Corps of Engineers: Removal of radioactive components will require additional precautions to protect workers
The Army Corps of Engineers and its contractors have demolished the building that housed an old nuclear power plant on Fort Greely as part of the decommissioning process for the facility. They’re now preparing to remove highly radioactive materials from the site.
Corps of Engineers officials say the agency and its contractors have made steady progress this year in decommissioning the power plant. The agency official heading up the project says that includes demolition of structures and construction of a waste-storage area and an all-weather enclosure over the site, so work can continue over the winter in preparation of next year’s tasks.
“ We are getting ready to transition into the more complex decommissioning efforts at the site,” said Brenda Barber, the national program manager for the Corps’ Deactivated Nuclear Power Plant Program. She gave a progress report on the $95.5 million project during two meetings held this week at Fort Greely and Delta Junction.
Barber said the first objective for the coming year will be to dismantle the spent-fuel pit, where used fuel rods were temporarily stored. The fuel was removed after the facility was shut down, along with other highly radioactive materials.
“ So there is no fuel left at the site,” she said. “We just want to continue to reiterate that what we do have left are radioactive components.”
Next, the Corps plans to dismantle the inner Vapor Container, or VC, so workers can remove reactor components and the material that encased them. The VC is a large vertical tank-like structure where gaseous byproducts were captured and stored while the plant was in operation from 1962 to 1972. After it was deactivated, the Army stored the components and radioactive materials there.
Barber said those tasks will require a higher level of safety precautions to protect workers from exposure to radioactivity and other hazardous materials, like ammonia. She says workers will be required to wear personal protective equipment, or PPE, and self-contained breathing apparatus.
“In order to protect our crew,” she said, “we’ll be using a combination of Tyvek suits and appropriate PPE to properly protect our employees. ... Because this puts our employees at a higher risk.”
A Corps of Engineers spokesperson declined requests for interviews on Tuesday, citing limitations resulting from the ongoing government shutdown. He added that the shutdown has not, however, delayed the project.
The spokesperson said the project contractor — Louisiana-based Aptim-Amentum Alaska Decommissioning — has transported 140 Conex-sized containers of demolition debris to a disposal facility in Texas since shipments began earlier this year.
He said removal of material and components from the site will continue into 2027. The project is scheduled to be completed in late 2029.
