RICHLAND, Wash.-The last large concrete basin used to store reactor fuel rods during plutonium production at the Hanford Site is now being drained.
Contaminated water is being pumped from the 1.2 million-gallon basin in the K West Reactor and being hauled to a treatment facility nearby, according to the Department of Energy.
“Getting the contaminated water out of this basin is a key step in our risk-reduction mission,” said Andy Wiborg, the Department’s acting deputy assistant manager for River and Plateau cleanup. “This effort will eliminate the risk of a leak of contaminated water to the groundwater about a quarter-mile from the Columbia River.”
After the basin, part of the K West Reactor built in the 1950’s that operated into the early 1970’s, is drained it will be stabilized with grout for future demolition.
Over 60 tanker trucks each holding about 8,000 gallons have been removed from the K West Reactor so far. Contaminants will be removed from the wastewater before it is disposed of in lined trenches, according to the DOE.
