December 6, 2022 — EM Update

NEW ORLEANS – The 21st Annual Intergovernmental Meeting with the U.S. Department of Energy on Nuclear Waste Cleanup last week brought together EM and six intergovernmental groups to discuss priorities and strategies to advance the cleanup mission.

DOE and EM senior leaders gave updates on navigating the future of the waste management consent-based siting process, planning for the future workforce, climate resiliency preparations, protection of cultural and historical landscapes and an emerging contaminant migrating into the environment from chemicals used in all types of materials called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Attendees also participated in an interactive budget development exercise.

In his plenary address, EM Senior Advisor William “Ike” White reflected on a successful past year that saw the cleanup program achieve the bulk of its ambitious calendar year priorities, from the launch on the Main Plant Process Building demolition at the West Valley Demonstration Project to the startup of the Hanford Site’s Tank-Side Cesium Removal System, the cornerstone of the site’s Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste Program, removing radioactive cesium and solids from tank waste.

Read the full article here.

December 2, 2022 — Syracuse.com

As New York energy demand and prices spike heading into winter, the state’s Climate Action Council (CAC) works on its final Scoping Plan for implementing New York’s landmark climate legislation, the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA). The Scoping Plan will lay out the details of how the state will accomplish the transition to clean energy, and how the transition will serve environmental justice.

Justice is a cornerstone of New York’s climate law, which stipulates that actions must not disproportionately burden disadvantaged communities. In a recent meeting, CAC members proposed strengthening Scoping Plan language to explain exactly why such burdens are unacceptable, and why climate and environmental justice must include every community in the state, including serious consultation with Indigenous Nations.

Continued reliance on nuclear plants — both existing and untested “advanced” nuclear or “small modular reactors” — violates these priorities. The Onondaga Nation, Haudenosaunee Environmental Task Force and the American Indian Law Alliance concluded that nuclear power is not viable in combating climate change. The CAC should reach the same conclusion.

Read the full article here.

December 1, 2022 — Springville Journal

The Department of Energy and cleanup contractor CH2M HILL BWXT West Valley have successfully shipped 43 containers of waste from the deconstruction of the Main Plant Process Building, which began on Sept. 21. During this project, the site is expected to ship approximately 1,500 containers by rail line. Read the full article here.

December 1, 2022 — Salamanca Press

WEST VALLEY — A Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Phase 2 of the cleanup at the West Valley Demonstration Project is expected to be published in 2025.

There will be a six‐month public comment period after the DEIS is published, members of the West Valley Citizens Task Force learned earlier this week during the West Valley Demonstration Project’s quarterly meeting. Read the full article here.

November 24, 2022 — Springville Journal

With many people in the local community in need of food this holiday season, the workforce at the West Valley Demonstration Project did their part to help the families this winter. The WVDP hosted its annual food drive, donating food to nine food pantries across the area. Read the full article here.