Cleanup Evokes Memories of West Valley’s Patented Waste Disposal Invention

Workers use demolition equipment to reduce the size of degraded liners, or waste boxes, and vitrification vault lids at the West Valley Demonstration Project earlier this this year. They loaded the resulting debris in waste containers and shipped them to an offsite disposal facility. Among the items demolished and disposed of were SUREPAKs, or subsurface recoverable packaging systems, which were invented by a group of engineers at the site in the 1980s.

WEST VALLEY, N.Y. — As West Valley Demonstration Project workers prepared a miscellany of legacy items for disposal this year, they dug up memories of a patented invention for the safe disposal of radioactive waste created by a group of engineers working on the site’s cleanup in the 1980s.

The invention was a subsurface recoverable packaging system, or SUREPAK. It was unique in that it could be inspected, had its own liquid collection and monitoring system and was configured to eliminate gaps between waste containers for improved storage. The system also provided shielding for personnel involved with waste storage and disposal.

The engineers who created the SUREPAKs were with Westinghouse’s Waste Technology Services Division. West Valley Nuclear Services, a Westinghouse subsidiary, began operations as the management-and-operations contractor for the site’s cleanup in 1982.

Dan Meess was chief engineer with the Westinghouse group. He has been a longtime employee of the West Valley cleanup and currently supports the project part time.

"I was proud to help develop and implement the SUREPAK storage and disposal modules that were more environmentally friendly and reduced personnel dose," Meess said.

Dan Meess, a longtime team member of the West Valley Demonstration Project cleanup, was among a group of engineers who created a patented invention for the safe disposal of radioactive waste at the site in the 1980s.

In addition to three SUREPAKs, the present-day cleanup team demolished 28 degraded liners, or waste boxes, and 17 vitrification vault lid sections this year. They loaded the debris into 22 waste containers weighing nearly 1.2 million pounds — equivalent to more than 440 small cars — for shipment to an offsite disposal facility.

The vitrification vaults had stored contaminated equipment removed from the Vitrification Facility during its deactivation. In 2018, U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management workers demolished the 50-foot-tall, 10,000-square-foot facility once used to solidify thousands of gallons of radioactive waste.

Stephen Bousquet, assistant director for West Valley’s Office of Project Management, said the demolition and disposal of the SUREPAKs and other items this year continues the mission to reduce legacy waste and risks at the site.

“The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management will continue advancing safe and compliant progress at the site for the surrounding communities,” he added.

Daniel Way, Decontamination and Decommissioning manager for cleanup contractor West Valley Cleanup Alliance, said his team planned and executed the demolition and disposal work safely, compliantly and efficiently.

“This crew used lessons learned to enhance safety, improve efficiency and reduce exposure to job-related hazards,” Way said. “They put their collective knowledge into practice.”

Bousquet noted that West Valley’s present-day team carries on the spirit of innovation seen in the early days of the site’s cleanup.

“The West Valley team continues to be innovative in the cleanup mission while maintaining safety, reducing costs and addressing the legacy of the past,” he said.

-Contributor: Joseph Pillittere