Weapons Complex Vol. 26 No. 21
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Weapons Complex Monitor
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May 22, 2015

At Oak Ridge

By Mike Nartker

AREVA Wins Subcontract to Help Address Leaking ORNL Reactor Pool

WC Monitor
5/22/2015

AREVA has received a $2.8 million subcontract from URS-CH2M Oak Ridge (UCOR) to support efforts to resolve a leaking reactor pool at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and retrieve and dispose of highly radioactive components stored in the pool at the old research reactor on the lab’s historic Central Campus. The leak at the Oak Ridge Research Reactor, which was built in the 1950s and shut down in 1998, was discovered last September by UCOR, the Department of Energy’s cleanup manager in Oak Ridge. There reportedly has been a history of leaks at the nuclear facility.

After months of monitoring the pool leak last fall, eventually pinpointing the source of the problem and evaluating how to address the issues, DOE and UCOR moved forward with a plan that involves removing the hot components and draining the pool – essentially eliminating the possibility of leaks in the future. The leak of slightly radioactive water was measured at about 100 drops per minute, and the water was collected in a basin underneath the reactor facility. Even though the research reactor has been shut down for decades, the pool remained filled with 125,000 gallons of water to provide shielding for some radioactive materials stored there.

According to UCOR spokeswoman Anne Smith, the cleanup project is just getting started. The work will involve removing most of the high-rad components, draining the pool’s water, and packaging and shipping the hottest components to a disposal site operated by Waste Control Specialists in Texas. Smith said top of the reactor pool will be capped with a concrete shield, providing enough shielding for some of the smaller components that will be left there after the water is removed. AREVA will be responsible for removing the irradiated components from the pool and taking care of their disposal, Smith said. “UCOR will perform the balance of the work,” she said. Overall, the project is expected to cost about $8 million and scheduled for completion by February 2016, Smith said.

No Plans to Address Bulk Shielding Reactor at This Time

When DOE and its contractors were first evaluating the leak at the reactor pool, there was a contractor proposal to also drain the pool at the nearby Bulk Shielding Reactor and remove the radioactive components stored there. The age of the Bulk Shielding Reactor and the situation there was very similar to that of the Oak Ridge Research Reactor, except that the pool wasn’t leaking there. “We did consider including that as optional work, but ultimately decided not to include it at this time,” Mike Koentop, executive officer of DOE’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, said this week. DOE eventually plans to decommission the cluster of old reactors, including the Oak Ridge Research Reactor, but those efforts – which will carry high-dollar price tags – aren’t planned until the 2030s or even later.

 

DOE Awards Communications Support Contract

WC Monitor
5/22/2015

Mutual Telecom Services, doing business as Black Box Network Services or Black Box, has received a $33.4 million contract from the Department of Energy’s Integrated Support Center in Oak Ridge. According to DOE, Black Box will provide operations, maintenance and upgrades to the Federal Integrated Communications Network that serves multiple federal operations in Oak Ridge – including Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Y-12 National Security Complex, the Oak Ridge Townsite (which includes the Federal Building and the Office of Scientific and Technical Information), East Tennessee Technology Park, the Office of Secure Transportation, and the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education.

In a statement, DOE Manager Kevin Hall said, “This selection comes after many months of evaluations by our selection team for this crucial service, and we are excited to have Black Box on board as our new partner.” The contract with the Massachusetts-based company has a two-year base, with three one-year options. The transition begins June 1.

 

 

 

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NEW: Via public records request, I’ve been able to confirm reporting today that a warrant has been issued for DOE deputy asst. secretary of spent fuel and waste disposition Sam Brinton for another luggage theft, this time at Las Vegas’s Harry Reid airport. (cc: @EMPublications)

DOE spent fuel lead Brinton accused of second luggage theft.



by @BenjaminSWeiss, confirming today's reports with warrant from Las Vegas Metro PD.

Waste has been Emplaced! 🚮

We have finally begun emplacing defense-related transuranic (TRU) waste in Panel 8 of #WIPP.

Read more about the waste emplacement here: https://wipp.energy.gov/wipp_news_20221123-2.asp

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