WIPP News:The Department of Energy (DOE) has developed estimates for the resumption of shipments of transuranic (TRU) waste to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) over the next 12 months.
Shipments are expected to be made during that time from Idaho, Los Alamos, Oak Ridge, the Savannah River Site, and Waste Control Specialists.
Shipments of TRU waste from generator sites across the U.S. are expected to commence in April. Shipments from a given site can commence once the site has demonstrated its readiness to load and ship TRU containers and has verified that waste destined for WIPP meets the updated Documented Safety Analysis requirements.
The exact allocation and sequence for shipping will be adjusted based on the emplacement rate at WIPP, operational needs at the WIPP and generator sites, and logistical issues (such as weather) that affect shipping.
“We are pleased that WIPP is once again emplacing waste. The suspension of disposal operations has posed challenges at DOE sites, with backlogs of TRU waste building up. Resuming shipments from generator sites is important to support cleanup and ongoing missions at those sites. We look forward to doing that as soon and as safely as possible,” Carlsbad Field Office Manager Todd Shrader said.
Shipments will resume using the same Nuclear Regulatory Commission certified TRUPACT II type B packaging and following the same stringent safety standards and driver qualifications that have made the WIPP transportation program the model for radioactive material shipping in the United States.
Estimated WIPP TRU Shipments – February 2017 through January 2018
|
Site
|
Projected Shipments
|
|
Idaho Site
|
61
|
|
Oak Ridge Site
|
24
|
|
Savannah River Site
|
8
|
|
Waste Control Specialists
|
11
|
|
Los Alamos Site
|
24
|
|
TOTAL
|
128
|
Next WIPP Town Hall Meeting – March 16
The City of Carlsbad and DOE co-host Town Hall meetings to provide updates on WIPP restart activities. The next meeting will be Thursday, March 16, at 5:30 p.m. Location: Carlsbad City Council Chambers, 101 N. Halagueno Street.
WIPP Town Hall Meetings are live-streamed at http://new.livestream.com/rrv/.
