WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th September, 2019) The US Department of Energy has failed to fully follow recommended best practices in treating and disposing of nearly a million ton gallons of radioactive waste from nuclear facilities in the state of Idaho, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) said on Monday.
"The Department of Energy's Office of Environmental Management (EM) has not fully followed selected project management best practices in managing the reengineering of the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU) ... to treat 900,000 gallons of liquid sodium-bearing waste (SBW)," the report said.
The Energy Department completed a treatment complex for one form of the waste in 2012, the GAO acknowledged.
However, "initial testing revealed problems and a need for more work ... We found [the Energy Department] could improve how it manages the work. [The Energy Department] may also need to retrofit the facility to treat the other form of waste," the report said.
Total spending on the waste treatment project approached $1 billion in February 2019, the GAO noted. The Energy Department must treat all 2 million gallons of this waste and prepare it for removal from Idaho by 2035, the report added.
