Second waste storage tunnel at Hanford is at risk of cave-in, regulators say
A second tunnel containing radioactive waste at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation is “structurally deficient by almost every measure” and at risk of caving in, state and federal regulators said Friday.
A 400-square-foot whole opened May 9 in the roof of a waste storage tunnel at the defunct Plutonium Uranium Extraction Facility, known as PUREX. The collapse prompted the state to demand a review by the U.S. Department of Energy, which manages the 580-square-mile nuclear site near the Tri-Cities.
The department found that both of the PUREX tunnels, including the much larger one that hasn’t collapsed, are inadequate for storing hazardous defense waste. It came as no surprise to regulators, who in recent years have dealt with leaking storage tanks and occasional releases of radiation.
“All of these structures that are holding onto waste at the site are starting to get older, and they’re all getting past their useful life,” Alex Smith, the state Department of Ecology’s nuclear waste program manager, said during a recorded news conference Friday morning. “These issues highlight the importance of having adequate funding for the site, and we’ll be talking to our members of Congress about that, as we always do.”
Read more: http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2017/jun/30/second-waste-storage-tunnel-at-hanford-is-at-risk-/
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