The Department of Energy said last week it wants to promptly shore up some aging facilities at risk of failure at the Hanford Site in Washington state, which could endanger human health and the environment.
The agency conducted structural analyzes at several old structures following the May 2017 partial collapse of Tunnel 1 at the Plutonium Uranium Extraction (PUREX), and concluded swift action could be needed to head off similar events, according to William Hamel, assistant manager for the river and plateau for Richland’s Operations Office at Hanford.
In a Feb. 18 letter obtained by Weapons Complex Morning Briefing, Hamel told Environmental Protection Agency Program Manager Emerald Laija in Washington, D.C., that DOE wants access to three Hanford structures for further investigation in May and intends to start grout injections to stabilize the facilities in July.
While DOE owns Hanford, the work would be done on a portion of the 586-square-mile complex that is a Superfund site regulated by the EPA.
The Government Accountability Office last week said the 2017 partial collapse of roof timbers at one of the PUREX Plant’s two underground waste-storage tunnels shows DOE needs to do a better job of monitoring and maintaining aging structures at the former plutonium production complex.
The Energy Department hopes to award a grouting contract in March, do mockup testing of grout application in April and May, conduct a video inspection of the facilities in May, and start the grouting in July. Grout is typically a mixture of concrete, water, and sand used in construction to stabilize structures.
The facilities are identified as the 216-Z-2 Crib, the 216-Z-9 Trench, and the 241-Z-361 Settling Tank. The Energy Department considers this a “time-critical removal action,” meaning it has a planning period of less than six months to shore up the facilities, Hamel said in the letter.
Given the time constraints, DOE might need to act on its own authority if it does not receive EPA approval by March 30, he added.
