Environment
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Hot Topics - Environmental Issues in the NewsStudy Finds Radioactivity around Los Alamos Largely due to Natural SourcesA recent study that assessed levels of radioactivity near the Laboratory confirmed that nearly all measured radioactivity in the area is due to natural sources. Last of High-activity Drums Shipped to WIPPThe last group of unvented high-activity drums left Los Alamos National Laboratory for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad earlier this month. 2007 Environmental Surveillance ReportThe 2007 Environmental Surveillance report is available online. These annual reports summarize environmental data that comply with applicable federal, state, and local environmental laws and regulations, Executive Orders, and DOE policies. Additional data, beyond the minimum required, are gathered and reported as part of the Laboratory's efforts to ensure public safety and to monitor environmental quality at and near the Laboratory. ChromiumRoutine groundwater monitoring conducted in 2005 led to the identification of chromium contamination in regional groundwater at monitoring well R‑28 located in Mortandad Canyon. Chromium concentrations at that well are approximately 400 μg/L (ppb), exceeding the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) and Environmental Protection Agency standards of 50 μg/L and 100 μg/L, respectively. The Laboratory has prepared and is implementing an "Interim Measures Work Plan" pursuant to a requirement from the NMED. November 2008 Update | Read more Site-wide Environmental Impact StatementThe National Nuclear Security Administration issued the first in a series of Records of Decision based on the Sitewide Environmental Impact Statement for continued operations of the Laboratory. The Record of Decision announced last Friday also was published in the Federal Register. TA-21 ClosureTA-21, also known as the Delta Prime (DP) Site, is on DP Mesa, situated immediately east-southeast of the Los Alamos town site at an elevation of 7140 feet. TA-21 was the site of chemical research for refining plutonium and plutonium metal production from 1945 to 1978. As a result, most waste disposal activities involved plutonium. Upper Los Alamos CanyonEnvironmental sampling has begun in the vicinity of Upper LA Canyon. The investigation is part of the NMED Consent Order. Well Drilling MethodsAs part of the 1998 to 2005 characterization program outlined by the Hydrogeologic Work Plan, 33 wells (designated as R-wells) were drilled. It was anticipated that characterization wells might eventually become part of a groundwater monitoring network. Concerns were raised that some R-wells might not be suitable for monitoring because fluids used in the drilling process were not completely removed. Remnants of these fluids could impact the ability of the wells to provide representative groundwater data and compromise the ability to detect reactive contaminants. The Laboratory conducted an extensive analysis of the 33 R-wells (documented in the Well Screen Analysis Report), on a screen-by-screen basis. |