The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) is concerned about the age and reliability of the electrical system in a historic building still used for interim storage of radioactive sludge at the Energy Department’s Hanford Site in Washington state.
The board, in a July 2 report submitted to Energy Secretary Rick Perry, suggested installation of an alternate power feed and other steps to ensure the electric supply of the 1940s-vintage T Plant.
The T Plant site was where plutonium was processed for both the Trinity atomic bomb test in New Mexico and the second bomb dropped on Japan in 1945 to end World War II.
The facility is used today to hold radioactive sludge from the K West Reactor basin. Much of the T Plant’s electric distribution system is original to the facility and well past its design life, according to the DNFSB. “Its age, combined with the lack of an alternate power supply, could impact the reliability of the safety significant confinement ventilation system.”
Developing a backup power source, more maintenance, and swapping out old support equipment could shore up the infrastructure and extend the operating life of the facility, the board report says.
Staff from the DNFSB visited Hanford in May to review electric infrastructure systems.
Along with improvements at the T Plant, the report also endorsed installation of emergency lighting across Hanford that is more earthquake-resistant than the current setup, as well as regular inspections and maintenance for underground electric cables.
The board noted that the Hanford electric infrastructure has been upgraded in recent years and other planned improvements are scheduled.
