Demolition of the Hanford Site’s Plutonium Finishing Plant is expected to resume next week following a radioactive contamination spread found last week at the Energy Department facility once used to shape plutonium for insertion into nuclear weapons.
At about 4:45 p.m. Jan. 27 a radiation monitor issued an alarm near the demolition area of the plant. About 10 minutes later the spread of radiation near the demolition site was confirmed. Workers at the plant took cover as a precaution.
While demolition on the plant’s Plutonium Reclamation Facility had finished for the day by late afternoon, a crew was spraying fixative on some demolition debris.
The contamination spread outside a radiation contamination zone but remained close to the demolition area. It did not extend beyond the plant’s boundaries of the plant. “Employees reacted safely and appropriately when contamination higher than expected was discovered during demolition,” Hanford cleanup contractor CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation said in a statement. Low levels of contamination were found on workers’ protective clothing, but there was no contamination on their personal clothing or skin. Nasal smears did not show any uptake.
Demolition will not resume until completion of a complete survey of the ground, which has been delayed by snowy weather. The cause of the contamination remains under investigation, and any lessons learned from the incident will be used to reduce the risk of recurrence, according to CH2M. The contractor said employees have significant training and extensive air monitoring is done to protect workers and the environment during demolition.
CH2M began tearing down the plant in early November, and work is required to be completed by September 2017. The Energy Department’s most recent update on the schedule estimated that the Plutonium Reclamation Facility would be demolished in late April. The plant’s fan house, minus the stack, would be torn down in August, with the main segment of the Plutonium Finishing Plant brought down to slab on grade a month later. The contractor plans an explosive demolition of the stack.
