Active Sites Environmental Monitoring Program FY 1995 Annual Report

Abstract

Chapter 3 of US Department of Energy (DOE) Order 5820.2A (DOE 1988) specifies requirements for the management of facilities that were used for the disposal of radioactive solid low-level waste (LLW) on or after the date of the order. Activities in Solid Waste Storage Area (SWSA) 6 at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) are governed by Chapter 3. Chapter 2 of 5820.2A covers the transuranic (TRU) waste storage areas in SWSA 5 North at ORNL. Both chapters require environmental monitoring to provide early warning of leaks before such leaks pose a threat to human health or the environment. Chapter 3 also requires the monitoring of LLW disposal facilities so that their performance can be evaluated. In order to comply with this Order, the Environmental Sciences Division (ESD) at ORNL implements the Active Sites Environmental Monitoring Program (ASEMP) for the Radioactive Solid Waste Operations Group (RSWOG) within the Waste Management and Remedial Action Division (WMRAD) at ORNL. The scope of ASEMP includes all ORNL waste disposal sites that were active on or after the date of the Order and that are under the operational control of RSWOG of WMRAD. This report continues a series of annual and semiannual reports that present the results of ASEMP monitoring activities. This report details monitoring data for fiscal year (FY) 1995 and is divided into three major areas: (1) SWSA 6, including the Interim Waste Management Facility (IWMF), the Hillcut Disposal Test Facility (HDTF), and the low-level Liquid-Waste Solidification Project (LWSP), (2) the TRU-waste storage in SWSA 5N, and (3) building 7574 in SWSA 7. The detailed monitoring methodology is described in the second revision of the ASEMP program plan and in updated ASEMP monitoring procedures included as Appendix B to this report. This report presents a summary the methodology used to gather data for each major area along with the results obtained during FY 1995.