Benefits of On-Site Management of Environmental Restoration Wastes
As Sandia National Laboratories/New Mexico (SNL/NM) began assessing options under which to conduct the remediation of environmental restoration sites, it became clear that the standard routes for permanent disposal of waste contaminated with hazardous materials would be difficult. Publicly, local citizens' groups resisted the idea of large volumes of hazardous waste being transported through their communities. Regulations for the off-site disposal are complicated due to the nature of the environmental restoration waste, which included elevated tritium levels. Waste generated from environmental restoration at SNL/NM included debris and soils contaminated with a variety of constituents. Operationally, disposal of environmental restoration waste was difficult because of the everchanging types of waste generated during site remediation. As an alternative to standard hazardous waste disposal, SNL/NM proposed and received regulatory approval to construct a Corrective Action Management Unit (CAMU). By containing the remediation wastes on-site, SNL/NM's Environmental Restoration (ER) Program managed to eliminate transportation concerns from the public, worked with regulatory agencies to develop a safe, permanent disposal, and modified the waste disposal procedures to accommodate operational changes. SNL/NM accomplished the task and saved approximately $200 million over the life of the CAMU project, as compared to off-site disposal options.
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM (US); URS Group, Inc. (US)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- WM Symposia, Inc. (US)
- OSTI ID:
- 825871
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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