Managers in the Laboratory’s Environmental Programs Directorate have announced a pause in operations at Area G, the Laboratory’s radioactive waste storage and disposal facility.
“In our quest to continuously improve our operational practices, we are briefly pausing work at Area G to assess the progress we’ve made so far and identify areas for additional improvement,” said Sue Stiger, associate director for Environmental Programs (ADEP). “That assessment will allow us to refine our project plan to ensure Area G operations are best in class.
The pause began Tuesday and is expected to remain in place for less than two weeks for many operations within Area G; some Area G operations likely will end the pause earlier.
Since last fall, the Laboratory has made substantial progress in its commitment to remove the highest-risk waste from Area G in a safe, timely, and environmentally responsible manner. A keystone of this achievement has been the successful upgrade of the Lab’s Waste Characterization, Reduction, and Repackaging Facility. The facility underwent a suite of physical and administrative upgrades in 2007 that allowed it to operate as a Category 2 nuclear facility and handle higher-activity waste for shipment to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad.
“We came out of the WCRRF experience realizing that operations at the facility after modification were much better than they were before WCCRF was modified,” Stiger said. “Our goal is to have the same operational excellence throughout Area G as at WCRRF, but we recognize that making progress toward that goal in a timely manner is much more difficult if operations are going on. The pause gives us an opportunity to improve our processes without significant impacts to mission-critical activities or operations.”
Laboratory workers and employees unaffiliated with Area G probably won’t notice any changes due to the pause. The focus of the pause will be to install a more disciplined and robust conduct of operations. Accordingly, Area G personnel will participate in the review of key processes associated with Area G operations. This step will help employees perform their jobs more effectively. After the pause, Area G employees can expect to see a more predictable and productive operational environment.
