Waste Management David Nickless Environmental Management Los Alamos

Waste Management David Nickless Environmental Management Los Alamos Field Office March 3, 2015 www. energy. gov/EM 1

LANL Transuranic Waste Program www. energy. gov/EM 2

Regulatory Framework Ø DOE Radiological Regulatory Authority • Authority under Atomic Energy Act • DOE Order 435. 1 Change 1, Radioactive Waste Management • Low-Level Radioactive Wastes (LLW) and Transuranic (TRU) Wastes Ø New Mexico Environment Department Authority • Hazardous waste regulations implement EPA Resource Conservation and recovery Act (RCRA) requirements • Hazardous Waste Facility Permit addressing treatment, storage, and disposal of hazardous wastes Ø Waste Disposal • LLW disposal operations in Area-G is under DOE authority under the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) • TRU wastes in Area G include newly-generated TRU from NNSA operating facilities and Legacy TRU (EM responsibility) • DOE authority over TRU handling, processing, shipment, and disposal • NMED authority over treatment, storage, and disposal of hazardous materials under permits www. energy. gov/EM 3

Facilities Ø 3 Hazard Category II Nuclear Facilities Ø TA-54 Area G – used for storage, certification, venting, and processing Ø TA-54 Radioassay and Nondestructive Testing (RANT) – used for staging and shipping Ø TA-50 Waste Characterization Reduction and Repackaging Facility (WCRRF) – used for drum repackaging www. energy. gov/EM 4

TA 54 Area G Ø 63 Acre Site Ø 10 Large Storage Domes Ø Central Characterization Project (CCP), Assay, Real-Time Radiography (RTR), Gas Analysis, In. Situ Object Counting System (ISOCS) Ø Drum Venting Ø 3 Repackaging Lines (412, 375, 231) www. energy. gov/EM 5

TA-54 RANT Ø 10, 000 square foot facility Ø TRUPACT II Loading Facility Ø Second 5 Ton Crane Added in 2013 to eliminate single point failure Ø Capability for average of 5 shipments a week, with surge to 12 Ø Department of Transportation (DOT) compliant shipping using DOE's national treatment and disposal contracts www. energy. gov/EM 6

TA-50 WCRRF Ø Hazard Category II Nuclear Facility Ø Operation consists of outside transportainer storage and one operating glovebox Ø Facility maintains cascading ventilation though two ventilation systems Ø High Material at Risk (MAR) Drums www. energy. gov/EM 7

Current Above Grade Transuranic Inventory www. energy. gov/EM 8

Below Grade Inventory Waste Category Description Legacy Containers Volume (m 3) MAR (PE-Ci) 720 335 93, 870 4, 078 1, 560 6, 019 Trenches A-D 720 Drums at 30 Gallons Each Pit 9 3, 881 Drums and 197 Boxes Corrugated Metal Pipes (CMPs) 158 CMPs at 30" in Diameter by 20' Long 158 442 10, 755 33 Lined Shafts 32 Shafts w/ RH hot cell debris; 1 shaft contains reactor vessel 33 3. 4 97 Hot Cell Liners 5 shafts with RH hot cell lines 5 51 0. 5 TRU with Tritium Packages 4 Tritium Torpedoes and 1 Tritium Tank 5 6. 7 8 RH Canisters 1 Canister 1 1. 0 1. 5 5, 000 2, 400 110, 751 TOTAL www. energy. gov/EM 9

Issues Ø Processing of Legacy TRU Waste Operations have been paused Ø Nitrate Salts stored under continuous surveillance and protection per Nitrate Salt Container Isolation Plan Ø Corrective Actions, internal and external programmatic evaluations / reviews, and regulatory discussions are ongoing and will impact future operations Ø Nitrate Salts require treatment prior to disposal Ø RANT Seismic Potential Inadequacy in the Safety Analysis (PISA) has RANT operations curtailed Ø Continued integration of Legacy TRU and Newly-Generated TRU processing Ø Future integration with RCRA permitted unit closures and demolition activities expected in phases at facility’s end-of-life www. energy. gov/EM 10

Questions? www. energy. gov/EM 11