The US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) has safely completed the largest, most complex demolition of a radioactively contaminated facility at the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP) 48 km south of Buffalo, New York.
EM and cleanup contractor CH2M HILL BWXT West Valley (CHBWV) took down the five-story, 35,100-square-foot Main Plant Process Building in a deliberate sequence and pace, removing more than 70 sections of the building and areas of the facility.
“Thanks to hard work and dedication, West Valley reduced radioactivity in the building by over 98%, removed more than seven miles of contaminated piping and disposed of more than 50 tonnes of contaminated equipment, all while working safely and compliantly in alignment with EM’s mission, on time and under budget by over $30m,” said EM Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Roger Jarrell.
The Main Plant, constructed between 1963-1966, was a commercial reprocessing facility used to recover reusable plutonium and uranium from spent nuclear reactor fuel. It operated from 1966 to 1972, processing about 640 tonnes of irradiated nuclear fuel. The building was radioactively contaminated from fuel reprocessing operations and related activities, and contained hazardous materials, including asbestos insulation, lead and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
“Our workforce was deliberate in the planning, deactivation and execution of this work,” West Valley Project Management Assistant Director Stephen Bousquet said. “Every effort has been made to implement robust work controls to help protect the workforce, the public and the environment.”
