WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, EM rolled out a $6.1 billion budget request for fiscal year 2017. The request will provide the resources to maintain a safe and secure posture in the EM complex, and to continue moving forward with the country’s largest nuclear cleanup.
“I am excited about progress this budget proposal will allow us to make in the coming fiscal year. Not only will we be able to realize some significant near-term accomplishments, but we will be positioning ourselves to help address the longer-term challenges facing the EM program in the years to come,” said EM Assistant Secretary Monica Regalbuto. “I am confident that our federal and contractor workforce will continue to display their dedication to perform this work safely and efficiently.”
The Fiscal Year 2017 President’s budget request for the EM program will support a variety of activities, including:
- Initiation of waste emplacement activities at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant;
- Continuing progress on the Department’s plan to begin treating some tank waste at Hanford as soon as 2022 through the “Direct Feed Low Activity Waste” initiative;
- Operation of the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit to treat the approximately 900,000 gallons of remaining liquid tank waste at the Idaho Site for final disposal;
- Completing construction and ramp-up of commissioning for the Savannah River Site’s Salt Waste Processing Facility, which will significantly increase the Department’s ability to treat tank waste at that site;
- Completing demolition of the Hanford Plutonium Finishing Plant to slab-on-grade;
- Completing demolition of Building K-27 at Oak Ridge, the last of the gaseous diffusion enrichment process buildings at that site;
- Increasing investments to support infrastructure needs across the EM complex; and
- Increasing investment in technology development and deployment to help address many of the technical challenges involved with high-risk activities.