RADWatch
#WIPPUpdate:
07.04.2014
"The DOE itself hasn’t said when, or if,
WIPP will reopen. The fact is that we don’t know [...] what caused the
release, how to stop it, if underground can be decontaminated, how to
decontaminate surface, how to deal with worker health problems — None of
those are known [...] There is no instance in the world where you have
an underground salt mine significantly contaminated with radiation [...]
there is no experience in dealing with this situation. So we’re
starting from square one. It will be difficult, if not impossible, and
also very costly to cleanup the underground. Based on my 38 years in
working with the Department of Energy, I find it virtually inconceivable
— I hope they will decide if they can’t do total cleanup of the
underground, I hope they will decide not to reopen it. […] We need
independent analysis, independent medical people, and independent
technical folks to look at what happened and why it happened and what
kind of decontamination could be done, if any." - Don Hancock, Dir Nuclear Waste Safety Program
Outdated equipment, maintenance problems cause for WIPP Fire - currentargus/Photo: DOE |
Expert: No one in world has ever dealt with something like WIPP disaster — Continuous release of radioactive material ’24/7′ to environment — Nobody knows when leaking will end — It’s a ‘major failure’ for so many people to be exposed — Gov’t yet to say if dump will open again (AUDIO)
Published: April 6th, 2014 at 3:13 am ET
|
AP, Apr 4, 2014: Workers are prepared to encounter contamination [&] will try to figure out what caused [WIPP's] mysterious leak [of radiation that] contaminated 21 workers […] [No one's been] underground [...] to find the source of the leak and determine if [the fire & radiation] are related.
Nuclear Hotseat #145, with host Libbe HaLevy, M.A., Apr. 1, 2014:
- 5:15 in — Don Hancock, director of the Nuclear Waste Safety program and administrator at Southwest Research and Information Center: Data from what’s being captured [...] and what comes out of the filters, is that there have been continuing releases 24/7 […] There still is contamination coming out of the underground […] Numbers move around, but there’s always some amount of radioactivity in the underground air and lesser amounts being vented to the environment. Why it happened, why it was released, how much was really released, how much contamination there is in the underground, how long the releases continue, whether there could be further releases given that we don’t know what the situation is [...] All of those of things are unknowns.
- 7:30 in — Hancock: It’s not credible to think that 21 workers breathed in contamination and the only place that there is contamination is on the workers. There clearly has to have been soil contamination. DOE’s own modeling is that there’s extensive soil contamination around the site. So there is a lot more soil sampling that needs to be done. […] This is one of the many things that we don’t know -– How much came out, and where it is now?
- 8:30 in – Hancock: 40+ workers [still] waiting for results [...] certainly is possible there will be more than 21 [...] This is totally unacceptable […] There’s no reason that other workers should have come in and been contaminated, so it’s a major failure [...] There was never supposed to be this radiation release at all for 10,000 years.
- 11:45 in — Hancock: The DOE itself hasn’t said when, or if, WIPP will reopen. The fact is that we don’t know [...] what caused the release, how to stop it, if underground can be decontaminated, how to decontaminate surface, how to deal with worker health problems — None of those are known [...] There is no instance in the world where you have an underground salt mine significantly contaminated with radiation [...] there is no experience in dealing with this situation. So we’re starting from square one. It will be difficult, if not impossible, and also very costly to cleanup the underground. Based on my 38 years in working with the Department of Energy, I find it virtually inconceivable — I hope they will decide if they can’t do total cleanup of the underground, I hope they will decide not to reopen it. […] We need independent analysis, independent medical people, and independent technical folks to look at what happened and why it happened and what kind of decontamination could be done, if any.
Published: April 6th, 2014 at 3:13 am ET
|
WIPP expects third descent next week
CARLSBAD
>> The stage has been set for the investigation into February's
radiation leak at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, located 26 miles east
of Carlsbad.
Manned crews established an operations base underground at the nuclear waste disposal facility on Friday morning in the southern portion of the mine near the room where plutonium and americium was released. No radiological contamination was detected in the area of the camp that will be used as a base to identify the contamination source. The Department of Energy hopes a third descent into the mine some time next week. "We want it to be as close as possible (to the contaminated room) but in a clean area so we can have entrants remove contaminated equipment and clothing so they don't take that contamination back to the surface," said Donavan Mager, communications manager for the Nuclear Waste Partnership.
The workers took salt samples from the underground mine on Friday and the Department of Energy is sending them to Idaho National Laboratory for analysis. The results will help DOE establish a plan for decontamination of the underground if it is deemed necessary.
Two eight-man crews first entered the underground at WIPP on Wednesday for the first time since the initial radiation leak on Feb. 14. They surveyed the salt shaft and air intake shaft stations to confirm there was no radioactive contamination and established communications with the Central Monitoring Room above ground.
"Progress is being made, and we are working tirelessly to return our site to normal operations," said Joe Franco, DOE Carlsbad Field Office manager, in a letter addressed to Eddy and Lea County residents. "However, the recovery process is not without its challenges (and) we expect an accident investigation report on the radiological release in the near future that will include several areas needing improvement. We are actively implementing procedures and training that bolsters our emergency management practices and aids the protection of our workers and the public from any potential events in the future."
WIPP disposes transuranic waste, commonly referred to as "TRU," into the Permian-age salt bedrock 2,150 feet below ground and operations have been halted since Feb. 5 when a vehicle caught on fire underground, forcing evacuations of the mine.
TRU waste primarily consists of clothing, tools, rags, debris, residues and other disposal items contaminated with radioactive elements, mostly plutonium, which were used in manufacturing of Cold War-era nuclear weapons.
Manned crews established an operations base underground at the nuclear waste disposal facility on Friday morning in the southern portion of the mine near the room where plutonium and americium was released. No radiological contamination was detected in the area of the camp that will be used as a base to identify the contamination source. The Department of Energy hopes a third descent into the mine some time next week. "We want it to be as close as possible (to the contaminated room) but in a clean area so we can have entrants remove contaminated equipment and clothing so they don't take that contamination back to the surface," said Donavan Mager, communications manager for the Nuclear Waste Partnership.
The workers took salt samples from the underground mine on Friday and the Department of Energy is sending them to Idaho National Laboratory for analysis. The results will help DOE establish a plan for decontamination of the underground if it is deemed necessary.
Two eight-man crews first entered the underground at WIPP on Wednesday for the first time since the initial radiation leak on Feb. 14. They surveyed the salt shaft and air intake shaft stations to confirm there was no radioactive contamination and established communications with the Central Monitoring Room above ground.
"Progress is being made, and we are working tirelessly to return our site to normal operations," said Joe Franco, DOE Carlsbad Field Office manager, in a letter addressed to Eddy and Lea County residents. "However, the recovery process is not without its challenges (and) we expect an accident investigation report on the radiological release in the near future that will include several areas needing improvement. We are actively implementing procedures and training that bolsters our emergency management practices and aids the protection of our workers and the public from any potential events in the future."
WIPP disposes transuranic waste, commonly referred to as "TRU," into the Permian-age salt bedrock 2,150 feet below ground and operations have been halted since Feb. 5 when a vehicle caught on fire underground, forcing evacuations of the mine.
TRU waste primarily consists of clothing, tools, rags, debris, residues and other disposal items contaminated with radioactive elements, mostly plutonium, which were used in manufacturing of Cold War-era nuclear weapons.
Related Posts
- “I’ve got people who are bleeding from their behinds, who have sores all over their bodies” -Attorney for U.S. Navy sailors exposed to Fukushima radiation (AUDIO) February 12, 2013
- WIPP Update: DOE Reports Radiation Leak/Fire - madtownpreppers March 19, 2014
- Seismologist: Coastline beneath Fukushima nuclear plant could crack open during quake — Japan sits with possibility of having it ripped open (AUDIO) November 28, 2013
- Reports: Plutonium can escape from unfiltered shafts at WIPP — ‘Freakish’ accident “could have long-term effects” — “Anxiety coursing among the people” — ‘Nuke industry profiteers’ tell us “don’t worry, it’s safe… one of deadliest substances known to man” — Future of dump in jeopardy March 3, 2014
- Video: Gov’t official ‘chokes up’ over WIPP problems — Needs 15-second pause at community meeting — President of nuclear dump replaced — “We definitely got away with not having anyone seriously hurt” — Took 30 minutes to notice fire, truck leaking oil, extinguisher didn’t work March 14, 2014
- Official: Japan will be ruined if public doesn’t realize they’re being exposed to Fukushima radiation — “99.99% of the people are being sacrificed” — Rest of world will be taken down too (AUDIO) March 12, 2014
WEIN ViraMask N99 w/ViraSeal - 5pk - NebShip Shop |
SOL Origin Survival MultiKit - eBay |
Check Out Education Podcasts at Blog Talk Radio with USA Emergency Broadcasting Network on BlogTalkRadio
MP Off Grid Living/EV Page
fb: Madtown Preppers Page +Madtown Preppers @MadtownPreppers |
Madtown Preppers Alerts are for informational use only. These
alerts purpose is to inform you of news events in order for you to
adjust your family preparedness programs. We believe that
knowledge is power and in order for you to make informed
decisions, we try and bring you verified information, not to
increase fear but to inform you. We do not endorse any of the
sources we link to in any article.
No comments:
Post a Comment