The Niagara Falls Storage Site (NFSS) is divided into three operable units: the Interim Waste Containment Structure (IWCS) Operable Unit (OU); the Balance of Plant OU, which includes all the remaining site soils around the IWCS as well as some of the site infrastructure; and groundwater. The status for the OUs is outlined below.
Interim Waste Containment Structure Operable Unit
Based on the extensive data compiled and analyzed over the past 25 years, the IWCS, which was engineered and constructed by the U.S. Department of Energy in the early 1980s, is performing as designed and remains protective of human health and the environment.
The proposed plan for the IWCS OU was released for public comment December 7, 2015. A public meeting was conducted on January 13, 2016, and the comment period closed February 6, 2016.
A video of the public meeting, the meeting transcript and the comments received regarding the proposed plan are available at the links below.
The proposed plan and supporting documents are available in the administrative record file for the site, which is available electronically in the Town of Lewiston Public Library, 305 South Eighth Street, Lewiston, New York, and the Youngstown Free Library, 240 Lockport Street, Youngstown, New York. The administrative record file is also available for review by appointment at the Buffalo District Office Library located at 1776 Niagara Street in Buffalo, New York.
Balance of Plant Operable Unit and Groundwater Operable Units
Feasibility studies are being prepared that will develop and evaluate remedial alternatives which would be appropriate to mitigate potential future unacceptable risks from exposure to FUSRAP-related material for both OUs.
Vicinity Properties
Additionally, the Corps of Engineers is responsible for environmental investigation and response at three open vicinity properties, designated as Vicinity Properties E, E Prime, and G on an adjacent private parcel. These open vicinity properties were impacted by the Manhattan Engineer District and the Atomic Energy Commission; however, not all portions of the properties were accessible for investigation by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) during the 1980s. The DOE has identified Vicinity Properties H Prime and X as eligible for the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program and these two properties are currently under consideration by the Corps of Engineers for designation into the program.