‘Near miss’ incident reported at nuclear waste site near Carlsbad - Carlsbad Current-Argus JULY 19, 2024
‘Near miss’ incident reported at [WIPP] nuclear waste site near Carlsbad - Carlsbad Current-Argus JULY 19, 2024
...“Significant operational incidents persisted at WIPP following the safety stand-down in April,” the report read. “The (Department of Energy) Carlsbad Field Office (CBFO) is considering formal mechanisms to transmit to SIMCO its concerns about the trend of unsafe work practices at WIPP. The Board’s staff will continue monitoring progress with improving the safety culture at WIPP.”
Meanwhile, the DNFSB sent a letter to the U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, raising concerns that the final design of a rebuild of WIPP’s ventilation system known as the Safety Significant Confinement Ventilation System (SSCVS) did not demonstrate its ability to properly function in the underground, in environments with combustion products from fire and salt amid mining activities.
Construction on the SSCVS was completed in May, and it was being commissioned via various tests as the $486 million project was prepared for operations, increasing available airflow in the WIPP underground from 170,000 cubic feet per minute (cfm) to 540,000 cfm. The DNFSB said the “tentative date” for SIMCO to take over the system’s operations from its subcontractor was Aug. 26, 2024. The DOE was preparing a response to the DNFSB’s letter on the SSCVS...
Donna
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