Below are articles and other news published since the last West Valley Citizen Task Force Meeting. They relate to the West Valley Demonstration Project, nuclear waste cleanup or are otherwise relevant or of potential interest to stakeholders interested in the Project. After each Citizen Task Force Meeting, these articles are compiled into a single document and may be found with the meeting materials for that month.
July 10, 2020 – A facility disposition crew at the West Valley Demonstration Project encapsulated the Main Plant office building concrete slab with polymeric barrier system (PBS) to release the slab so it is no longer considered an asbestos area.
This practice protects employees from this hazardous material and safeguards against unintended releases. PBS was also used during the demolition of the 01-14 Building and Vitrification Facility. Link to Article
July 10, 2020 – A facility disposition crew at the West Valley Demonstration Project encapsulated the Main Plant office building concrete slab with polymeric barrier system (PBS) to release the slab so it is no longer considered an asbestos area.
This practice protects employees from this hazardous material and safeguards against unintended releases. PBS was also used during the demolition of the 01-14 Building and Vitrification Facility. Link to Article
July 7, 2020 – An EM deactivation and demolition crew at the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP) recently encapsulated a concrete slab with a fixative after removing asbestos from it.
The concrete slab was the foundation for the former Main Plant Office Building, which workers demolished late last year, bringing EM’s total number of structures removed at WVDP to 66. Workers had safely removed asbestos-containing material from inside that building prior to tearing it down. Built in 1964, the three-story, 3,760-square-foot facility was part of the original commercial nuclear fuel reprocessing plant at the site. Link to Update
July 4, 2020 – The West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP) is located at the Western New York Nuclear Service Center (WNYNSC), a 3,338-acre site 30 miles south of Buffalo, New York. The site is owned by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and is home to the only commercial spent nuclear fuel reprocessing facility to operate in the United States. In 1962, Nuclear Fuel Services, Inc. (NFS) entered into agreements with the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and New York State to construct, license, and operate the commercial spent nuclear fuel reprocessing plant. NFS built and operated the plant and two waste burial grounds from 1963 to 1972. NFS processed 640 metric tons of spent nuclear fuel and generated over 600,000 gallons of liquid high-level waste (HLW). In 1976, NFS exercised its contractual right to yield the WNYNSC’s responsibility back to New York State and currently NYSERDA holds title and manages it. Link to document
June 23, 2020 – An EM facility disposition crew recently replaced a hoist in the Main Plant Process Building, marking the West Valley Demonstration Project’s (WVDP) first work activity in which workers donned personal protective equipment while following safety protocols due to COVID-19.
Replacing the hoist in the Equipment Decontamination Room, as WVDP operated in an essential mission critical posture, also signified progress toward a broader project — the future demolition of the Main Plant Process Building — included in EM’s priorities for 2020. Link to Update
