Tanks Focus Area annual report FY2000

Technical Report · Fri Dec 01 04:00:00 EST 2000

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/770999· OSTI ID:770999

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) continues to face a major radioactive waste tank remediation effort with tanks containing hazardous and radioactive waste resulting from the production of nuclear materials. With some 90 million gallons of waste in the form of solid, sludge, liquid, and gas stored in 287 tanks across the DOE complex, containing approximately 650 million curies, radioactive waste storage tank remediation is the nation's highest cleanup priority. Differing waste types and unique technical issues require specialized science and technology to achieve tank cleanup in an environmentally acceptable manner. Some of the waste has been stored for over 50 years in tanks that have exceeded their design lives. The challenge is to characterize and maintain these contents in a safe condition and continue to remediate and close each tank to minimize the risks of waste migration and exposure to workers, the public, and the environment. In 1994, the DOE's Office of Environmental Management (EM) created a group of integrated, multiorganizational teams focusing on specific areas of the EM cleanup mission. These teams have evolved into five focus areas managed within EM's Office of Science and Technology (OST): Tanks Focus Area (TFA); Deactivation and Decommissioning Focus Area; Nuclear Materials Focus Area; Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area; and Transuranic and Mixed Waste Focus Area.

• Research Organization: USDOE Office of Science and Technology, Washington, DC (US)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Environmental Management (EM) (US)
• OSTI ID: 770999
• Report Number(s): DOE/EM-0564
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
PROGRESS REPORT
RADIOACTIVE WASTE STORAGE
REMEDIAL ACTION
STORAGE FACILITIES