Uranium Enrichment - Current Issues (USEC Paducah and Portsmouth plants, USA)
(last updated 14 Aug 2008)
> See also Current Issues for
U.S. Enrichment Corporation 
USEC Inc SEC filings
NRC Docket Nos. 07007001 (Paducah), 07007002 (Portsmouth)
Paducah aerial views: Google Maps · Terraserver
Portsmouth aerial views: Google Maps · Terraserver
> See also: USEC Portsmouth centrifuge plant project (extra page)
U.S. DOE releases Draft EA for disposition of contaminated nickel from Paducah enrichment plant
> View here
Federal Register: May 8, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 90) p. 26152-26153 (download full text )
To be certain of consideration, comments must be received by June 9, 2008.
A federal appeals court has ruled that a 10-year-old lawsuit alleging that water leaks from a Western Kentucky uranium enrichment plant hurt property values can go forward.
The decision, issued on Nov. 2, 2007, by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, reverses a decision by U.S. District Judge Joseph McKinley, who dismissed the suit, saying there was no proof that enough contamination existed to pose a health hazard.
The case stems from a suit filed by 16 homeowners who live near the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant. The homeowners sued in 1997, claiming about 10 billion gallons [37.9 million cubic meters] of polluted groundwater had damaged 82 pieces of property. They also claimed they lost use of their property and suffered losses of plants, crops, livestock and wildlife.
(The Courier-Journal Nov. 4, 2007)
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, Case Number: 04-5323, Smith, et al. v. Carbide Chem, et al, Western District of Kentucky at Paducah
> Download Court Opinion, Nov. 2, 2007 (PDF)
The U.S. Department of Energy announced the completion of waste cleanup of more than 49,000 containers from Building X-7725 at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant.
Waste was transported from the site to Perma-Fix/M&EC's treatment facility in Oak Ridge, Tenn., where it will undergo further treatment as part of a $9.4 million subcontract with LATA/Parallax. After treatment, the waste will be shipped by LATA/Parallax to the Energy Department's Nevada Test site for disposal.
(Central Ohio July 28, 2007)
On Nov. 15, 2007, Congressman Ed Whitfield introduced legislation, that if passed would keep the plant open beyond its 2012 closure date.
Congressman Whitfield says the Department of Energy wants to contract with USEC to re-enrich uranium tails contained in old cylinders at the Paducah and Portsmouth, Ohio, plants.
He says if everything falls into place, USEC would stay open an extra 3 to five years.
(WPSDTV Nov. 15, 2007)
H.R.4189 : To direct the Secretary of Energy to provide for the re-enrichment of certain uranium tailings, and the sale of the product of such re-enrichment, and for other purposes. (introduced 11/14/2007)
Paducah Mayor Bill Paxton says spent uranium in tens of thousands of cylinders at the plant and at a closed sister plant in Piketon, Ohio, is worth about three (b) billion dollars. He says that's based on the soaring price of the low-level radioactive metal.
Paxton adds that transferring some of the material to USEC to be re-enriched for use in nuclear power plants could extend the life of the Paducah factory by two to ten years.
(Herald Leader May 16, 2007)
> See also: Tails upgrading in USA
> See also: Re-enrichment of depleted uranium tails in Gaseous Diffusion Plants (300k PDF)
The cost for decontaminating and decommissioning the Department of Energy's three uranium enrichment plants - located near Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Paducah,
Kentucky; and Portsmouth, Ohio - will exceed the available funds by $3.5 billion to $5.7 billion.
United States General Accounting Office:
URANIUM ENRICHMENT - Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund Is Insufficient to Cover Cleanup Costs, Report to Congressional Committees, GAO-04-692, July 2, 2004
> Download full report (2M PDF)
"From fiscal year 1988 through 2003, DOE spent $823 million (in 2002 dollars) at the Paducah site. Of this total, DOE spent about $372 million (45 percent) for a host of operations activities, including general maintenance and
security; $298 million (36 percent) for actions to clean up contamination and
waste; and $153 million (19 percent) for studies to assess the extent of
contamination and determine what cleanup actions were needed. DOE
currently projects that the cleanup will take until 2019 and cost almost $1.6
billion to complete - 9 years and about $300 million more than DOE’s earlier
projection. The $1.6 billion, however, does not include the cost of other
DOE activities required at the site after the plant ceases operations,
including final decontamination and decommissioning of the plant and longterm
environmental monitoring. DOE estimates these activities will cost
almost $5 billion and bring DOE's total costs at the site, including the $823
million already spent, to over $7 billion through 2070 (in 2002 dollars). [...]"
United States General Accounting Office: Nuclear Waste Cleanup: DOE Has Made Some Progress in Cleaning Up the Paducah Site, but Challenges Remain, Report to Congressional Committees, GAO-04-457, April 1, 2004
> Download full report (927k PDF)
The U.S. Department of Energy has issued a document that explores whether aspects of the cleanup at the Piketon uranium enrichment plant could be done with less money while keeping the same amount of risk to the community:
> Download Draft Risk-Based End State Vision and Variance Report for the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant, Piketon, Ohio , Feb. 6, 2004
During a meeting held on March 23, 2004, area residents raised concerns:
The Southern Ohio Diversification Initiative, in its written comments to be attached to the report, expressed concern that, among other things, the location for groundwater sampling wells are moved from within plumes of pollution to the site's perimeter in the vision plan. Moving the sampling location could, in theory, pull water that already meets environmental cleanup standards and allow the DOE to avoid cleaning up the contaminated areas of groundwater. (Chillicothe Gazette March 24, 2004)
Cold Standby Program at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant, Audit Report, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Inspector General, Office of Audit Services, DOE/IG-0634, December 2003
> Download full report (2.4MB PDF)
From the results of the audit:
"The audit disclosed that the Department [of Energy] had not clearly defined the termination point of the Cold Standby Program, and the total Cold Standby Program costs had almoust doubled from initial project cost estimates, increasing to about $189 million. Similarly, the Department had not:
- Formally updated the program mission requirements;
- Assigned responsibility of the program to a single organization;
- Executed the most cost-effective procurement strategy; nor,
- Developed a programmatic baseline.
Without a well-defined endpoint and a formalized process for assessing the continuing need of the Cold Standby Program, the Department risks possbile unnecessary extensions of the program or potential disruptions in the supply of enriched uranium. In fact, if the Department decides to extend the Cold Standby Program until USEC deploys a full scale gas centrifuge, costs could increase from the initial $210 million estimate to over $600 million. [...]"
> Paducah Annual Site Environmental Report 2002, September 2003
> Five-Year Review for Remedial Actions at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, Paducah, Kentucky, DOE/OR/07-2067&D2, October 2003
GAO sees some progress, but still sceptical on DOE's cleanup efforts at Paducah
The GAO study found that total cleanup of the Paducah site will cost an additional $13 billion and would take until 2070 to complete.
United States General Accounting Office, Testimony Before the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, U.S. Senate:
NUCLEAR WASTE CLEANUP - Preliminary Observations on DOE's Cleanup of the Paducah Uranium Enrichment Plant, Statement of Robin M. Nazzaro, Director Natural Resources and Environment, GAO-04-278T, December 6, 2003
> Download full report (850k PDF)
Paducah plant cleanup deal signed - DOE to pay $1 million fine
Kentucky Gov. Paul Patton and the U.S. Department of Energy have agreed to an initial plan and timetable for cleaning up non-radioactive wastes at the uranium enrichment plant in Paducah. The agreement, which Patton signed yesterday, requires the Energy Department to remove toxic chemicals and metals from the soil and ground water around the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant between 2010 and 2019.
Also as part of the agreement, the Energy Department will pay a $1 million fine to Kentucky, which will go into the state's Heritage Land Conservation Fund for projects across the state. Another $200,000 from the department will pay for environmental improvements around the enrichment plant.
(Lexington Herald Leader Aug. 21, 2003)
Seven people resigned on Aug. 14, 2003, from the 18-member Paducah Citizens Advisory Board (CAB) at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, claiming the Department of Energy is "stonewalling" information about conditions at the plant and ignoring the board's recommendations.
The CAB is a stakeholders' board that provides advice and recommendations to
the United States Department of Energy (DOE) regarding environmental management programs at the Paducah site. There is widespread soil and groundwater contamination from nuclear waste buried in landfills and chemicals used to clean equipment. In 1988, the Energy Department began to identify the problems and prepare a cleanup plan.
(Courier Journal, Paducah Sun, Aug. 15, 2003)
> View DOE HQ release June 3, 2003
Federal Register: May 20, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 97) p. 27597-27598 (download full text )
To be certain of consideration, comments must be received within 30 days from May 20, 2003.
Federal Register: April 30, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 83) p. 23117
(download full text )
"SUMMARY: The Department of Energy (DOE), announces the availability of the Draft Environmental Assessment (EA) Addendum for Disposition of Additional Waste at the Paducah Site (DOE/EA-1339A) for public review and comment. [...]
The Draft EA Addendum evaluates the potential environmental impacts
associated with transportation of waste to disposal facilities at
various locations throughout the United States. The Draft EA Addendum
also evaluates the potential environmental impacts associated with the
no action alternative and enhanced on-site storage alternative.
"
On March 8, 2004, the Department of Energy announced the availability of the
Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) and Environmental Assessment
Addendum (EA Addendum) for Waste Disposition Activities at the Paducah
Site (DOE/EA-1339A).
> Federal Register: March 16, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 51) p. 12306
(download full text )
On April 7, 2003, the U.S. Department of Energy released the "Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund, 2001 Report" (third triennial report to Congress on the progress of cleanup work at the three gaseous diffusion plants managed by the Oak Ridge Operations Office)
> Download report (Sep 12, 2002) (1.6MB PDF)
U.S. Department of Energy: Paducah Site Annual Environmental Report
for Calendar Year 2001, September 2002
> View DOE Release Mar. 21, 2003
> Download Report
Federal Register: March 11, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 47) p. 11537-11538
(download full text )
"SUMMARY: The Department of Energy (DOE), announces the availability of the Finding of No Significant Impact and Environmental Assessment (EA) for Waste Disposition Activities at the Paducah Site (DOE/EA-1339). [...]"
Finding of No Significant Impact and Environmental Assessment (EA) for Waste Disposition Activities at the Paducah Site (DOE/EA-1339)
> Access EA
> See also: DOE issues Draft Environmental Assessment for Paducah Waste Disposition
U.S. Department of Energy: Portsmouth Annual Environmental Report
for 2001, Piketon, Ohio, December 2002
> View DOE Release Dec. 11, 2002
> Download Report
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has proposed a $60,000 fine against the U. S. Enrichment Corporation (USEC) for failing to properly protect classified information at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, which the company operates at Paducah, Kentucky.
> View NRC release Nov. 7, 2002
> View NRC Enforcement Action EA-02-085 (Nov. 5, 2002)
DOE/EA-1414, Final Environmental Assessment on the Implementation of the Authorized Limits Process for Waste Acceptance at the C-746-U Landfill, Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, Paducah, Kentucky, July 2002
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued an immediately effective Order to the United States Enrichment Corporation to implement interim compensatory security measures in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks.
> View NRC release June 18, 2002
"Following an evaluation of available relevant information, ATSDR concluded that, under existing conditions and normal operations, this site poses no apparent public health hazard for the surrounding community from current (1990-present) exposures to groundwater, surface water, soil and sediment, biota, or air. "
> View ATSDR release June 10, 2002
The draft EA covers PCB (Polychlorinated biphenyls) waste, Low-Level Waste, Mixed Low-Level Waste, and TRU (transuranic) Waste.
The public comment period for the document ends April 25, 2002.
> View DOE news release April 1, 2002
Predecisional Draft, Environmental Assessment for Waste Disposition Activities at the Paducah Site, DOE/EA-1339, Paducah, Kentucky, March 2002.
> Download full report (38 MB PDF)
dela Merced, M., Hintermann, B., and Resnikoff, M., Groundwater Movement at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant , prepared on behalf of PRESS and Uranium Enrichment Project, Radioactive Waste Management Associates, Report No. #R02-1, February 2002.
77 pp.
U.S. Department of Energy: Portsmouth Annual Environmental Report
for 2000, Piketon, Ohio, December 2001
> View DOE Release Feb. 11, 2002
> Download Report
The U.S. Department of Energy solicits public input on a draft Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis for the Decontamination and Decommissioning of the C-410 Feed Plant at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant. The document outlines the alternatives and proposed action for eventual reuse or demolition of the C-410 complex. The facility, which is no longer operational, was used to convert uranium oxide into uranium hexafluoride from the early 1950s until the late 1970s.
The public comment period ends January 21, 2002.
A public hearing will be held on January 10, 2002.
> View DOE news release (Dec. 20, 2001)
> View DOE Release December 12, 2001
The federal government has concluded that much of the $14 million in environmental sampling conducted around the Paducah uranium plant is unreliable.
The Department of Energy has taken new measurements showing contamination in fewer places -- and at lower levels -- than the original readings taken as long as a decade ago.
The problems with the measurements collected by CH2M Hill, the contractor for the original work, included margins of error that were greater than 50 percent and contamination readings at levels outside the range of what the instruments were calibrated to detect, said John Volpe, manager of the Kentucky Radiation Health and Toxic Agents Branch.
The cleanup of radioactive and chemical hazards around the Paducah plant, which for years processed uranium for nuclear weapons, will cost more than $2 billion to finish, according to some estimates. But the new readings suggest there may be less to clean up.
For example, plutonium levels in surface water and groundwater around the plant's perimeter dropped by about a third compared with the older readings, and six of 15 sites that had plutonium in surface water no longer show contamination.
Volpe is reviewing about 65,000 records of old data for the Energy Department. He said he has not kept a count of how many he has set aside, but a government subcontractor recently told Donham and other members of a citizens liaison group at Paducah that Volpe had rejected about 40 percent of 29,000 measurements checked so far.
(Courier Journal Nov. 25, 2001)
> see also: Plutonium contamination around Paducah (Kentucky) enrichment plant
No statistically significant excesses in mortality were identified in a study performed by NIOSH on 8877 Portsmouth uranium enrichment plant workers.
FINAL REPORT.
MORTALITY PATTERNS AMONG URANIUM ENRICHMENT WORKERS at the PORTSMOUTH GASEOUS DIFFUSION PLANT PIKETON, OHIO.
PREPARED BY THE STAFF OF
THE HEALTH-RELATED ENERGY RESEARCH BRANCH
DIVISION OF SURVEILLANCE, HAZARD EVALUATIONS, AND FIELD STUDIES,
NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES,
PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE,
CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION,
July, 2001, 179 pp.
> Download Summary (61k PDF) · Full text (1.1M PDF)
SILEX uranium enrichment technology classified
Portsmouth enrichment plant closed
On May 18, 2001 USEC Inc. officially notified the Department of Energy (DOE) that its Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Ohio ceased production of enriched uranium on Friday, May 11, 2001.
U.S. ATSDR releases Paducah public health assessment for comment
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry's (ATSDR) Public Health Assessment for the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant has been made available on ATSDR's Web site for public comment until May 31, 2001. This public health assessment addresses potential off-site exposures to radioactive and non-radioactive substances released from the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant.
"According to the information reviewed by ATSDR, under normal operating conditions, the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant currently poses no apparent public health hazard for the surrounding community from exposure to groundwater, surface water, soil and sediment, biota, or air."
> View Public Health Assessment
NRC approves enrichment assay upgrade at Paducah
The Paducah enrichment plant now can enrich to a concentration of 5.5 percent uranium-235, rather than 2.75 percent so far.
(NRC News Release March 19, 2001 )
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold a public meeting at 7 p.m. EST March 28, 2001, in Paducah, Kentucky, to discuss this license amendment. (NRC News Release March 21, 2001 )
NRC issues Preliminary Compliance Evaluation Report on Paducah enrichment assay upgrade project
On February 16, 2001, the NRC staff issued a Preliminary Compliance Evaluation Report on the U.S. Enrichment Corp. request to increase the enrichment assay at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion plant. Approval of the amendment request is contingent on resolution of a technical issue and the findings of an operation readiness review beginning Feb. 20, 2001.
> Download Text of Transmittal Letter
> Download Preliminary Compliance Evaluation Report
USEC Inc. finished the cleanup of its technetium-contaminated uranium inventories this month, the Company announced on Oct. 23, 2006. The 7,434 metric tons (MT) of uranium cleaned were part of an inventory of natural uranium transferred to the Company by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) prior to USEC's privatization.
In 2000, USEC discovered that 9,550 MT of that inventory may have contained elevated levels of technetium, making it out-of-specification according to standards for uranium hexafluoride for enrichment as set by the American Society for Testing and Materials. Because the uranium may not have met these specifications, USEC could not use the material as feed for enrichment.
USEC has been cleaning the 7,434 MT of contaminated inventory under a contract with DOE at the Company's Piketon, Ohio, facility using a patented process the Company developed. The cost of cleaning USEC's uranium was less than 15 percent of the price of buying replacement uranium at today's prices.
(USEC Oct. 23, 2006)
"Prior to the 1998 privatization of the U.S. Enrichment Corporation (USEC), the Department of Energy (DOE) transferred about 45,000 metric tons of natural uranium to USEC to, among other things, be enriched to fulfill USEC’s nuclear fuel contracts. About 9,550 metric tons were subsequently discovered to be contaminated with technetium, a radioactive metal, at levels exceeding the specification for nuclear fuel. Although DOE has not admitted liability, DOE and USEC have entered into agreements under which USEC is decontaminating the uranium. DOE has compensated USEC for its decontamination costs in several ways, including using proceeds from sales of government-owned clean uranium."
"As of February 28, 2006, USEC reported that about 10 percent of the
contaminated uranium that DOE transferred to the corporation prior to
privatization remains to be decontaminated, or about 960 metric tons of the
9,550 contaminated metric tons transferred. DOE estimates USEC will finish
decontaminating this uranium by the end of December 2006. Through the
end of February 2006, USEC has invoiced DOE for a total of about $152
million in decontamination costs."
U.S. ENRICHMENT CORPORATION PRIVATIZATION: USEC's Delays in Providing Data Hinder DOE's Oversight of the Uranium Decontamination Agreement, United States Government Accountability Office, GAO-06-723, June 2006 (1.8M PDF)
In December 2000, USEC notified the U.S. DOE that testing on "limited samples" of the uranium transfered to USEC in 1998 found some contamination with radioactive technetium. How much of the uranium may be tainted is still to be determined, but the amount could be more than 24 million pounds, a third of the 74 million pounds of raw uranium the government turned over in 1998. USEC wants the government to replace any contaminated material. (AP Feb. 7, 2001)
DOE releases Exposure Assessment Report for Paducah enrichment plant workers
Up to 400 workers exposed up to 20-fold in excess of standard
"PURPOSE AND APPROACH
The Exposure Assessment Team (herein referred to as the "Team") was charged with conducting a preliminary study at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP) to define the radiological issues, the categories of workers that may have had increased potential for radiation exposure, the locations and processes where increased exposures may have occurred, and, where possible, provide some reasonable estimates of radiation exposures to the worker groups. While all types of possible radiation exposures were considered, particular attention was given to potential exposures to the transuranic elements (TRU), neptunium and plutonium. Dosimetric information on worker exposures to the transuranics was particularly meager."
From the Conclusions:
[...] "The Team estimates that 2,500 to 4,000 workers worked in areas with increased potential for internal and external radiation exposures. The Team estimates that approximately 200 workers received in excess of 1 rem in a calendar year, and also estimates that on the order of 10% of the 2,500 to 4,000 workers had the potential for internal exposures that may have approached or exceeded regulatory limits." [...] (emphasis added)
A public meeting on the study will be held on February 1, 2001, in Paducah.
> View DOE press release, January 10, 2001
> Download full report: Exposure Assessment Project at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (Dec. 2000) (1.3MB PDF)
DOE releases two reports on Cold War era work at Paducah
"The Department of Energy (DOE) today issued two reports covering Cold War era work at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant. The first covers "Work For Others" activities, including weapons support and disposition-related activities conducted for other federal agencies at the facility from the 1950s until 1986. The second report provides information on the recovery and disposition of various metals at the Paducah site from 1952 to 1986." (DOE press release Dec. 21, 2000 )
> Download Report on the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant "Work for Others" Program, Including Weapons Support and Disposition, December 2000.
> Download Report on the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant Metals Recovery Program, December 2000.
NRC invites comments on proposed increase of Paducah enrichment assay limit
Federal Register: Nov 22, 2000 (Vol. 65, No. 226) p. 70368-70369 (download full notice ):
"The U.S. Enrichment Corporation is
requesting that the assay limit for the Paducah facility be increased
from the current 2.75 wt% 235U up to 5.5 wt% 235U. The proposed
amendment, if approved, would allow the Paducah facility to withdraw
from the cascade and ship 5.0 wt% enriched uranium hexafluoride
(UF6)."
Written comments must be received by December 22, 2000.
'Blue glow' reported at Paducah burial pit
A "blue glow" reported by workers at the Paducah
Gaseous Diffusion Plant could indicate nuclear reactions occurred
underground in a top-secret burial pit for atomic-weapons parts,
according to an internal memo obtained by The Courier-Journal.
The memo, written Thursday by a health physicist employed by the plant
operator, says "a 'blue glow' that looked like 'blue fire' above the
ground" was first observed in the early 1980s over the southwest corner
of the C-746-F classified burial yard and was reportedly seen a number
of times after that.
Ray Carroll, a health physicist for the U.S. Enrichment Corp., wrote
that the "blue glow" could be a type of radiation resulting from
nuclear fission processes, and added, "If the cause is a fission
source, personnel entering the area could potentially receive a lethal
dose of radiation." (The Courier-Journal Oct. 25, 2000)
After testing for radiation on Oct. 27 at the burial pit
at the Paducah uranium plant, the U.S. Department of Energy said it
had ruled out that a "blue glow" seen there had been caused
by a nuclear reaction. (The Courier-Journal Oct. 28, 2000)
"A uranium processing plant in Paducah, Ky., spread plutonium farther
around the facility than was previously known and even contaminated
ground water in the area, according to newly released documents.
Maps drawn last summer but not released to federal investigators reveal
that plant officials had taken hundreds of measurements over 10 years
showing plutonium in soil and water more than a mile from the plant's
fence. Most disturbing was the discovery of elevated levels of the
highly dangerous metal in dozens of ground-water tests.
The results of these tests suggest that government contractors knew far
more about the extent of the contamination than was previously
acknowledged, and the spread of plutonium was much more extensive than
Energy Department officials reported after an investigation last fall." (Washington Post, Oct 1, 2000)
> view Paducah plutonium maps
USEC to close Portsmouth enrichment plant in Piketon, Ohio
USEC Inc. announced on June 21, 2000 that it will cease uranium enrichment operations at the Portsmouth plant in Piketon, Ohio, beginning in June 2001. After that date, the Paducah, Kentucky, plant will remain USEC's only operating enrichment plant. At present, both plants are producing at 25% of their capacities only. Before the Portsmouth plant can be shutdown, the Paducah plant has to be upgraded, since it does not produce but a pre-product of less than commercial reactor grade so far.
GAO releases report on Paducah cleanup
"Conclusions. DOE faces significant challenges in cleaning up the Paducah site. First, given the many uncertainties and optimistic assumptions inherent in the cleanup plan, there is reason to doubt that the Department will complete its
planned cleanup actions by 2010 within the estimated $1.3 billion cost.
Furthermore, if the cleanup plan is carried out as currently envisioned,
billions of dollars and many years will be required to address areas not
included in the current cleanup plan. For example, additional costs and
time will be required to address about 1 million cubic feet of waste and
contaminated scrap that is contained in DOE's material storage areas, 16
unused buildings, and other structures that will remain on site." [...]
"In addition, DOE officials estimated
that it might cost between $1.8 billion and $2.4 billion to operate the
conversion facility at Paducah for nearly 25 years and to store and dispose
of the unused converted material. Finally, according to DOE's January 1998
estimate, another $1 billion would be needed for final decontamination and
decommissioning activities when the plant ceases operations and is
returned to DOE."
Nuclear Waste Cleanup: DOE's Paducah Plan Faces Uncertainties and Excludes Costly Cleanup Activities, United States General Accounting Office , GAO/RCED-00-96, Apr. 28, 2000
> Download full report (3.1 MB PDF)
> See also: GAO Testimony Before the Subcommittee on Energy Research, Development, Production and Regulation, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, U.S. Senate: NUCLEAR WASTE CLEANUP, DOE’s Cleanup Plan for the Paducah, Kentucky Site Faces Uncertainties and Excludes Costly Activities, GAO/T-RCED-00-225, June 27, 2000
> Download full testimony (160k PDF)
Appeals court upholds decision to dismiss lawsuit filed by Paducah uranium enrichment plant workers
On March 8, 2005, 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati upheld a decision by U.S. District Judge Joseph McKinley to dismiss a lawsuit seeking more than $10 billion for Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant workers who say they suffered emotional distress and potential medical expenses because of exposure to radioactive materials and chemical contamination.
(Herald Leader Mar. 8, 2005)
> Download: Court Opinion 05a0112p.06 (Rainer v. Union Carbide Corp), March 8, 2005 (PDF)
Judge rejects Paducah workers' recycled uranium exposure claims
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit seeking more than $10 billion for Paducah uranium plant workers who were unknowingly exposed to plutonium and neptunium.
In a 16-page ruling July 16, 2003, U.S. District Judge Joseph McKinley concluded the plant operators were covered under the 1957 Price-Anderson Act that limits the liability of private operators of nuclear facilities "in the event of a nuclear incident."
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Paducah in 1999, sought damages for as many as 10,000 people who have worked at the plant since it opened 50 years ago.
The workers sued two former plant operators, Lockheed Martin and Union Carbide Corp., as well as General Electric Co., which shipped uranium to the plant from 1954 to 1998.
Evidence of damage to DNA and chromosomes isn't sufficient to show physical injury, McKinley said. Rather, the workers had to show "objective symptoms of illness or disease or, at the very least, some physical harm."
Some of the plaintiffs said that they're determined to challenge the ruling before the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati.
(Courier-Journal July 18, 2003)
Kentucky Western District Court
> View Public Citizen's Price-Anderson Act page · NIRS' Price-Anderson Act factsheet
U.S. DOE Releases Historical Studies of Recycled Uranium
DOE release March 29, 2001
> Access all reports · Overview report (March 28, 2001) (300k PDF)
> Access enrichment plant site reports: Paducah · Portsmouth · Oak Ridge
U.S. DOE releases independent investigation report on Portsmouth plant
On May 25, 2000, the Department of Energy issued the report on its five month investigation of "past and current practices that potentially effected the environment and the safety and health of workers and the public" at the department's Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Southern Ohio.
"The report concludes that current operations in Energy
Department-controlled areas of the plant do not present an immediate risk
to workers or the public, but that there are also weaknesses in current
operations that need to be addressed."
"The review of historical operations at the site indicates that certain
work activities and locations posed higher exposure risks to radiological
and chemical hazards than others. Enrichment process facilities with the
potential for such exposures include the cascade and other process
buildings; a fuel manufacturing plant; an oxide conversion plant;
decontamination, cleaning and uranium recovery facilities and
incinerators. The most hazardous operations at the plant involved the
operation of the oxide conversion plant, which had continuous airborne and
surface radioactive contamination over its use from 1957 to 1978.
Personnel working in this facility were exposed to transuranics and other
hazards." (from DOE News Release May 25, 2000 )
Office of Oversight, Environment, Safety and Health: Independent Investigation of the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant, U.S. DOE, May 2000
> Download report
State Task Force Releases Paducah Report
On April 27, 2000, a fact finding team appointed by Kentucky Governor Paul Patton released its report about the Paducah uranium enrichment plant.
"After several weeks of work, the fact-finding team reported to Governor Patton that based on available information they believed no immediate threat to public health that had not been previously disclosed and posted existed in the immediate vicinity of the PGDP. The team did however have serious concerns about: 1) the historical lack of environmental data and oversight in and around the PGDP, and 2) the adequacy of the federal government's plan for completing the necessary environmental cleanup in and around the PGDP."
> Download Report of the Commonwealth of Kentucky's Task Force Examining State Regulatory Issues at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, April 2000 (480k PDF)
U.S. DOE releases second part of independent investigation report on Paducah plant
On Feb. 10, 2000, the Office of Oversight in the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Environment, Safety and Health released a report of its findings of the Phase Two Independent Investigation of the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Kentucky. The second phase of the investigation -- ordered in August by Secretary of Energy Bill Richardson in response to allegations of improper environment, safety and health practices -- covered activities at the plant from 1952 to 1990.
A public meeting to review the report's results will be held in Paducah on February 23, 2000.
> View DOE Press Release Feb. 10, 2000
> Download Phase II Independent Investigation of the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, Feb. 2000
Recycled Uranium Legacy Web Site
"This site has been designed to provide information about the ongoing investigation of health concerns involving the processing of recycled uranium at various Energy Department sites.":
U.S. DOE ES&H Recycled Uranium Legacy Web Site
U.S. NRC releases special inspection reports on Paducah and Portsmouth plants
On October 28, 1999, the NRC completed a special team inspection of the current radiation protection programs at the Paducah and Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plants. The inspection was conducted as a result of concerns over past worker exposures to transuranic and fission product radionuclides at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant.
> Access NRC Inspection Reports 70-7001/99013 & 70-7002/99013 (dated Nov. 23, 1999): View (173k HTML) · Download (230k PDF)
U.S. DOE releases first part of independent investigation report on Paducah plant
On October 20, 1999, the Office of Oversight in the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Environment, Safety and Health released a report of its findings of the Phase One Independent Investigation of the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Kentucky. The first phase of the investigation -- ordered in August by Secretary of Energy Bill Richardson in response to allegations of improper environment, safety and health practices -- covered activities at the plant since 1990.
> View DOE press release Oct. 20, 1999
> Download full text (1.9M PDF format)
U.S. DOE releases data on former processing of recycled uranium at enrichment plants
The Department of Energy (DOE) has completed an initial stage of a technical review of past operations involving recycled uranium at gaseous diffusion plants located in Paducah, Kentucky; Oak Ridge, Tennessee; and Piketon, Ohio. Up to 1977, about 107,000 tonnes of recycled uranium, containing plutonium, neptunium, and technetium-99, were processed in these plants.
Plant workers had not been informed about the additional hazards from this material, compared to natural uranium.
> See
DOE Press Release Sep 29, 1999
> For details, see:
Historical Impact of Reactor Tails on the Paducah Cascade, by R. F. Smith, U.S. DOE, March 1984 (3MB PDF - unclassified)
"During routine operations on the morning of December 9, 1998, operations staff observed a series of abnormal conditions associated with the Side Purge Cascade, Cell 25-7-2. The operations staff's immediate response to the abnormal conditions was not successful in restoring normal operations and an exothermic reaction was either started or propagated within the cascade. The exothermic reaction continued until sufficient heat was generated to cause a failure of the Cell 25-7-2 cooling system, initiating a second exothermic reaction. Subsequent heat and pressure increases within the Side Purge Cascade resulted in: 1) the creation of holes within the process gas cascade boundary of Cell 25-7-2; 2) an automatic shutdown of the Side Purge Cascade; 3) the activation of a portion of the Building X-326 automatic fire suppression sprinkler system; 4) an emergency response and approximately two hours of firefighting activities by the onsite fire department; and 5) challenges to the continued operation of the remainder of the process gas cascade."
> View full Report No: 070-7002/98019(DNMS) (180k)
SECY-98-275 - Report to Congress on the Gaseous Diffusion Plants Located near Paducah, Kentucky, and Portsmouth, Ohio, November 24, 1998 (Covering the Period from October 1, 1997, to September 30, 1998)
> View full text: HTML (123k) · WordPerfect
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has proposed a $55,000 fine against the U.S. Enrichment Corporation (USEC) for an inadequate maintenance and testing program for safety-related valves at its Portsmouth, Ohio, gaseous diffusion plant.
> View NRC news release RIII-98-44 (July 16, 1998)
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued an order to the U.S. Enrichment Corporation (USEC) confirming the company's commitment to install seismic modifications in two buildings at its Paducah, Kentucky, Gaseous Diffusion Plant by September 30.
> View NRC News Release 98-57 (April 23, 1998)
> View full text of Confirmatory Order EA 98-156 (April 22, 1998)
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has proposed a $55,000
fine against the U.S. Enrichment
Corporation (USEC) for violations of nuclear safety
requirements at its Portsmouth, Ohio, Gaseous Diffusion Plant.
The violations involve major deficiencies in the nuclear
criticality safety and self-assessment programs at the
Portsmouth facility.
> View NRC News
Announcement III-98-19 (March 20, 1998)