Possible Huntington Pilot Plant Site Profile Revision; FOIA filed

The revision has yet to be made public or place on the NIOSH/CDC website. According to Barrie, the board members referred to “508 compliance.” A websearch revealed that prior to posting of government documents they must be adapted for compliance with internet accessibility standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

HNN has filed a FOIA request for the data.

The agenda for the meeting included discussion of amendments to workers dose reconstructions at three gaseous diffusion plants in Portsmouth, Paducah, and Oak Ridge.

Previously, HNN ran a story that the data based for workers dose reconstructions would be overhauled at those plants.  One of the issues at those plants is the assay (enriched quality) of the uranium which also relates to recycled uranium radioactivity.

The Huntington Pilot Plant, which was operated by the Department of Energy’s predecessor the Atomic Energy Commission, was located on the campus of Special Metals (then International Nickel). The HPP was dismantled in 1978-1979 and buried at a “classified” landfill on the grounds of the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Piketon, Ohio.

The HPP received raw and recycled materials from the three plants , according to public records.

Another area under consideration for revision relates to uranium contamination and residual radiation. "The air concentration on the first day of the residual contamination period should be assumed to be equal to that which was pesent during the end of operations. The ingestion calculated... can then be decreased... "

The calculation error was discovered in the Dupont Deepwater works. "This error is not isolated to  Dupont Deepwater. A comprehensive review of the estimation of ingetions during the residualcontamination period willbe conducted for  all Technical Information Bulletin's (TIB's) ."

Three additional assumptions were considered: (a) surface contamination levels are likely to be orders of magnitude higher than predicted;(b) surface contamination is likely to build up over time that may extend to weeks/months before reaching equilibrium; for some procedures, surface contamination may have originated from liquid spills or from milling, grinding, cutting and welding."  (Evaluation of Inadvertant Ingestion of Radionuclides DCAS' Response, October 23, 2012, http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/OCAS/pdfs/dps/dc-tib9-102312.pdf )

SUMMARY:  (from www.hss.energy.gov)

Huntington Pilot Plant Also Known As: Reduction Pilot Plant State: West Virginia     Location: Huntington Time Period: 1951-1963; 1978-1979 Facility Type:    Department of Energy

   
Facility Description:The AEC built the Huntington Pilot Plant in 1951 to supply nickel powder for use in the Paducah and Portsmouth gaseous diffusion plants. One source of the nickel was scrap nickel which was contaminated with uranium. The plant was shutdown in 1963 and maintained in standby condition. It was demolished in 1978-1979.

CONTRACTOR: International Nickel Company (1951-1963)

TRANSCRIPT: Work Group on Uranium Refining AWE's,

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/OCAS/pdfs/abrwh/2012/wgtr090712.pdf