Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory

Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laberatory (also called Idaho Nuclear Environmental Engineering Laboratory (INEEL)) is a facility located in Southeastern Idaho. One of the largest (and some argue THE largest) Nuclear Waste Facility in the western United States.

Facility Map

This facility handles much of the nuclear waste that is left from all over the country. In fact, it is said that it handles as much or more than Yucca Mountain.

There are very few guidelines that are followed for disposal, and many methods are already causing problems with soil and water in Idaho.

The Department of Energy now estimates that approximately 50% of the containers (mostly barrels, but also wooden crates, and cardboard boxes) burst open upon being dumped or when the pits and trenches were covered and compacted by running heavy equipment over the dirt covered pit. Flooding and infiltration has led to containers being compromised allowing the escape of plutonium and toxic chemicals into the soil.

Currently there are no viable plans for cleanup of the buried waste in the pits and trenches. However there are hints from DOE that most of the waste will be left in place and "stabilized" with subsurface grouting and a cap over the surface. Only "hot spots" will be excavated.

[url=http://www.snakeriveralliance.org/About%20INEEL/Buried%20Waste.htm]>>from here

Originally posted by ImAlreadyPsycho

The Department of Energy now estimates that approximately 50% of the containers (mostly barrels, but also wooden crates, and cardboard boxes) burst open upon being dumped or when the pits and trenches were covered and compacted by running heavy equipment over the dirt covered pit. Flooding and infiltration has led to containers being compromised allowing the escape of plutonium and toxic chemicals into the soil.

What I can't figure out is, why can't they build holding tanks...? I mean, people build houses and have sewers etc... built... Maybe nuclear waste would be un-hindered by a foot of concrete on all sides...? Does anyone know for sure? I am sure there are steps that could be taken... Why the heck is it in cardboard boxes and wooden barrels in the first place???

INEEL is home to some really interesting stuff. Years ago, during my first visit, I toured EBR-1, the first breeder reactor and the first nuclear reactor to produce electrical power if my memory serves me right.

For years there has been discussion about how to clean up the contamination at INEEL. Being that the facility is located in a rather remote location, it is doubtful that there will be huge pressure to eliminate the contamination. The price tag would probabaly be far more than sending a manned mission to mars. Most of the contamination is from low level wastes that were dumpped into pits in the 50's. Fortunately, the groundwater at the sight is relatively isolated as is the site.

This facility definitely deserves some discussion here...

Originally posted by copcorn
Fortunately, the groundwater at the sight is relatively isolated as is the site.

Wrong. INEEL sits atop the Snake River acquifer. It is estimated that several tons of low-level radioactive material sits at the base of the last Snake River dam. All accumulated from unprotected pits that have leached isotopes into the acquifer.

Cancer rates are another sign. They're above average for all of Southern Idaho.

Big place. I guess the idea is that this is a remote place of some sort. But Idaho is not really that remote.

They should be carving out some mountain to put this stuff into.

POCATELLO - A radioactive contaminant has increased in the Snake River Plain Aquifer under underground storage tanks which the Department of Energy contends need not be totally emptied.

Were it to be digested in the human body, the high levels of Technetium-99 could cause cancer. It would take at least 120 hours for three-fourths of it to be naturally removed from the body's thyroid gland and gastrointestinal tract.

Even though the levels found exceed drinking water standards, none of the radionuclides were found in drinking water, DOE spokesman Bruce Byram said in an e-mailed statement.

[url=http://journalnet.com/articles/2003/09/27/news/local/news01.txt]>>from here

Oops -- sorry about the missed groundwater thing. I am going back about 10 years in my memory for the information... I must have been thinking about another facility that I used to work with.

Radioactive waste eats through concrete and everything. About the only thing you could do with it is put it in a mine. Like a Limestone quary and seal it behind steel doors.

Actually a limestone quarry would be an exceedingly bad selection to lock up radioactive waste.

Limestone is often pourous and promotes water flow quite readily. If any water infiltrates into the chamber, it would easily dissolve its way out of containment.

Radioactive waste is tricky stuff to store. The thought of putting it in salt diapirs (domes) has come up a few times as salt is rather stable in arid conditions, and if it does fracture it is actualy semi-liquid and self seals.

It is not really surprising that there would be a great deal of groundwater contamination from such a facility. One such facility that I work on has a groundwater contamination plume 2.5x as large in aerial extent as the entire surface area of the base it comes off of.

Originally posted by copcorn
Oops -- sorry about the missed groundwater thing. I am going back about 10 years in my memory for the information... I must have been thinking about another facility that I used to work with.

No worries, it just that I'd like to see a thorough discussion of this facility. I've had to drink the groundwater and I know whats sitting out there.

I'm preparing some posts to elaborate on IAP's discussion of Yellowstone and dangers seismic activity near INEEL..

Found this interesting site you may want to look at:
www.andra.fr...

On this webpage they discuss LILW-SL (Low Intermediate Level Waste - Short Lived) and HLW-LL (High Level Waste - Long Lived) and different ways to deal with disposal...

On another note, I have never heard of ANDRA... has it been discussed here before?? Do they seem to be pretty straight-forward and legit?? Thoughts/speculations???

For one the thing they're light years ahead of the U.S. in waste management.

The policy described in this chapter incorporates the quality and environmental policies required respectively by the ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 standards.

DR would be a good person to ask, but I can't think too many U.S. nuclear facilities have 9001 or 14001 certification.

[Edited on 13-10-2003 by kukla]

My fault... I was assuming when I read that they were a National Waste Management Facility, I figured that was in the U.S.

Why would their knowledge surpass ours? I mean, if the technology is available online...?

Originally posted by kukla
For one the thing they're light years ahead of the U.S. in waste management.

The policy described in this chapter incorporates the quality and environmental policies required respectively by the ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 standards.

DR would be a good person to ask, but I can't think too many U.S. nuclear facilities have 9001 or 14001 certification.

[Edited on 13-10-2003 by kukla]

Being as we have no active nuclear facilities in my area, I am not familiar with these, but will see if I can look them up.

Did some searching over lunch... found this site...

www.nei.org...

They refer to HLW (high level waste) as used nuclear fuel... fyi

Used fuel pools: safe storage inside plants. At most plants, used fuel is stored in steel-lined, concrete vaults filled with water. In these used fuel pools, the water acts as a natural barrier for radiation from the fuel assemblies. The water also keeps the fuel cool while the fuel decays�becomes less radioactive. The water itself never leaves the inside of the plant�s concrete building.

also...

Dry storage container construction: Containers are made of steel or steel-reinforced concrete, 18 or more inches thick, as well as lead, which serve as proven, effective radiation shields. Once loaded with used fuel assemblies, the containers are stored horizontally in a concrete vault, or they stand upright on a three-foot-thick concrete pad. The containers are designed and tested to prevent the release of radioactivity under the most extreme conditions�earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods and sabotage�and are naturally cooled and ventilated.

This is directly off of the above posted link... Among other things on the site, did you all know: "The U.S. Department of Energy is conducting one of the most thorough scientific studies ever performed, lasting years, costing more than $6 billion, and involving thousands of scientists, engineers, and technicians."

Here is what I found regarding the referenced environmental guidelines. Since we have no nuclear facilities here, and I am not certified for work in nuclear facilities, I honestly have very little knowledge on this front.

www.iso14000-iso14001-environmental-management.com...

I used to work at a HP fab that was 9001 certified. Just a grunt, nothing more. But I do know that 9001 management protocols are very stringent and so are the environmental protocols, 14001. 14001 has only been accredited to a handful of local municipalities and corporations in the U.S.

I sincerely doubt that 14001 has been accredited to any nuclear facility in the U.S.

There are nuclear and electric powerd tunnelling machines in use today,which leave a glass lined tunnel in their wake,all you have to do then is seal the ends,but that would be too simple,these problems are allowed to happen so some bull# agency stays in existence..............

. . .an application of photonuclear physics to nuclear waste called Photodeactivation, a term coined by the inventor, Dr. Paul M. Brown. Photodeactivation involves the irradiation of specific radioactive isotopes to force the emission of a neutron, thereby producing an isotope of reduced atomic mass. These resultant isotopes are characteristically either not radioactive or radioactive with a short half-life.
�NSOL Press Release

www.spiritofmaat.com...

The proven method of transmuting radioactive waste is low-energy nuclear transmutation. A new design has also been developed which is believed to be at least one million times more powerful than low-energy nuclear transmutation.

www.lightparty.com...