The Department of Energy will start purchasing equipment and making other preparations to remove sludge from a double shell tank with a leak between its shells, but pumping of waste would start no sooner than March 2016, according to a new DOE plan with two phases. DOE delivered the plan for emptying Tank AY-102 to the state of Washington near the close of business March 7 and the state has not yet commented on it. The state told DOE in January that it must come up with a pumping plan to remove waste as soon as possible. DOE already has equipment in place to remove liquid waste from the tank, but no waste would be pumped until DOE is ready to proceed with both liquid and sludge removal, according to the new plan.
The first phase of the plan would include engineering, purchasing equipment and installing equipment outside the tank, with completion dates for that work through November 2015. Then DOE would evaluate the situation, determining when waste retrieval equipment should be installed inside the tank and when waste removal should begin, according to the plan. Construction of the waste retrieval and transfer system would be completed no earlier than February 2016 and authorization would be given no sooner than the next month to begin pumping, according to the plan. Pumping liquid out now is technically feasible, but has risks because the liquid helps cool the waste, the pumping plan said.
