout into Massive Tanks
DOE-EM AIKEN, S.C. – Workers have poured more than 1 million gallons of a cement-like grout into two underground radioactive waste tanks, moving the Savannah River Site (SRS) nearer to closing the massive structures. SRS and liquid waste contractor Savannah River Remediation are working to fill the 1.3-million-gallon Tanks 18 and 19 with grout, a project that began April 2. Grouting of the tanks, ancillary piping and equipment is scheduled for completion in late summer. As many as six cement trucks operate every hour during weekday business hours to deliver the mixture to the site to pump into the tanks. Closing the two tanks is a significant step in the completion of cleanup of the site’s legacy nuclear waste, according to Terrel Spears, DOE-Savannah River Operations Office Assistant Manager for Waste Disposition Project Terrel Spears. “Eliminating the risk of radioactive legacy nuclear waste is a priority, and operational closure of these tanks is significant to meeting our critical mission,” Spears said. SRR President and Project Manager Dave Olson said grouting the tanks will reduce risk for workers, the public and the environment. “SRR is committed to safely dispositioning waste and closing waste tanks to reduce risk in a cost-effective manner and in compliance with regulatory commitments,” Olson said. “The lessons learned in closing the tanks provide us useful information that we will use to close additional tanks.” Tanks 18 and 19 will be the first tank closures at SRS since 1997, when two were closed.
Friday, May 25, 2012
Obama taps George Mason professor to head nuclear agency - The Hill's E2-Wire
Obama taps George Mason professor to head nuclear agency - The Hill's E2-Wire
She has been critical of the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in Nevada, a long-delayed project that the Obama administration abandoned in 2009. Macfarlane wrote a 2006 book titled, Uncertainty Underground: Yucca Mountain and the Nation's High-Level Nuclear Waste. The book, according to the GMU website, "explores the unresolved technical issues" with Yucca Mountain.
President Obama nominated George Mason University Professor Allison Macfarlane Thursday to serve as chairwoman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).
Macfarlane has been a professor of environmental science at the university since 2006 and served on a federal panel tasked with determining a long-term solution for the country’s nuclear waste.
Current NRC Chairman Gregory Jaczko, who has come under fire from his colleagues and Republicans for his leadership style, announced earlier this week that he intends to step down once the Senate confirms his replacement.
Obama nominated Macfarlane as one of five NRC commissioners and said he intended to appoint her as chairwoman of the panel once she is confirmed by the Senate.
Friday, May 11, 2012
DOE finds performance issues at Hanford vit plant, raising concerns about Bechtel management
By Annette Cary, Tri-City Herald
Posted: 9:20am on May 5, 2012; Modified: 7:04pm on May 7, 2012
Significant performance issues at the Hanford vitrification plant have raised serious concerns about Bechtel National's management system, according to a newly released Department of Energy report. The concern came to light in the most recently released weekly staff report of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, which said that DOE had identified a Priority Level 1 finding "associated with the potential breakdown in contractor management and their less than adequate performance." "This finding was identified as a result of several recent DOE oversight activities in which inadequate performance was an issue," the defense board staff report said. "The report concludes that these performance issues 'could have significant impacts on the successful completion of the (vitrification plant) project.' " DOE project director Dale Knutson sent Bechtel a letter March 20 saying that based on the cumulative impact of issues identified, "It is important for BNI (Bechtel) to step back, identify the underlying organizational processes and values driving these findings, and address them effectively." The Herald obtained the letter and attached reports this week.
Last shield door delivered to Hanford Waste Treatment Plant
Originally printed at http://www.keprtv.com/news/local/Last-shield-door-delivered-to-Hanford-Waste-Treatment-Plant-150998885.html
By Tyler Slauson May 10, 2012
By Tyler Slauson May 10, 2012
U.S. DEPT. OF ENERGY NEWS RELEASE -- The last massive shield door has been delivered to the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant, also known as the “Vit Plant.” It weighs 102 tons and will be installed in the High-Level Waste Facility. “Receipt of the last of the shield doors represents a significant milestone in progress on the project, and they are an integral part of the plant’s safety infrastructure,” said Joe St. Julian, area project manager for the facility for Bechtel National Inc., which is designing and building the Vit Plant. The Vit Plant has more than 100 nuclear-quality shield doors, ranging from 3 to 119 tons. They will provide radiation protection and maintain contamination boundaries during plant operations. The doors will be installed throughout the Pretreatment, High- Level Waste and Low-Activity Waste facilities. “The delivery of this shield door represents an extensive degree of teamwork between the vendor and within the Vit Plant Project team. They have done an excellent job,” said Gary Olsen, the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of River Projection, High- Level Waste Facility federal project manager. “The door is an instrumental component in our safety protection measures for operations, and the team has worked closely to ensure it meets all necessary requirements to support its function,” he said.
Is Yucca Mountain Still Dead?
By MATTHEW L. WALD New York Times
As I reported in this article, two states with big volumes of military and civilian nuclear wastes are suing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to try to force it to adhere to the terms of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act, which called for the development of a waste repository at Yucca Mountain, near Las Vegas. Yucca Mountain was chosen by Congress as the repository site in 1987. Its chief backers were senators from other states that were also under consideration as waste sites, including Texas and Washington. Nevada, lacking allies, could not stop it.The commission has discontinued work on evaluating the Energy Department’s onetime plan for a repository there since President Obama decided to kill the project. (The Energy Department has sought to withdraw its application for a license.)
The initial choice had a thin veneer of science to it – Yucca was one of several sites under consideration mostly because it was remote and the government already owned it. Further scientific and engineering work, though, exposed substantial problems with the site.
Still, the circumstances under which the project died were deemed political ones, even by the Government Accountability Office.
Energy Department Announces New Investments to Train Next Generation of Nuclear Energy Leaders, Advance University-Led Nuclear Innovation
May 8, 2012 - 6:05pm http://energy.gov/articles/energy-department-announces-new-investments-train-next-generation-nuclear-energy-leaders
WASHINGTON – Underscoring President Obama’s commitments to keep college affordable, expand opportunities for American families nationwide, and promote education in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math, Secretary of Energy Steven Chu today announced more than $47 million in scholarships, fellowships, research grants and university research reactor upgrades to train and educate the next generation of leaders in America’s nuclear industry. The 143 awards announced today under the Department’s Nuclear Energy University Programs and Integrated University Program will support nuclear energy R&D and student investment at 46 colleges and universities around the country. These efforts at the Department of Energy build on President Obama’s commitment to work with Congress to help keep college education affordable for America’s students by keeping interest rates low on student loans. “We must invest in the next generation of American scientists and engineers in order to fulfill our commitment to restarting America’s nuclear industry and making sure that America stays competitive in the 21st century,” said Secretary Chu. “The awards announced today - from scholarships and fellowships to university-led nuclear research projects – are part of the Obama Administration’s efforts to keep college affordable for students nationwide. These investments will help train and educate our future energy leaders, while developing the innovations we need to create new jobs and export opportunities for American-made nuclear technologies.”
EM’s Tracy Mustin Celebrates Milestone at New Mexico Lab ALBUQUERQUE, N.MMay
May 3, 2012. – EM Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Tracy Mustin joined other DOE officials and local and state leaders Wednesday to celebrate the completion of the Cold War legacy waste cleanup at Sandia National Laboratories. “The State of New Mexico and the Department of Energy share a common vision of keeping people and our environment safe,” Mustin said at the event. “This final shipment of legacy remote-handled transuranic (TRU) waste from Sandia National Laboratories represents important and continued progress in DOE’s commitment to reducing the nation’s nuclear waste footprint by cleanup of EM sites across the complex.”
EM Program Updates: EM Announces New Oak Ridge Office Assistant Manager
WASHINGTON, D.C. –WASHINGTON, D.C. – EM announced today that Mark Whitney has been selected as the Oak Ridge Office Assistant Manager for Environmental Management, effective August 2012. “Mark is an engaging leader with a broad understanding of DOE-wide programs and policies and has a history of proven success developing and implementing strategies to improve organizational performance,” said David Huizenga, Senior Advisor for EM. “I am pleased Mark has agreed to take on this important role and devote his talents to the nuclear waste cleanup mission in his home state of Tennessee.” The Oak Ridge Reservation is one of DOE’s most unique and complex sites, encompassing three major campuses and spanning almost 34,000 acres. Each campus performs a diverse set of missions, but all share a crucial need for environmental cleanup. The EM program addresses this need by removing the hazards left behind from research and defense operations during the Manhattan Project and Cold War. Whitney has served as the Acting Principal Assistant Deputy Administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation at the DOE National Nuclear Security Administration since July 2011, overseeing the day-to-day operations of a $2.3 billion nuclear security and nonproliferation program. He has been a member of the U.S. Government’s Senior Executive Service since 2005, serving in various positions at DOE headquarters and internationally. “I look forward to working with Sue Cange and the EM Oak Ridge Organization as we continue this important cleanup mission for the community and the nation,” said Whitney. Cange has been the Acting Oak Ridge Office Assistant Manager for EM since Oct. 6, 2011. She will continue in her role as Deputy Assistant Manager.
Friday, May 4, 2012
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