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ETTP cleanup team receives Secretary’s Award

Posted at 12:50 pm January 13, 2022
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

East Tennessee Technology Park, the former K-25 site, is pictured above in west Oak Ridge after most cleanup work, including demolition of the five large gaseous diffusion buildings, was completed. (Submitted photo)

The Oak Ridge team that mostly cleaned up the former K-25 site, demolishing five large gaseous diffusion buildings and more than 500 structures, has received a Secretary’s Achievement Award from U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm. The work was done ahead of schedule and under budget, the U.S. Department of Energy said.

Granholm honored the DOE Office of Environmental Management team from Oak Ridge in a virtual ceremony Wednesday, a press release said.

K-25 was used to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons and commercial nuclear power plants from World War II to the 1980s.

It was the first removal of a uranium enrichment complex, and it cleared 13 million square feet of deteriorated, contaminated structures from the site, the press release said.

“The Secretary’s Achievement Award honors a group or team of DOE employees and contractors who accomplish significant achievements on behalf of the department, demonstrating cooperation and teamwork in attaining their goals,” the press release said. “The award was given to the Oak Ridge Vision 2020 Project Team based on its achievements from 2020.”

[Read more…]

Filed Under: DOE, East Tennessee Technology Park, Front Page News, K-25, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, Slider, U.S. Department of Energy, UCOR Tagged With: DOE, DOE Office of Environmental Management, East Tennessee Technology Park, ETTP, gaseous diffusion, Jennifer Granholm, K-25, K-25 Building, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant, Secretary’s Achievement Award, U.S. Department of Energy, UCOR, uranium enrichment, Vision 2020, William "Ike" White

Crews start project to reduce maintenance, operations costs at Molten Salt Reactor

Posted at 8:38 pm January 22, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Molten Salt Reactor Experiment building at Oak Ridge National Laboratory housed the reactor and offices for operating personnel. The facility was constructed in the 1950s for a nuclear aircraft project and was later expanded significantly and retrofitted to accommodate the MSRE. (Photo courtesy U.S. Department of Energy/Oak Ridge National Laboratory)

The Molten Salt Reactor Experiment building at Oak Ridge National Laboratory housed the reactor and offices for operating personnel. The facility was constructed in the 1950s for a nuclear aircraft project and was later expanded significantly and retrofitted to accommodate the MSRE. (Photo courtesy U.S. Department of Energy/Oak Ridge National Laboratory)

 

Cleanup crews started a $4.7 million project this month to reduce maintenance and operations costs at the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment, which was shut down 50 years ago at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The project is expected to save nearly $25 million in costs, the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management said in an “EM Update” published Tuesday.

The cost-reduction project will relocate employees stationed at the decades-old facility. Personnel currently housed in the building will move to other site locations to help with other projects, the “EM Update” said.

The project is expected to enhance the facility’s electrical distribution, sump pump, fire suppression, and monitoring systems.

“Although it was shut down 50 years ago, certain systems within the reactor building have continued to operate to keep the facility safe and stable until it can be demolished,” said the “EM Update,” with the Oak Ridge story contributed by Mike Butler. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, ORNL, Slider, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Alvin Weinberg, Bill McMillan, DOE, DOE Office of Environmental Management, EM, Jay Mullis, Molten Salt Reactor Experiment, MSRE, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, ORNL, U.S. Department of Energy, UCOR

For first time in 30 years, Savannah River dissolving spent nuclear fuel from ORNL reactor

Posted at 10:40 pm March 20, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The reactor pool is pictured above in the reactor bay inside the High Flux Isotope Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory on Thursday, March 15, 2018. Spent nuclear fuel is stored inside the pool. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The reactor pool is pictured above in the reactor bay inside the High Flux Isotope Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory on Thursday, March 15, 2018. Spent nuclear fuel is stored inside the pool. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

For the first time in 30 years, spent nuclear fuel from the High Flux Isotope Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory has been dissolved at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina.

The work is important because it is expected to allow the reactor, known as HFIR, to continue its mission, according to the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management.

HFIR, which uses highly enriched uranium, is one of the world’s most powerful nuclear research reactor facilities. It’s the highest flux reactor-based source of neutrons for research in the United States. Flux refers to the rate of flow of fluids, particles, or energy. In HFIR’s case, the flux is measured in neutrons per square centimeter per second. HFIR is used for neutron scattering and isotope production, among other missions.

ORNL will reach its maximum capacity for storing HFIR fuel in fiscal year 2020, the DOE Office of Environmental Management, or EM, said in an “EM Update” electronic newsletter on Tuesday. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL, Slider, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: DOE, DOE Office of Environmental Management, DOE-Savannah River Nuclear Materials, EM Update, flux reactor, H Canyon, HFIR, HFIR cores, HFIR fuel, HFIR fuel cores, HFIR fuel storage, High Flux Isotope Reactor, highly enriched uranium, isotope production, L Area, low enriched uranium, Maxcine Maxted, neutron scattering, neutrons, nuclear research reactor, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge reactor, ORNL, reactor core, Savannah River Site, spent fuel, spent nuclear fuel, SRS, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management

Two Oak Ridge companies receive small business awards from DOE office

Posted at 1:08 pm May 31, 2017
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Buster Bivens and Kaitlyn Weaver of Restoration Services, Inc. (RSI) perform field inspections at a Portsmouth Site process building. DOE recognized RSI with the Small Business of the Year award. (Photo from DOE Office of Environmental Management "EM Update" newsletter)

Buster Bivens and Kaitlyn Weaver of Restoration Services Inc. (RSI) perform field inspections at a Portsmouth Site process building. DOE recognized RSI with the Small Business of the Year award. (Photo from DOE Office of Environmental Management “EM Update” newsletter)

 

Note: This information and photos first appeared in the May 31 edition of the “EM Update” newsletter published by the DOE Office of Environmental Management.

Two Oak Ridge companies involved in federal cleanup work have received small business awards from a U.S. Department of Energy office.

Restoration Services Inc., or RSI, was named the Small Business of the Year during the 16th Annual DOE Small Business Forum and Expo in Kansas City, Missouri, on May 16-18.

Another Oak Ridge business, Scientific Sales Inc., or SSI, was named the 8(a)/Small Disadvantaged Business of the Year.

Awards were presented to a total of five small businesses, including RSI and SSI, during the expo in Kansas City this month. The companies support the U.S. Department of Energy’s environmental management, or EM, work. The awards, which were for fiscal year 2016, were from DOE’s Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization.

The other three EM-related businesses that received awards were: [Read more…]

Filed Under: Business, Oak Ridge, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: 16th Annual DOE Small Business Forum and Expo, 8(a)/Small Disadvantaged Business of the Year, Buster Bivens, Christy Jackiewicz, DOE, DOE Office of Environmental Management, EM, EM Update, environmental management, federal cleanup work, Greg Wilkett, HUB (Historically Underutilized Business) Zone Small Business of the Year, i-3 Global Inc., Innovative Solutions Unlimited, InSolves, Kaitlyn Weaver, Mentor of the Year, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, Paul Clay, Protégé of the Year, Restoration Services Inc., RSI, Scientific Sales Inc., Small Business Awards, small business of the year, SSI, U.S. Department of Energy, Vicki Dyer, Washington River Protection Solutions, Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, WRPS, WTP

UCOR, DOE cleanup contractor in Oak Ridge, earns 94 percent of award fee

Posted at 2:01 am January 5, 2017
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

ucor-k-27-building-fall-2016

UCOR workers take down the final portion of Building K-27, achieving Vision 2016, a DOE goal to remove all of the former uranium enrichment buildings at the East Tennessee Technology Park by the end of 2016. K-27 was the fifth and final gaseous diffusion building to be demolished at the site. Successful demolitions of the four other buildings were completed from 2006 to 2015. (U.S. Department of Energy photo)

 

UCOR, the U.S. Department of Energy’s cleanup contractor in Oak Ridge, received about $3.4 million for its performance from April through September 2016, or 94 percent of the total award fee available, federal officials said.

The Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, or OREM, recently issued the six-month fee determination scorecard for UCOR, or URS | CH2M Oak Ridge LLC, after completing its evaluation.

“Contractor award fee evaluations determine what will be paid based on performance against stated objectives in accordance with annual award fee plans,” the DOE Office of Environmental Management, or EM, said in the EM Update electronic newsletter on December 29. “EM releases information relating to contractor fee payments to further transparency.”

According to UCOR’s scorecard, the company received an overall rating of “very good” for project management and “high confidence” for cost and schedule based on cost and schedule indexes, the newsletter said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: East Tennessee Technology Park, Front Page News, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Office, U.S. Department of Energy, Y-12 National Security Complex Tagged With: award fee, Building K-27, Community Reuse Organization of Tennessee, DOE, DOE Office of Environmental Management, East Tennessee Technology Park, EM, EM program, EM Update, ETTP, fee determination, historic preservation, Mercury Treatment Facility, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, OREM, ORNL, reindustrialization, U.S. Department of Energy, UCOR, URS-CH2M Oak Ridge LLC, Y-12 National Security Complex

New DOE plan calls for research, technology to help fight mercury contamination, including in Oak Ridge

Posted at 2:42 am June 7, 2016
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Y-12 Process Buildings and Mercury Use Area

Y-12 Process Buildings and Mercury Use Area

 

U.S. Department of Energy officials have released a new plan to address mercury contamination at the Oak Ridge Reservation in Tennessee and Savannah River Site in South Carolina. It advocates for research and the development of technologies that could resolve key technical uncertainties with mercury in environmental remediation, the deactivation and decommissioning of facilities, and processing waste in tanks.

The Oak Ridge Reservation and Savannah River Site both used mercury in industrial-scale processes. At the Oak Ridge Reservation, large quantities of mercury were used at the Y-12 National Security Complex from the early 1950s until the early 1960s. During the peak period of operations, according to estimates from the Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, or OREM, 700,000 pounds of a total 20 million pounds of mercury that were used were released into the surrounding environment.

Ongoing mercury abatement and remediation efforts at Y-12 that began in the 1980s have decreased overall mercury releases to the environment, the DOE Office of Environmental Management, or EM, said in a May 31 newsletter.

But elevated concentrations remain in certain water, soil, and facilities, federal officials said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge Office, Oak Ridge Reservation, U.S. Department of Energy, Y-12 National Security Complex Tagged With: DOE Office of Environmental Management, EM, environmental remediation, Lower East Fork Poplar Creek, mercury, mercury contamination, Mercury Treatment Facility, methylmercury, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, Oak Ridge Reservation, OREM, Savannah River Site, SRS, U.S. Department of Energy, Upper East Fork Poplar Creek, Y-12 National Security Complex

Reminder: Property transfer for airport to be discussed during info session today

Posted at 8:55 am August 19, 2015
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Airport Development Plan

The Heritage Center airport development plan is pictured above. The airport site is the area pictured in yellow. The main entrance to Heritage Center off Oak Ridge Turnpike is at bottom left, in the area of the ponds. (Cropped image from DOE Draft Environmental Assessment)

 

About 170 acres of land at a federal site in west Oak Ridge could be transferred to a nonprofit organization for a new general aviation airport that would feature a 5,000-foot runway and accommodate airplanes and helicopters.

The airport would be built on the south side of Heritage Center, which is also known as East Tennessee Technology Park and the former K-25 site. The runway would be close to and run roughly parallel to Oak Ridge Turnpike/State Route 58.

A draft environmental assessment, or EA, has been prepared for the property transfer. It evaluates the potential impacts of transferring the ETTP land from the U.S. Department of Energy to the nonprofit Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority. DOE and MKAA representatives will be available to discuss the proposed action during a public information session from 5-6:30 p.m. Wednesday, August 19, at the DOE Information Center. The Information Center is on the west end of the building that houses the Office of Scientific and Technical Information in east Oak Ridge.

No formal presentation is planned, and the public may stop by at any time during the session. [Read more…]

Filed Under: DOE, East Tennessee Technology Park, Meetings and Events, Slider, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: airport, Ben Williams, Blair Road, business development, Community Reuse Organization of East Tennessee, CROET, DOE, DOE Information Center, DOE Office of Environmental Management, Downtown Island Airport, draft EA, draft environmental assessment, EA, East Tennessee Technology Park, environmental assessment, ETTP, Federal Aviation Administration, general aviation, general aviation airport, haul road, Heritage Center, K-25 site, Leidos, McGhee Tyson Airport, Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority, MKAA, National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems, Oak Ridge airport, Oak Ridge Turnpike, property transfer, Rockwood Municipal Airport, SR 58, State Route 58, State Route 61, U.S. Department of Energy, Victorius Boulevard

Property transfer for Oak Ridge airport to be discussed during info session on Aug. 19

Posted at 12:00 pm August 5, 2015
By John Huotari 1 Comment

Oak Ridge Airport Development Plan

The Heritage Center airport development plan is pictured above. The airport site is the area pictured in yellow. The main entrance to Heritage Center off Oak Ridge Turnpike is at bottom left, in the area of the ponds. (Cropped image from DOE Draft Environmental Assessment)

 

About 170 acres of land at a federal site in west Oak Ridge could be transferred to a nonprofit organization for a new general aviation airport that would feature a 5,000-foot runway and accommodate airplanes and helicopters.

The airport would be built on the south side of Heritage Center, which is also known as East Tennessee Technology Park and the former K-25 site. The runway would be close to and run roughly parallel to Oak Ridge Turnpike/State Route 58.

A draft environmental assessment, or EA, has been prepared for the property transfer. It evaluates the potential impacts of transferring the ETTP land from the U.S. Department of Energy to the nonprofit Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority. DOE and MKAA representatives will be available to discuss the proposed action during a public information session from 5-6:30 p.m. Wednesday, August 19, at the DOE Information Center. The Information Center is on the west end of the building that houses the Office of Scientific and Technical Information in east Oak Ridge.

No formal presentation is planned, and the public may stop by at any time during the session. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Business, DOE, East Tennessee Technology Park, Federal, Front Page News, Government, Meetings and Events, Oak Ridge, Roane County, Slider, State, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: airport, Ben Williams, Blair Road, business development, Community Reuse Organization of East Tennessee, CROET, DOE, DOE Information Center, DOE Office of Environmental Management, Downtown Island Airport, draft EA, draft environmental assessment, EA, East Tennessee Technology Park, environmental assessment, ETTP, Federal Aviation Administration, general aviation, general aviation airport, haul road, Heritage Center, K-25 site, Leidos, McGhee Tyson Airport, Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority, MKAA, National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems, Oak Ridge airport, Oak Ridge Turnpike, property transfer, Rockwood Municipal Airport, SR 58, State Route 58, State Route 61, U.S. Department of Energy, Victorius Boulevard

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Availability of the draft environmental assessment for off-site depleted uranium manufacturing (DOE/EA-2252)

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