Energy Department settles with EPA for waste management violations at Hanford
Contact: Mark MacIntyre, EPA/Seattle 206-553-7302/206-369-7999(
(Seattle
– July 1, 2013) The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has agreed to
improve waste handling practices and pay $136,000 in a settlement
announced today by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. According
to the agreement, DOE allegedly operated several dangerous waste storage
units without proper permit authorization and placed waste in a
landfill before treating it. Instead, DOE treated the waste after
placement, a violation of existing dangerous waste regulations.
“Today’s
agreement includes commitments by DOE to address these allegations and
ensure that these units are properly managed,” said Ed Kowalski,
director of EPA’s Office of Compliance and Enforcement in Seattle. “When
handling mixed (nuclear and hazardous) waste, there’s no such thing as
being ‘too careful’. Strict compliance with all dangerous waste
requirements is the only acceptable path here.”
Inspections
were conducted by the EPA National Enforcement Investigations Center in
2011, where inspectors focused on the facility’s Solid Waste
Operational Complex. At this facility, radioactive and dangerous wastes
are stored and processed prior to shipment to other locations for
treatment and disposal.
Under today’s agreement, DOE will:
-
Close eight dangerous waste storage units that EPA contends had not received proper authorization under the state dangerous waste permit.
-
Submit closure plans for the eight units through a state dangerous waste permit modification request.
-
Close, or request an extension to the time allowed to close, an additional two inactive dangerous waste storage units.
-
Treat dangerous waste before disposal as required by state & federal regulations.
-
Pay a penalty of $136,000, payable to the U.S. Treasury.
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