High Flux Beam Reactor Decommissioning
 

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is planning the decommissioning of the High Flux Beam Reactor (HFBR), a small research reactor that was permanently shut down by DOE in 1999 after being operated on the Lab site from 1965 through 1996.

With safety as its top priority, DOE and Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) will decommission the HFBR in a manner that protects workers, the public, and the environment. The decommissioning is being conducted under the Federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). In 1992, an Interagency Agreement (IAG) among the DOE, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation became effective. The IAG provides the overall framework for conducting environmental restoration activities at BNL.

Structures that will be addressed as part of the HFBR decommissioning project include the confinement building, which is the recognizable hemispherical dome-shaped building often seen in photographs, along with several ancillary structures. Together these buildings are known as the HFBR complex. All of these buildings are located within the central portion of the BNL site.

During the past several years, many interim cleanup actions were undertaken to ensure the facility is in a safe and stable condition. Detailed sampling and analysis activities were completed and a Feasibility Study was prepared to document the site characteristics and the evaluation of remedial alternatives for the decommissioning project.

The Feasibility Study results were used to prepare a Proposed Remedial Action Plan (Proposed Plan). The Proposed Plan identifies the preferred alternative and the rationale for its choice, and provides the community with concise, yet complete information on the project.

The public is encouraged to submit comments on the Proposed Plan during the formal comment period to help ensure that community expectations are considered in selecting the remedy for the HFBR. After the public comment period ends, DOE will review public comments and make a final decision on the cleanup remedy. A "responsiveness summary," which compiles the public comments and DOE's responses to them, will be part of a Record of Decision that documents the final cleanup agreement, and will be included on this website.

Last Modified: February 1, 2008
Please forward all questions about this site to: Kathy Schoenig

One of ten national laboratories overseen and primarily funded by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Brookhaven National Laboratory conducts research in the physical, biomedical, and environmental sciences, as well as in energy technologies and national security. Brookhaven Lab also builds and operates major scientific facilities available to university, industry and government researchers. Brookhaven is operated and managed for DOE’s Office of Science by Brookhaven Science Associates, a limited-liability company founded by Stony Brook University, the largest academic user of Laboratory facilities, and Battelle, a nonprofit, applied science and technology organization.

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