Decontamination and Decommissioning of Uranium Facilities - doe-hdbk-1113-98_reaffirm_2005

DOE-HDBK-1113-98

Radiological Safety Training for Uranium Facilities

Module 102 The Nuclear Fuel Cycle

waste derived from the liquid that contains a combination of transuranic waste

and fission products in concentrations requiring permanent isolation.

HLW comes primarily from the reprocessing of spent fuel. It is typically in

liquid form, and it is collected and stored in tanks. The liquid waste is then

solidified (stabilized) for disposal. All HLW is ultimately to be disposed of by

deep burial.

Decontamination and Decommissioning of Uranium Facilities

Uranium and its byproducts from the nuclear fuel cycle may present health risks

due to radioactivity or chemical properties. Past and present DOE uranium facilities

and their surrounding areas may contain contamination from uranium or its

byproducts. DOE recognizes that they have a responsibility to restore these

potentially contaminated facilities and surrounding areas to a non-hazardous

condition. To accomplish this, several "remediation" programs are in place and

others are developing.

One cleanup program is:

Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Program This program

is intended to cleanup uranium mill sites and associated "vicinity

properties." It covers 24 mill sites and more than 4,800 properties

throughout the Nation. The goals of the program are to reduce radon

release from mill tailings to acceptable levels by burial, and to restore

affected land and facilities/structures to unrestricted use.

Each cleanup project presents different types and levels of hazards to workers.

Additionally, general safety hazards become a significant factor due to the types of

processes and equipment used to remove the uranium-contaminated materials.