GLOBAL NUCLEAR |
This effort, which began in the early 2000s, involved
safely removing more than 500 deteriorated and contaminated buildings big enough to cover 225 football fields.
ETTP was originally known as the K-25 Site. It was built
in secrecy in the 1940s as part of the Manhattan Project to provide enriched uranium for the world’s first atomic weapon. After the war, the site, renamed the Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant, expanded and new buildings were constructed to produce enriched uranium for defense and commercial purposes and later to explore new enrichment technologies. Those operations continued until the mid-1980s, and the site was shut down permanently in 1987. It provided fuel to the first nuclear submarine, the U.S.S. Nautilus, and the first U.S. nuclear power plant in Shippingport, Pennsylvania. The site’s closure left behind hundreds of facilities with highly contaminated equipment and piping that had to
be carefully addressed and removed. Among those were five massive enrichment buildings, including the mile-long K-25 Building, which was the largest building in the world when it was constructed. UCOR completed the transformation work four
years ahead of schedule, saving taxpayers $80 million in estimated cleanup costs and $500 million in environmental liabilities. In partnership with OREM, UCOR has transformed the
site into a multi-use industrial park that is providing new economic opportunities for the community. So far, nearly 1,300 acres of government land have
been transferred for new economic development, and more than 3,000 acres have been placed in a conservation easement for recreational use. Another 100 acres has been designated for historic preservation to share the site’s rich history. ■
To learn more:
colin.jones@
jacobs.com
Above: Before and during the demolition of the Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant and an impression of how the site will be transformed into the East Tennessee Technology Park Images courtesy of the U.S. Department of Energy
Above left: An aerial photo of Tank 10 at the Tank Closure Cesium Removal demonstration project (Savannah River Site) Above right: Employees perform work on a Tank Closure Cesium Removal column skid Images courtesy of the U.S. Department of Energy
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