Crews are preparing for the demolition of the 224-B Plutonium Concentration Facility on the Hanford Site, the decommissioned nuclear production complex in Benton County in Washington state.
Workers with Environmental Management Richland Operations Office contractor Central Plateau Cleanup Company are working in the facility, constructed in 1944, which “is expected to be ready for demolition by the end of 2024,” according to a Nov. 22 news release. The facility supported plutonium production until 1952.
“This project presents a lot of unique challenges, but we’re making good, safe progress by relying on our training, communicating and looking out for each other,” Jeremy Hulquist, Central Plateau Cleanup Company project manager, said in the release. “Extensive research and detailed planning went into preparing for this cleanup project; it’s definitely a team effort.”
Workers last summer entered the facility’s process cells for the first time in nearly 40 years to remove debris, the release said. Crews are determining if potentially hazardous material is inside tanks and piping in six process cells, where irradiated uranium fuel rods were processed to extract plutonium, the release reported. Noninvasive techniques such as ultrasonic testing was used. Once the hazardous waste site characterization is complete, equipment will be removed.
“Making our first entries into the process cells and beginning preliminary characterization and cleanup activities is a big step in safely advancing this complex project,” Andy Wiborg, Richland Operations Office Projects and Facilities Division team lead for Hanford’s Central Plateau Cleanup Project, said in the release.
Most of the process cells have multiple tanks and piping, the release said.
