Posted on 02/28/2013 10:11:43 PM PST by Rabin
Covering the ground with a durable plastic or asphalt barrier is one option possible to stop the spread of radioactive waste leaking from Hanfords underground tanks, said Jane Hedges, manager of the Department of Ecologys nuclear waste program.
She spoke at a work session hearing of the Washington State Senate Energy, Environment and Telecommunications Committee this morning.
Two of the barriers were built earlier at Hanford to prevent rain and snowmelt from driving contamination deeper into the soil. That contamination was left from earlier tanks spills or leaks. The barriers have markedly decreased the amount of water infiltrating the ground near the tanks, Hedges said.
(Excerpt) Read more at tri-cityherald.com ...
R.
What?
I’m guessing Rabin either is pretending to live downstream - or really DOES live downstream. Or perhaps he was the worker a few years ago that plopped a big rock down into one of these tanks to measure how full it was. (Yes - really!!)
What have you been drinking?
Paging Jimmy Carter, Jimmy carter please call the Atomic Energy Commission and explain why you forced them to stop reprocessing the fuel rods. Please Mr Carter. Tell us why you guaranteed these poisons would get out
Somehow, when faced with toxic underground leakage, my first try at a solution would not be to spread a blanket on top of it. But that’s just me.
TC
The idea is to keep rainwater out, which only adds to the fluids in the soil which will help it get down to the aquifer and then out to the river. The groundwater is fairly deep IIRC.
Think of it as a puddle of oil in your gravel driveway. As long as it just stays there and soaks the gravel a bit it is no big deal. Wash it with a hose and it spreads out and into the ground and heading to the gutter and and beyond.
They are trying to figure out ways to put barriers below the tanks - but that has been difficult. The tanks are too old and weak to move, etc.
In that article (or a linked article) it says they are pumping out the old tanks. But there are a lot of them. And it takes ONE YEAR!!!??? to empty one tank!! Granted, it is unknown waste with Radioactive material, acids, and other unknown goop - but still - ONE YEAR!??
Although I have worked out at the site, and over a two week period saw a replacement sink for a bathroom go from being a box in the corner to an unwrapped sink in the corner with the cardboard leaning against the wall, so.....
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