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Final drums of old transuranic waste from ORNL prepared for disposal

Posted at 4:30 pm April 24, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

An aerial view of the Transuranic Waste Processing Center in Oak Ridge, where the final drums of legacy transuranic waste stored at Oak Ridge National Laboratory will be processed before shipment to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico for permanent disposal. (Photo courtesy U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management)

An aerial view of the Transuranic Waste Processing Center in west Oak Ridge, where the final drums of legacy transuranic waste stored at Oak Ridge National Laboratory will be processed before shipment to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico for permanent disposal. (Photo courtesy U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management)

 

The final drums of old transuranic waste stored at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have been prepared for disposal.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management reported Tuesday that it had recently completed installing vents and sample ports in the final drums of the legacy transuranic waste stored at ORNL. The decade-long effort ensures that the drums do not contain any hazardous gases that could cause rapid combustion.

The ventilated unit where the drums were vented is closed and explosion-proof, DOE said. It is capable of withstanding a combustion event while keeping workers and ORNL, the nation’s largest multi-program national laboratory, safe, DOE said.

“Venting and sampling these drums is an essential part of the waste disposal process,” ORNL Portfolio Federal Project Director Bill McMillan said. “Now that we can ensure the safety of each drum, they are ready for transport to the Transuranic Waste Processing Center for processing and subsequent shipment to a permanent disposal facility away from Oak Ridge.” [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: Ben Williams, Bill McMillan, DOE, EM Update, legacy transuranic waste, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, ORNL, transuranic waste, Transuranic Waste Processing Center, TRU waste, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management, UCOR, URS | CH2M Oak Ridge, waste disposal, Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, Wayne McKinney, WIPP

New contractor operating Transuranic Waste Processing Center

Posted at 1:36 pm December 30, 2015
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Transuranic Waste Processing Center

The Transuranic Waste Processing Center in west Oak Ridge, south of Bethel Valley Road on Highway 95, is pictured above. (Photo courtesy of U.S. Department of Energy/Oak Ridge Office)

 

Information from Oak Ridge Today and the January 2016 issue of “Advocate,” a publication of the Oak Ridge Site Specific Advisory Board

North Wind Solutions took over the operation of the Transuranic Waste Processing Center in west Oak Ridge in December. The Idaho-based company was awarded the $123 million contract to operate the facility in June.

North Wind replaces Wastren Advantage Inc., which had operated the center since 2010. The Transuranic Waste Processing Center, or TRU Waste Processing Center, is off State Route 95 in southwest Oak Ridge, south of Bethel Valley Road and west of Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

North Wind will continue to process and store transuranic waste at the site until the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, or WIPP, reopens in New Mexico. WIPP is the only facility in the U.S. that permanently disposes of transuranic waste, or TRU waste. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge Office, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: DOE, legacy transuranic waste, North Wind Solutions, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Site Specific Advisory Board, ORNL, transuranic waste, Transuranic Waste Processing Center, TRU waste, TRU Waste Processing Center, U.S. Department of Energy, Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, Wastren Advantage Inc., WIPP

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