The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) said work has begun on the EM’s Idaho Cleanup Project (ICP). up is complete. ICP and contractor Idaho Environmental Coalition (IEC) outline the extent, cost and schedule for dismantling above-ground soft-sided structures at the 97-acre Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA) at EM’s Idaho National Laboratory Site signed the contract.
Connie Simiele, Senior Director of IEC Essential Missions, says this first step is critical. “This first and final task order is the result of great teamwork and a critical step in fulfilling the contract,” she said. The first operation covered by the contract agreement was the demolition of the Accelerated Recovery Project (ARP) IV, in 2010, when workers removed covered buried waste. IEC said he dismantled ARP IV on October 14th.
The crew used the ARP V, which was used to extract targeted radioactive and hazardous waste from Pit 9, a one-acre landfill site that primarily received waste from the Rocky Flats factory from 1967 to 1969. Dismantle the Demolition of his other ARP structures follows.
Between 2005 and early 2022, crews removed targeted radioactive and hazardous waste from a combined 5.69 acres of SDA. Waste removal was performed at nine soft-sided ARP buildings. EM completed the demolition of his two buildings at ARP I and VI in 2012 after the excavation of the waste was completed. When all his ARP buildings are demolished, the debris is left intact and covered with clean gravel. This serves as the foundation for the overburden he builds across the SDA to protect the underlying Snake River Plain aquifer.
In addition to demolition of the building, the contract includes the scope, schedule and cost of formally closing the wells used for extraction and treatment of solvent vapors below the landfill. Steam was included in degreasing agents used during weapons development work.
Degreasers and other solvents were barreled and boxed and buried in unlined shallow trenches in the SDA. Over time, the barrel and box deteriorated, releasing steam into the surrounding soil.
Dan Coyne, senior director of IEC Waste Management and Decontamination and Demolition, said he was pleased with the final contractual agreement. “This complex proposal was only possible through the hard work, timely input and structured approach of a knowledgeable and integrated project team,” he said. The work detailed in the contract is expected to be completed by the end of 2024.
Image: The INL site’s underground repository (foreground) is set to undergo significant changes over the next two years (Courtesy of DOE)
