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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 15, 1997
97-168
CONTACT: Mike Wilson, Nuclear Waste Program Manager, (360) 407-7150
Ron Langley, Public Information, (360) 407-7004
Suzanne Dahl, Tank Waste Project Manager, (509) 736-5705
KENNEWICK, WA - The State Department of Ecology (Ecology) has denied a requested deadline extension for starting removal of more than a quarter million gallons of high level radioactive waste from an underground storage tank on the Hanford Reservation. In addition, Ecology has warned the U.S. Department of Energy (Energy) that it faces substantial penalties unless the work actually begins within one year.
Ecology Director Tom Fitzsimmons said Ecology will not assess penalties, which accrue at a maximum of $10,000 per week, if Energy can meet a proposed new November 1998 deadline. "We'd prefer to see federal dollars spent on cleanup, not on penalties," he said.
Fitzsimmons said that under the terms of the January 1994 Hanford cleanup agreement, Energy agreed to begin removing waste from the tank by the end of this month. This tank, known as C-106, is of particular concern because constant high temperatures inside the tank require regular application of water to keep the waste cool and prevent release of radioactive material.
"The Department of Energy and its contractors have taken an inordinate amount of time to begin waste removal from this unsafe tank," said Fitzsimmons. "The sooner we can defuse this situation the better."
The tank is located approximately seven miles from the Columbia River in an old weapons production complex. The 53 year old underground tank is a single thickness of carbon steel and is serving about 25 years beyond its design life.
"High heat from within could damage the structure of this old tank, potentially causing tank failure and very serious threats to human health and the environment," said Ecology Nuclear Waste Program Manager Mike Wilson. He noted that the contents boil from internal chemical processes, creating the need to add 10,000 gallons of cooling water every six weeks.
"If it can't be kept cool, this tank's top-dome could collapse and cause major releases of contamination throughout the area," said Wilson. "Even if the water keeps it cool, this tank could leak contaminants toward groundwater which eventually flows into the river."
Energy has told the state that safety concerns have delayed work on the tank, and that it plans to begin waste removal from this tank by the end of November 1998.
"We agree that safety is critical, and we recognize that the Department of Energy is not ready to safely begin waste removal" said Wilson. "However, we believe the Department of Energy and its contractors could have solved these safety problems much sooner than they have."
Ecology is hopeful that the new Hanford contractors Fluor-Daniel and Lockheed-Martin will be able to apply their new management approaches to the removal of this waste. The environmental, human health, and safety problems they inherited will require new approaches to bring C-106 to a successful endpoint.
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
