East Tennessee Technology Park

For 40 years, the 2,200-acre East Tennessee Technology Park was home to a complex of facilities that enriched uranium. The site dates back to the World War II Manhattan Project and operated until 1985. In addition to defense missions, the plant also produced enriched uranium for the commercial nuclear power industry. In 1987, DOE terminated uranium enrichment operations in Oak Ridge and closed the site permanently.

As a result of these previous operations, ETTP had contaminated buildings, soil, sediment, and groundwater that required remediation to protect human health and the environment. In 1989, DOE formed the Office of Environmental Management (EM) to begin cleanup at the site, and the program has been working since then to transform the site from a shuttered, government-owned former enrichment complex into a privately-owned, multi-use industrial park for the community.

In 2020, EM achieved a historic accomplishment by completing core cleanup at the site – which included demolishing more than 500 structures and addressing major areas of soil contamination. It marked the first time in the world an entire uranium enrichment complex has been removed, and it is also DOE’s largest completed environmental cleanup effort to date. In 2024, crews achieved another milestone at the site by completing soil remediation. That task involved removing 554,000 cubic yards of soil, equating to more than 50,000 dump truck loads.

Regulators signed two records of decisions in 2024 that provide the approval and guidance necessary to address groundwater at ETTP, which is the final phase of cleanup at the site. These decisions, along with two others under development, will guide future remediation for EM to complete the cleanup mission at ETTP.

With major field work complete, EM is also nearing its ultimate vision for the site. So far, more than 1,700 acres, along with major site infrastructure, have been transferred for economic development with 900 additional acres slated for transfer in the next three years. Another 3,000 acres have been placed in a conservation easement that is open to the public for recreational use, and more than 100 acres have been set aside for historic preservation efforts as part of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park to commemorate and share the stories of the men and women who built and operated the site.

With all demolition complete, the remaining work involves soil and groundwater remediation. EM’s goals for ETTP are to:

• Finish construction and open on the K-25 Interpretive Center in 2025
• Complete the Record of Decision for Zone 1 groundwater by 2030
• Complete the Record of Decision for the remaining ecology, surface water, and sediment by 2032
• Complete remaining land transfers from government ownership for future beneficial reuse