The U.S. Energy Department’s internal watchdog has initiated a formal investigation into the spread of radioactive contamination at the Hanford Site’s Plutonium Finishing Plant. The DOE Office of Enterprise Assessments’ (EA) Office of Enforcement notified the contractor demolishing the plant, CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Co., of the probe in a letter sent March 21 and recently made public.
The investigation will look into “the facts and circumstances associated with the spread of radiological contamination outside of the established radiological boundary of the Plutonium Finishing Plant at Hanford in 2017 and 2018,” Kevin Dressman, acting director of the Office of Enforcement, wrote to CHPRC President and CEO Ty Blackford.
Dressman said the probe will involve a visit to the Washington state site, along with interviews with CHPRC employees and a request for documents.
The Office of Enterprise Assessments performs independent evaluations and investigations for DOE senior leadership. Independent of the DOE Office of Environmental Management, which oversees Hanford, EA reports directly to the Office of the Secretary. It can take enforcement action against contractor organizations for poor performance in adhering to legally enforceable safety requirements.
“This investigation is one of the first steps in the Department of Energy’s enforcement process, and based on this activity, the department will issue a report and recommend an appropriate enforcement path.” DOE’s Hanford Richland Operations Office said in a statement.
In December, a spread of radioactive contamination was discovered at the Plutonium Finishing Plant as demolition was finishing up on the most contaminated section of the structure. Bioassay results showed 11 workers had inhaled or ingested radioactive particles, in addition to 31 employees who were found to have similar internal contamination after a spread of contamination in June 2017.
Demolition of the Plutonium Finishing Plant halted in mid-December and will not resume without approval from DOE and its regulators. An expert panel convened by the department is reviewing a draft root cause evaluation, with corrective actions, prepared by CH2M. Demolition has to date been done in the open air using heavy equipment.
This week, workers were expected to begin moving into a newly established complex of mobile offices placed near the Plutonium Finishing Plant’s work control zone. Plant workers in January were relocated from mobile offices at the plant to any available offices elsewhere across central Hanford. Contamination had been found outside the plant offices, and radon in the area was complicating the identification of the contamination spread from the plant.
Work also continues to ensure building rubble that has not been loaded out at the plant is stable and contamination is not being released into the air.
