EM at ‘Unique Moment’ to Contribute to DOE Goals, Senior Advisor Says

U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management Senior Advisor Roger Jarrell addresses the audience during the plenary session at the annual Waste Management conference. Photo courtesy of WMSymposia

PHOENIX — With the successful cleanup underway at the Oak Ridge Reservation serving as a “North Star,” the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) is entering into a “unique moment” to redefine how it conducts its mission to contribute to broader DOE goals, EM Senior Advisor Roger Jarrell said here last week.

Speaking at this year’s Waste Management conference, Jarrell emphasized how EM’s cleanup activities can contribute to the “golden era” of American energy DOE is working to create, including helping to advance American energy, drive innovation, modernize the U.S. nuclear stockpile and unleash nuclear power.

“EM has a unique moment to contribute to this golden era by helping enable U.S. jobs, U.S. energy and U.S. security, while maintaining a steady record of safe performance and driving down risks,” Jarrell said. “All of us also have a unique moment to re-envision how we do business across the board — to drive efficiency and innovative approaches that will help us contribute to this golden era. I hope you all share my excitement in what we, collectively, can achieve.”

Oak Ridge, the featured site at this year’s conference, serves as a vivid example of how EM’s cleanup activities can help foster new development for surrounding communities, according to Jarrell. EM has completed tearing down the former uranium enrichment process buildings and soil cleanup at the East Tennessee Technology Park section, making land available that is now being used by a number of nuclear companies, including Orano, which has announced plans to build a new modern enrichment facility there.

“What was once a massive gaseous diffusion plant used for nuclear weapons production dating back to the Manhattan Project is now a hub for the American advanced nuclear industry,” Jarrell said.

“The men and women of EM are transforming liabilities into assets … bringing buildings down and building up opportunities for the American people. We know we can do it because we have proven it at Oak Ridge down in Tennessee — that’s our North Star,” he said.

At the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant, EM’s cleanup progress is also making land available for transfer to the local community, with businesses expressing interest in locating there, according to Jarrell. Later this spring, EM anticipates beginning demolition of the second of the site’s three former enrichment process buildings.

“We are working to make even more land available for the people of Ohio to grow jobs, expand opportunities for private industry and boost affordable American energy,” Jarrell said.

At the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, Jarrell said, EM is preparing for the first land transfer there to the local community. And both the Portsmouth and Paducah sites are home to assets that have the potential for beneficial reuse, such as stocks of nickel.

“We are partnering with American industry to look at recycling nickel no longer needed at Portsmouth and putting it to safe and beneficial reuse. Again, an opportunity to transform a liability into an asset,” he said.

EM Working to ‘Deliver More in Our Mission and Do It at a Better Value’

As EM focuses on conducting cleanup with an eye toward future beneficial uses of land and assets, Jarrell noted the program is also taking a “hard look” at how it conducts operations across the board.

“[Energy] Secretary [Chris] Wright is looking to all of us to work smarter, faster and stronger to deliver more in our mission and do it at a better value for American taxpayers,” Jarrell said.

“Our entire leadership team is rolling up our sleeves and taking a hard look at how we can work smarter, work more strategically and work more efficiently,” he said. “We are driving efficiency through innovation, prioritization, and a focus on reining in schedules, because as we all know … time equals money. And we are looking for opportunities with the potential for the largest cost savings rather than just trimming around the edges.”

The annual Waste Management conference, hosted by WM Symposia, serves as one of the largest events in the world focusing on radioactive waste management and the EM program. The event provides EM an opportunity to engage with industry representatives from around the DOE complex to discuss shared challenges and identify opportunities for collaboration and potential solutions. It serves to help educate college students and early career professionals on the EM mission and to help attract next-generation talent. And, with international participation from over 25 countries, EM has the opportunity to discuss and share ideas with other nations dealing with their own nuclear cleanup issues and collaborate on solutions for effective waste management and facility decommissioning activities as well. 

“To industry and to our international partners, and to those just starting out in the nuclear field, we need all eyes and fresh eyes on the challenges we face, and what you think we may be missing,” Jarrell told attendees in his plenary remarks. “We need your ideas, your creativity and your innovation in helping us come up with solutions to meet these challenges.”

-Contributor: Michael Nartker