The US Department of Energy (DOE) says Idaho Cleanup Project (ICP) crews recently transferred 40 used nuclear fuel baskets into safer, long term storage vaults.
Office of Environmental Management (EM) contractor Idaho Environmental Coalition (IEC) finished the final transfer – moving used fuel from older, first-generation vaults to new, second-generation vaults – several months ahead of schedule.
Former IEC Senior Project Director Ken Brewer, who retired in June, noted: “I am incredibly proud of our team for completing this project. Their professionalism, technical skill and relentless commitment to safety made all the difference.”
The baskets contain used nuclear fuel from unit 1 of the Peach Bottom Atomic Station, which was shipped to the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) site from Pennsylvania following the station’s closure in 1974.
The Peach Bottom transfer project was Brewer’s final endeavour at the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center (INTEC), where he worked there for 40 years and was involved in the Peach Bottom transfer project from its inception.
EM initiated the transfers in 2021 after routine monitoring of the fuel revealed elevated hydrogen levels in the first-generation vaults, raising concerns about potential corrosion to the fuel baskets.
The second-generation vaults mitigate that risk through engineered improvements, including sumps that purge water and a support rod-and-plate system that reinforces the fuel baskets. The result is a more stable and controlled long term storage configuration that enhances safety.
The Peach Bottom fuel will remain in dry storage until it is packaged and shipped from Idaho for permanent disposal.
