Construction of the 200 Mercury Treatment Facility at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Site in Tennessee is now 40% complete, an agency spokesperson said by email Wednesday.
The project includes building a treatment facility, headworks facility, and a 3,000-foot pipeline connecting the two facilities.
“Crews are currently installing floors and walls at the treatment facility, and they are working to complete the shoring and excavation necessary to begin building the headworks facility,” the spokesperson said.
DOE previously estimated the project would cost $225 million. APTIM-North Wind Construction JV, comprising Louisiana-based APTIM and Idaho-based North Wind, is building the facility. About six months ago, DOE said the project was 35% complete. The joint venture holds a $112-million contract that began in December 2018 and should run through Dec. 5.
The project at the Y-12 National Security Complex, where the headwaters originate for the Upper East Fork Poplar Creek, should help the DOE Office of Environmental Management curb mercury levels for the creek and mitigate the impact of tearing down mercury-laden buildings around Y-12, the agency said when it announced the contract award in 2018.
Once it begins operating, the facility will treat up to 3,000 gallons of water a minute, according to DOE. The facility is scheduled to be operational in 2025, the spokesperson said.
