Achieving Accelerated Cleanup of Cesium Contaminated Stream at the Savannah River Site; Collaboration between Stakeholders, Regulators, and the Federal Government - 13182
- Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, LLC, Bldg. 730-4B, Aiken, SC 29808 (United States)
- United States Department of Energy, Bldg. 730-B, Aiken, SC 29808 (United States)
The Savannah River Site (SRS) is a 310-square-mile United States Department of Energy (US DOE) nuclear facility located along the Savannah River near Aiken, South Carolina that contains six primary stream/river systems. The Lower Three Runs Stream (LTR) is one of the primary streams within the site that is located in the southeast portion of the Savannah River Site and is a large black water stream system that originates in the northeast portion of SRS and follows a southerly direction before it enters the Savannah River. During reactor operations, secondary reactor cooling water, storm sewer discharges, and miscellaneous wastewater was discharged and contaminated a 36 kilometer stretch of Lower Three Runs Stream that narrows providing a limited buffer of US DOE property along the stream and flood plain. Based on data collected during 2009 and 2010 under Recover Act Funding, the stream was determined to be contaminated with cesium-137 at levels that exceeded acceptable risk based limits. As efficiencies were realized within the SRS Recovery Act Program, funding was made available to design, permit and execute remediation of the LTR. This accelerated Project allowed for the remediation of 36 kilometers of LTR in only nine months from inception to completion, contributing significantly to the Foot Print Reduction of SRS. The scope consisted of excavation and disposal of more than 2064 cubic meters of contaminated soil, and installing 11 kilometers of fence and 2,000 signs at 1000 locations. Confirmatory sampling and analysis, and radiological surveying were performed demonstrating that soil concentrations met the cleanup goals. The project completed with a very good safety record considering the harsh conditions including, excessive rain in the early stages of the project, high summer temperatures, swampy terrain, snakes, wild boar, insects and dense vegetation. The regulatory approval process was compressed by over 75% and required significant efforts from SRS's stakeholders including the regulators, U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC), and the public including local property owners and the SRS Citizens Advisory Board. Stakeholder buy-in was critical in the up-front planning in order to achieve this challenging cleanup. (authors)
- Research Organization:
- WM Symposia, 1628 E. Southern Avenue, Suite 9-332, Tempe, AZ 85282 (United States)
- OSTI ID:
- 22224947
- Report Number(s):
- INIS-US-13-WM-13182; TRN: US14V0390045902
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: WM2013: Waste Management Conference: International collaboration and continuous improvement, Phoenix, AZ (United States), 24-28 Feb 2013; Other Information: Country of input: France
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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