SRR Makes the Most of First Six Months as SRS Liquid Waste Contractor
December 15, 2009
AIKEN, S.C. (December 15, 2009) – Since becoming the liquid waste contractor at the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Savannah River Site (SRS) on July 1, Savannah River Remediation (SRR) has made some tremendous strides in a short period of time, according to Jim French, SRR President and Project Manager.
“We have made some aggressive commitments, culminating in the closing of 22 hazardous waste tanks in eight years, and a great deal of our success depends on the integration of projects and employee teams working closely together,” French said. “I am excited on how our employees have embraced this integration, achieved several milestones already and have performed their work safely.”
Here are some of the milestones achieved:
- SRR employees have just reached a safety milestone by working 1.5 million hours without an injury causing a lost workday, adding to an already impressive mark of working more than 12 million hours over the last several years without a lost work day injury. A lost workday injury is defined as any work-related injury or illness that results in days away from work.
- Surpassing a 2009 performance goal of filling 81 canisters with glassified radioactive waste, SRR employees have produced 95 canisters, bringing the total to over 2,833 canisters filled since operations of the Defense Waste Processing Facility, the largest radioactive waste vitrification facility in the world, began operations in March 1996. This production represents over 11 million pounds of radioactive sludge being treated and the removal of nearly 20 million curies from SRS waste.
- By continuing to refine and enhance the Interim Salt Disposition Project, SRR employees have demonstrated achieving the required attainment rate of processing 40,000 gallons of salt waste in a week at a rate of four to six gallons per minute - a projected attainment rate necessary to achieve closing 22 waste tanks in eight years. SRS is the only place in the DOE complex where salt waste is being disposed.
- SRR employees continue preparations to close four old-style waste tanks. Target for closing the tanks is late 2011, meeting all regulatory milestones.
SRS is owned by DOE. The SRS Liquid Waste contract is managed by SRR, a team of companies lead by URS Corp. with partners Bechtel National, CH2M Hill and Babcock & Wilcox. Critical subcontractors for the contract are AREVA, Energy Solutions and Washington Safety Management Solutions.
Media Contact: Rick Kelley (803) 208-1707 rick.kelley@srs.gov