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| Historical Perspective |
The
Radioactive Waste Management Complex (RWMC) was established in 1952
as a burial location for low-level radioactive waste. Starting in
1954, however, transuranic waste and organic sludge from Rocky Flats,
Colorado, was also buried in the Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA)—the
actual burial grounds at the RWMC.
In 1970, the federal
government stopped burying transuranic waste at the RWMC and began
placing it in retrievable storage for later transfer to a federal
repository, but INL continued to dispose of low-level radioactive
waste in pits at the SDA. Historical waste disposal practices have
resulted in the release of radioactive and organic contaminants
to the soil and ground water below the SDA. |
The
Radioactive Waste Management Complex (RWMC) is located approximately
50 miles west of Idaho Falls just south of highway 20.
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| Current Activities |
Bechtel BWXT Idaho (BBWI) operates the Subsurface Disposal Area of the RWMC and is responsible for low-level waste management activities as well as monitoring and remediation activities associated with contamination from past waste disposal practices.
BBWI also operates the Advanced Mixed Waste Treatment Facility (AMWTF) which performs storage, certification, and shipping of transuranic waste to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico.
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The Advanced Mixed Waste Treatment Facility is located at the East side of the RWMC. The facility is operated by BWTX to remove transuranic waste from Idaho.
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| Waste Management Activities
Related to Settlement Agreement |
| The only remaining Settlement
Agreement issue at the RWMC is the management of transuranic waste and its removal from Idaho by 2018. Transuranic waste is currently being processed from storage to shipping at the AMWTF. Other transuranic waste sent to Idaho in the 1950s and 1960s is currently buried in the Subsurface Disposal Area. Actions are underway now to retrieve a portion of this buried transuranic waste and ship it out of Idaho. |
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| Remediation Status |
| Ongoing CERCLA remediation activities at the RWMC include the operation of Organic Contamination in the Vadose Zone (OCVZ) units, which use vacuum extraction to pull organic vapors out of the ground. Other CERCLA activities include the stabilization or retrieval of hazardous and radioactive wastes buried in the pits and trenches of the SDA. Future remediation activities will include the selection and installation of a final remedial action, such as an engineered cap over the contaminated areas of the burial grounds. |
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| Future Missions |
| The AMWTF will continue to store, treat, certify, and ship transuranic waste out of Idaho until their mission is completed. Other future missions at the RWMC will include excavation and retrieval of buried transuranic waste and organic sludge, remediation of contaminated soil and ground water and the selection and installation of a final remedial action such as an engineered cap over the contaminated areas of the burial grounds. |
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| INL Oversight Monitoring at
RWMC |
| INL Oversight performs a variety of
environmental monitoring in the vicinity of RWMC. Monitoring results
are made available to the public in quarterly
and annual environmental monitoring reports. |
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Radiation
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| INL Oversight monitors ambient penetrating
radiation on and around the INL using Electret Ion Chambers (EIC's).
EIC's are placed at each facility and at approximately two-mile intervals
around the perimeter of the site. These devices are collected each
quarter and processed to determine the quarterly total ambient penetrating
radiation exposure for each location. Additionally, INL Oversight
maintains High Pressure Ion Chambers (HPIC's) at several locations
around the INL. These devices provide real-time radiation levels that
can be monitored remotely.
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Soil
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| Soil monitoring is performed to determine
the presence and extent of man-made radionuclides in the terrestrial
environment. The INL contractor performs periodic soil sampling and
in-situ monitoring at and near the INL facilities. INL Oversight performs
monitoring at a fraction of the contractor monitoring sites for verification
of the contractor's reported results. |
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Air
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| Air monitoring is performed to determine
the presence and extent of man-made radionuclides in the atmosphere.
The INL Oversight Program maintains an array of air monitoring stations
on and around the perimeter of the INL. The nearest air monitoring
stations to RWMC are located at the Van Buren Avenue and Big Lost
River Rest Area. Air samples taken by the INL Oversight are analyzed
for the presence and concentration of atmospheric tritium, radioactive
iodine, and suspended particulate matter for gross alpha and gross
beta, gamma radionuclides, and annually for strontium-90, americium-241,
plutonium-238, and plutonium-239/240. |
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Ground
Water |
| Ground water beneath the RWMC has been
impacted by wastes buried at the SDA. Radioactive wastes, primarily
from Rocky Flats, included materials contaminated with plutonium and
uranium isotopes, americium-241, tritium, carbon-14, strontium-90,
along with other radioactive isotopes, organic solvents, acids, nitrates,
and metals such as chromium. Organic solvents and gaseous radionuclides
such as tritium and carbon-14 have migrated to the aquifer. Occasional
detection of plutonium isotopes and americium-241 have occurred over
time. INL Oversight samples five wells around the RWMC. |
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