The $350 million earmarked for cleanup of the Parks Township nuclear waste dump isn’t enough to finish the job, so the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is looking for new contractors interested in continuing the cleanup when that money runs out.
The Corps announced Friday that it would include a “source search notice” to examine the market and make cleanup plans for the site, officially known as the Shallow Land Disposal Zone. The expected price of the supplemental contract is between $250 million and $500 million, according to the Corps.
(NUMEC) buried radioactive waste at the site in the 1960s. The 44-acre site is located along Route 66 near Kiskimere Road. It has 10 trenches of debris and infected soil.
Remediation paints are expected to begin in spring 2025 and finish in 2032.
“As we have learned more about what is required to remediate the SLDA site through our design process, we have decided that the $350 million cap on the existing contract is inadequate to complete the work. Therefore, to avoid a potential operational shutdown, we are proactively working to secure a new contract that will allow us to complete remediation work,” said Steven Vriesen, assignment manager for the Corps’ Buffalo District, which oversees the assignment.
Remediation plans include the removal of infected soil and waste and its disposal elsewhere.
The Buffalo District works with the Pittsburgh Corps because, Vriesen said, it delights in managing FUSRAP (Formerly Used Sites Reclamation Action Program) projects like the one in Parks Township.
He cited as an example the existing cleanup of Luckey south of Toledo, Ohio. There, the Corps cleans up a former radioactive mineral processing plant dating back to the 1940s.
FUSRAP was introduced to identify, investigate and launder national sites that have been infected due to the country’s atomic weapons and energy programs, according to the Corps.
Jacobs Technology of Tullahoma, Tenn., holds the current contract for the Parks Township nuclear waste dump site. It’s anticipated that Jacobs will begin physical remediation in spring 2025, which includes removal and off-site disposal of contaminated soil and waste.
The Corps held a public briefing on the assignment on 20 September. There, they explained the paintings they made and their cleaning plans.
Since then, crews have cleared the overgrown fence, set up administrative caravans and begun grading for a new lab on site, Vriesen said.
Jacobs Technology will continue the preparation over the next year, 18 months.
Vriesen said more data on the site’s progress can be found in https://www. lrp. usace. army. mil/Missions/Planning-Programs-Project-Management/Key-Projects/Shallow-Land-Disposal-Area/; or by visiting the Apollo Memorial Library, 219 N. Pennsylvania Ave.
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