For Immediate Release
Contact: Dennis Hill
dennis.hill@ettp.doe.gov
(865) 241-4690
Oak Ridge, Tenn., September 1, 2011 – URS | CH2M Oak Ridge (UCOR) has begun shipping for disposal debris generated from demolition of the K-25 Building East Wing at East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP).
“One of our main objectives,” said UCOR President and Project Manager Leo Sain, “is to ship waste as it is generated and not leave piles of debris collecting at the site for long periods.”
The debris is being transported to the Environmental Management Waste Management Facility (EMWMF) on Bear Creek Road, the Department of Energy (DOE) on-site disposal facility. The shipments began early last week and were made possible by 10 separate waste profiles that were approved and signed by the Environmental Protection Agency, Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, and DOE. Initially, the project will ship about 40 loads daily. All shipments will be made via the haul road built between ETTP and EMWMF, keeping the shipments off public highways.
The 10 approved waste profiles for the east wing are limited to waste that is being disposed at EMWMF. The relatively small quantities of waste that do not meet the Waste Acceptance Criteria (WAC) for that facility will be appropriately analyzed to ensure it meets the WAC for the designated off-site disposal facilities.
“We will work closely with off-site facilities to ensure the waste we send them meets their disposal criteria before it is shipped,” Sain said.
The demolition debris currently being shipped includes process piping. UCOR is completing profiling activities for converters and compressors and will begin shipping these components to EMWMF before the end of September.
The southernmost portion of the east wing, which contains Technetium-99, a slow decaying radioactive metal, is being prepared for demolition at some point in the future. It requires additional sampling and removal of hazardous materials, such as asbestos.
The K-25 Building was built as part of the WWII Manhattan Project to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons and subsequently nuclear power. When it was built, it was the largest structure in the world under one roof, covering more than 40 acres. The K-25 Building was shut down in the early 1960s, while uranium enrichment continued at the site, now known as the East Tennessee Technology Park Heritage Center, until the mid-1980s.
UCOR is DOE’s cleanup contractor for the Oak Ridge Reservation.
