Visits to Western Nuclear Legacy Sites

Avery, at center, tours the ETEC site with the EM team, including, from left, Karen Edson, Cathy Tullis, Robert Seifert, Josh Mengers, Kristen Ellis, Pam Hartman, John Howard and Jack Zimmerman. EM has been performing continuous environmental monitoring using air monitoring stations around the perimeter of the ETEC site. The cleanup program has also been conducting ongoing groundwater monitoring, collecting samples from the more than 100 wells that EM installed at the site to monitor, analyze and help understand groundwater contamination and inform cleanup actions.

Avery and the rest of the EM team tour the underground Basement 4024 to learn more about the status and plans for cleanup. EM is reviewing the California Department of Toxic Substances Control’s programmatic environmental impact report to determine how the document can assist the cleanup program to execute its cleanup plan at ETEC’s Area IV. Part of that plan is outlined in a DOE record of decision published in 2020 for groundwater cleanup at the site. That record describes monitoring and treatment approaches tailored to address the contaminants and potential impacts in affected areas of the ETEC site, as well as interim actions. This next phase of cleanup at ETEC follows EM’s achievement of a pivotal milestone in late 2021: completion of demolition of the final 18 DOE-owned buildings at ETEC.

EM leaders White and Avery, center right, meet with Michael Brandt, chief operations officer and deputy laboratory director for operations, and other LBNL leaders for introductions and an overview of LBNL.

Pictured from left in front of the Advanced Light Source (ALS) at LBNL is Jeff Neaton, associate laboratory director for Energy Sciences Area, Kevin Bazzel, EM federal project director, Avery, White and Brandt. The ALS is a DOE Office of Science National User Facility that specializes in producing extremely bright X-ray light for examining the atomic and electronic structure of materials. The facility attracts thousands of researchers from universities, national laboratories and companies worldwide that lack the advanced scientific tools the ALS offers. The tour demonstrated how ALS capabilities support basic scientific research and technology development.

White and Avery are pictured with Carolyn Zerkle, principal deputy director, at center, and other LLNL leaders. The visit to LLNL provided the EM leaders an opportunity to learn more about the laboratory’s development plan and tour EM cleanup projects.

Pictured at the LLNL Building 251 Deactivation, Decommissioning, and Removal, White presents staff members with contractor APTIM with the National Safety Council’s “Perfect Safety Award.” The honor goes to recipients that have not incurred an occupational injury or illness resulting in days away from work or death for at least 12 months.

Avery, center left, is joined by U.S. Deputy Energy Secretary David Turk, second from right, and LM leaders at Las Colonias in Grand Junction, Colorado. In the mid-1980s, DOE took on the site’s cleanup duties. In accordance with the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act of 1978, EM completed soil remediation in 1999. Beginning in 2003, LM took on the responsibility of managing the legacy site by performing environmental monitoring and overseeing activities within the old processing site boundary.

Avery, second from left, walks along the Colorado River at the Las Colonias site, an example of the opportunities for former cleanup sites and partnership between EM and LM. The Las Colonias redeveloped area boasts a 140-acre mixed-use park, which includes a 15-acre business park, 5,000-seat amphitheater, dog park and a river park with two standing waves, a boat ramp, trails, ponds and zipline. The Las Colonias Park was established with the help of the greater community, including the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, the Grand Junction Economic Partnership, the city of Grand Junction and many others.

Avery views work being completed at the Moab Project, his final EM site visit of 2023, completing visits to all 15 cleanup sites during his first year as EM’s principal deputy assistant secretary. In Moab, Avery was joined by Turk and the community to celebrate EM’s milestone of permanently disposing of 14 million tons of mill tailings.

Avery, Turk, LM leaders and site team members tour the Crescent Junction Disposal site, which has received 14 million tons of waste from the Moab Project. The Moab Site’s remaining 2 million tons of contaminated soil and debris will be disposed of in this engineered disposal cell located 30 miles north of the Moab Site. The material resulted from legacy uranium milling operations.