Oak Ridge Today

New planning, budget director named at DOE’s Oak Ridge Office

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Jamie Standridge

Jamie Standridge

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office has named Jamie Standridge as director of the Planning and Budget Division within the Office of the Chief Financial Officer at ORO.

In this role, Standridge is responsible for coordinating all phases of the DOE-ORO budget planning, formulation, and execution activities for the multi-appropriation, $3.9 billion dollar funding structure of ORO and all major DOE contractors in Oak Ridge. Other responsibilities include knowledge of overall DOE budget policies and procedures involving nationwide programs within overall DOE budget policies and procedures. [Read more…]

Kevin Hall named DOE Oak Ridge Office deputy manager

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Kevin Hall

Kevin Hall

The U.S. Department of Energy has named Kevin Hall as deputy manager for the Oak Ridge Office.

“In this role, Hall reports directly to the ORO manager, with responsibilities for the integration of operational and internal business activities, and serves as a focal point to address cross-cutting issues, internal initiatives, and continuity of leadership for the ORO,” a press release said.

“Kevin is an experienced executive with vast leadership and management skills,” said DOE-ORO Manager Larry Kelly. “He will be a huge asset to our operation, and I am excited to welcome him to our management team.” [Read more…]

Cleanup work shifts to mercury as new Y-12 water treatment plant announced

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Y-12 Water Treatment Plant Announcement

State and federal officials announce a plant to treat mercury-contaminated water at the Y-12 National Security Complex. Pictured from left are Mark Whitney, Robert Martineau, Lamar Alexander, Dave Huizenga, and Stan Meiburg.

Cleanup work in Oak Ridge could shift from radiological contamination to mercury contamination, and a new $120 million water treatment plant at the Y-12 National Security Complex will help reduce mercury as workers tear down four contaminated buildings that were used to make nuclear weapons in the 1950s and 1960s, officials announced Friday.

“This water treatment plant is a major step in addressing one of the biggest problems we have from the Cold War era—mercury once used to make nuclear weapons getting into our waterways,” said U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, a Tennessee Republican. He said mercury contamination can cause brain and nervous system damage in people who eat contaminated fish.

Alexander was at Y-12 on Friday along with other federal and state officials to help announce the new water treatment plant, which will be at the head of East Fork Poplar Creek on the south side of Y-12’s main production area. The plant would be connected to a Y-12 storm water system, and it could begin operating in 2019. It would be able to treat 1,500 gallons of mercury-contaminated water per minute. [Read more…]

Removal of K-25 north end demolition debris almost complete

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K-25 North End Demolition

With the north end demolished, only a small part of the east wing remains at the once-massive K-25 Building in west Oak Ridge. (Submitted photo)

Workers are almost done removing demolition debris from the K-25 Building’s north end.

Only a small section of the giant building’s east wing remains. It is contaminated with technetium-99, a slow-decaying radioactive isotope. Further deactivation of that section is needed before demolition can begin, according to a recent article in “Public Involvement News,” published by the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office. [Read more…]

Asbestos removal in final stage at Federal Building

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Joe L Evins Federal Fuilding

A four-month project to remove asbestos-containing insulation from the Joe L. Evins Federal Building in Oak Ridge is wrapping up, and federal employees and contractors could move back in next month.

Work crews are wrapping up a four-month project to clean up and remove asbestos-containing insulation from the Joe L. Evins Federal Building in Oak Ridge, and displaced federal workers and contractors could move back into the building next month, a spokeswoman said Friday.

“We have reached the final stage of the project and expect to have the building available to tenants in May,” said Saudia Muwwakkil, regional public affairs officer for the U.S. General Services Administration, which owns the building.

There have been about 350 workers in the five-story building, which is home to the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office as well as a district office for U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann. The workers include roughly 200 federal employees and close to 150 contractors. [Read more…]

DOE Environmental Management has public meeting to discuss cleanup funding, strategy

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Mark Whitney

Mark Whitney

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, or EM, is holding a public meeting to discuss the program’s fiscal year 2015 budget and cleanup priorities. The workshop, featuring Oak Ridge’s senior EM leadership, is scheduled from 4-6 p.m. April 23 at Pollard Auditorium.

“As taxpayer stewards, I think these public meetings are a responsible practice that increase transparency and explain our decision process,” said Mark Whitney, Oak Ridge’s Environmental Management manager. “These meetings also provide a forum for residents and stakeholders to voice their opinions, suggestions, and concerns about our vision.” [Read more…]

DOE Oak Ridge Nuclear Energy manager to retire

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J.T. Howell

J.T. Howell (Photo courtesy US DOE/Lynn Freeny)

J.T. Howell, manager of the Nuclear Energy Oak Ridge Site Office, will retire from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office on May 3 after 33 years of federal government service.

Howell has held his current position since 2011, responsible for advancing DOE’s nuclear energy programs in Oak Ridge; Portsmouth, Ohio; and Paducah, Ky. His responsibilities also include oversight of leases, agreements, and technology development and deployment between the DOE and the United States Enrichment Corporation to ensure a secure and viable domestic supply of enriched uranium for the United States defense purposes. [Read more…]

DOE Oak Ridge Office awards $14 million contract for roads, grounds, maintenance

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Larry Kelly

Larry Kelly

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office recently awarded a $14 million contract to Knoxville-based small business Environment, Safety, and Health Inc. for roads, grounds, and maintenance services on the DOE Oak Ridge Reservation.

“The Oak Ridge Reservation includes 105 miles of roads and thousands of acres of land that require upkeep, and maintaining their functionality is vitally important to our operations,” said DOE-ORO Manager Larry Kelly. “We require a responsive and professional organization to carry out this mission, and we have that with ES&H.”

ES&H Inc., the incumbent contractor since 2008, will continue to provide services in support of roads, grounds, and maintenance on the 33,500-acre Oak Ridge Reservation and will employ 18 people in support of the contract. [Read more…]

NSPS now provides security services at DOE sites in Oak Ridge

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National Strategic Protective Services LLC announced Monday morning that it now provides guard services at U.S. Department of Energy sites in Oak Ridge.

NSPS won the protective force services work under a five-year, $182 million contract announced in January. The company will guard the East Tennessee Technology Park, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Joe L. Evins Federal Building, and part of the Oak Ridge Reservation. [Read more…]

After 13 years guarding federal facilities, WSI leaves Oak Ridge

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WSI Oak Ridge

Friday was the last day for many employees at security company WSI Oak Ridge, which lost its contracts to protect federal facilities after the July 28 security breach at the Y-12 National Security Complex.

After 13 years of protecting federal facilities, WSI Oak Ridge has left the Secret City.

Friday was the last day for many employees at WSI, and the contract ended Sunday, spokeswoman Courtney Henry said.

Formerly known as Wackenhut Services Inc., the company once provided up to 1,000 security police officers and support staff at federal facilities that included East Tennessee Technology Park, the Joe L. Evins Federal Building, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Y-12 National Security Complex.

But WSI lost its contract to guard Y-12, a National Nuclear Security Administration site, after the July 28 security breach, and it did not win a separate contract to protect local U.S. Department of Energy sites, including ETTP, ORNL, the Federal Building, and the rest of the Oak Ridge Reservation. That contract was awarded to National Strategic Protective Services LLC, or NSPS. [Read more…]

Guest column: Questions remain on Oak Ridge cleanup funding

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David Martin

David Martin

By David Martin, Oak Ridge Site Specific Advisory Board chair

There is great uncertainty on what the looming federal budget cuts will be and what effect they will have on funding for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Environmental Management, or EM, program at the Oak Ridge Reservation. We can be confident that budget cuts are coming. It is going to take a coordinated effort on the part of the DOE-Oak Ridge EM, regulators, and stakeholders to minimize the impact on current and future remediation projects, and on the men and women who carry out this work.

Right now DOE-EM is operating on a temporary six-month budget. This budget covers just the first half of Fiscal Year 2013 and is based on half of the FY 2012 budget. We should know soon how changes in the federal budget affect Oak Ridge EM for the second half of 2013. This still leaves the 2014 budget in question. [Read more…]

DOE appoints two new members to advisory board

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Robert Craig

Robert Craig

Belinda Price

Belinda Price

The U.S. Department of Energy appointed two new members to its Oak Ridge Site Specific Advisory Board.

Susan Cange, deputy manager for DOE’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, introduced Robert Craig and Belinda Price as the latest appointees at the board’s meeting on March 13. [Read more…]