WASHINGTON, D.C. - A longstanding partnership between EM and labor unions is crucial to a shared goal of executing the cleanup mission safely, effectively and efficiently, Senior Advisor William “Ike" White told representatives with the Atomic Energy Workers Council (AEWC) during a recent meeting.
“Thank you to all who work at DOE sites around the country. What you’ve done over the course of the past couple of years has been absolutely amazing," White said, referring to the COVID-19 pandemic. “The resilience you showed and the approach that all of you took to keep moving important environmental cleanup work forward while protecting the people who live in these communities across the country was absolutely incredible."
The AEWC consists of presidents and vice presidents from United Steelworkers (USW) local unions that have contracts with the Department of Energy. White highlighted recent cleanup milestones and detailed progress in critical projects in which USW members played a key role, including the startup of the Tank-Side Cesium Removal System and tank farm work at the Hanford Site ; expansion of underground capabilities and replacement of aging infrastructure at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP); and completion of targeted buried waste exhumation at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Site.
“I want to acknowledge how much progress we’ve made in the middle of a very difficult operating environment," White said. “At Idaho, where I was at just a few weeks ago, we had an opportunity to celebrate getting a transuranic waste retrieval effort finished 18 months ahead of schedule, a testament to the men and women who actually went out and made that happen. This was important to the community, to tribal nations who live around the site, and served to protect the Snake River Plain Aquifer."
White noted that EM’s fiscal year 2023 budget request of $7.6 billion reflects the Administration’s commitment to advancing the cleanup mission and investing in the future of the EM workforce. Through these investments, EM will increase support for tribal nations and communities surrounding EM sites while also enabling the safe but aggressive cleanup of legacy waste.
“One of the things I think all of that good work shows us in looking forward - that is important to all of us - is our ability to go out and get resources for getting even more work done," White said. “The folks in Congress, when they think about spending money at different sites across the country, they want to make sure that those investments are being well spent. That means that the funds are going to real progress and that real progress is happening thanks to all of you."
White outlined key areas for continued progress, including completing the transfer of spent nuclear fuel to onsite dry storage at the INL Site; advancing startup and commissioning of Hanford’s Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste Program; infrastructure improvements at WIPP; and advancing deactivation of the C-333 process building at the Paducah Site.
To learn more about EM’s vision for the next decade, download a copy of EM’s 2022-2032 Strategic Vision here.
Source: U.S. Dept. of Energy, Office of Environmental Management
