Oak Ridge Today

Researcher honored for helping advance Latinas in tech field

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Andrea Rocha

Andrea Rocha

A researcher whose worked is carried out at the University of Tennessee, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Oak Ridge Associated Universities has been named one of the top researchers in her field by Hispanic Engineer and Information Technology magazine.

Postdoctoral fellow Andrea Rocha is a member of a UT research team. She works on Governor’s Chair for Environmental Biotechnology Terry Hazen’s joint UT-ORNL team, and she was chosen as one of 32 women worldwide to be profiled in the magazine’s “Latinas at Tech Giants” edition, a press release said.

“I wasn’t even aware I was being considered,” Rocha said. “I didn’t know anything about it until I received a letter from the Women of Color STEM Conference that contained a congratulations note, press release on the article, and copy of the magazine which contained my profile.”

Almost as noteworthy, Rocha found out that Astrid Terry—a project manager at the Berkeley Lab at the University of California—had nominated her. [Read more…]

DOE responds to advisory board recommendation
 on groundwater studies

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The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management has responded to a recommendation made earlier this year by the Oak Ridge Site Specific Advisory Board.

In May, the federally appointed citizens’ panel recommended that DOE conduct additional groundwater studies to address any potential offsite migration of chemicals or radioisotopes from DOE’s Oak Ridge Reservation. The recommendation focuses on developing information that fosters a better understanding of potential impacts of groundwater contamination related to risk mitigation, groundwater remediation, and long-term stewardship.

In 2013, DOE, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation held a series of workshops to prioritize groundwater pathways on the ORR. Together the agencies created a groundwater strategy document that described the potential for releases from waste disposal sites and storage areas. The document also prioritized known groundwater plumes, concentration of contaminants, contaminants of concern, and potential health risks. [Read more…]