Angeline Leishman
The Parsons-operated Salt Waste Processing Facility at the Savannah River Site in Aiken, South Carolina, processed its one-millionth gallon of radioactive nuclear waste approximately nine months after its opening in October 2020.
The recent milestone moves SWPF closer to achieving the Department of Energy’s goal of emptying the 43 high-level waste tanks at SRS, Parson said Monday.
“SWPF operations and the resulting increased treatment capacity delivers immense value to the nation by increasing the efficiency and volume of processed nuclear waste, greatly reducing the time needed to accomplish the nuclear remediation mission,” noted Mike Pittman, vice president and SWPF project manager at Parsons.
DOE tasked Parsons in 2002 to build a facility that could process 32 million gallons of salt waste that fill nearly the entire SRS tank space.
The prime contractor completed construction work in April 2016, eight months before the target date and more than $65 million below the expected cost.
“The operational success of SWPF is a testament to the commitment and dedication of the DOE and Parsons workforce over the last 19 years through design, development, testing and now processing,” said Chris Alexander, president of Parons’ engineered systems business unit.
The milestone comes months after Parsons tapped General Atomics to support radioactive operations at SWPF.
