Major Milestones Celebrated at the West Valley Demonstration Project

Jacobs recently celebrated the completion of the largest and most complex environmental cleanup at the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP) in West Valley, New York to date. Crews completed the demolition of the 10,000-square-foot vitrification plant and disposition of legacy waste.

The facility was used to solidify high-level radioactive liquid waste that was stored at the WVDP. Designed with 2- to-4-foot-thick reinforced concrete walls, the facility solidified 600,000 gallons of liquid radioactive waste from 1996 to 2002. 

Scott Anderson, president of CH2M HILL BWXT West Valley, LLC (now Jacobs) praised the workforce for their diligent execution of the critical work, remarking “Protecting the workforce and the environment were paramount during the demolition process. We completed this challenging milestone using lessons learned and look forward to applying those best practices on future projects.”

The team gathered in celebration of the successful completion at the site last month, reflecting on the demanding and technical tasks that the work required and lessons learned moving forward.

Leading up to the completion, efforts included the safe removal of four 7,188-pound in-cell coolers, six shield windows and a 38,000-pound process crane. The final phase was the removal of a 60-ton transfer tunnel door, 100-ton crane maintenance room shield door, cranes and equipment.

Jacobs was awarded the West Valley Demonstration Project - Phase 1 follow-on contract to carry out the first decommissioning phase of the site, slated to run through 2020. Jacobs’ scope of work includes the relocation and storage of vitrified high-level waste, legacy waste disposition; deactivation, demolition and removal of the Main Plant Process Building (MPPB) and the vitrification facility to grade, and balance of site facilities, surveillance and maintenance, and site operations.