WASHINGTON, D.C. – EM has released a new plan to address mercury contamination that advocates for research and technology development to resolve key technical uncertainties with the pollutant in environmental remediation, facility deactivation and decommissioning, and tank waste processing.

   Research and technology development related to mercury contamination have been identified by EM management as critical to completing EM’s mission more safely, efficiently, and cost-effectively.

   The plan recommends analytical and screening methods for mercury; approaches to stabilize mercury in debris, soil, and aquatic environments; determination of the chemical form, or species, of mercury in high-level radioactive waste liquids and sludges; processes to convert mercury from one form to another to facilitate removal or safe stabilization; and improved understanding of mercury speciation and reaction mechanisms in chemically complex tank waste.

   Grout formulation to stabilize mercury-bearing wastes and alternative methods for assessing the leachability of waste forms are two research areas proposed in the plan. 

   In addition to laying out technical recommendations, the plan emphasizes that EM must continue to demonstrate leadership in its partnerships with other agencies, institutions, and industries engaged in mercury-related research, technology development, and operations.

   Technology Plan to Address the EM Mercury Challenge focuses on two EM sites that used mercury in industrial-scale processes: the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR) in Tennessee and Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina. 

   EM is already implementing recommendations from the plan to mitigate the mercury contamination. The Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM) is designing a mercury treatment facility that will significantly reduce mercury migration from the Y-12 National Security Complex into the Upper East Fork Poplar Creek.

   OREM is also developing plans to build a research station along Lower East Fork Poplar Creek, where ecological studies will focus on reducing methylmercury concentrations in fish. Methylmercury, an organic form of the element, is especially toxic. It damages the nervous system, is quickly absorbed but slowly excreted, and accumulates in fish and other organisms.

   EM is pursuing new technologies to stabilize subsurface mercury contamination in the form of insoluble minerals that can safely remain in the ground, and it is assessing mercury contamination and removal in building materials such as concrete and steel. Planned research and technology development projects at SRS will improve mercury removal efficiency in the site’s liquid waste system.

   Prepared by representatives from Oak Ridge and Savannah River national laboratories, and EM headquarters in consultation with DOE site representatives, the plan is based on input from experts from DOE sites and national laboratories, industry, academia, and other federal agencies, who shared information about mercury contamination, remediation strategies, recent research and technology assessments, and lessons learned.

   At ORR, large quantities of mercury were used at Y-12 from the early 1950s until the early 1960s. During the peak period of operations, OREM estimates 700,000 pounds of the 20 million pounds of mercury used were released into the surrounding environment.

   Ongoing mercury abatement and remediation efforts at Y-12 that began in the 1980s have decreased overall mercury releases to the environment. However, elevated concentrations remain in water, soil, and certain facilities.

   SRS has used mercury for decades as a catalyst for dissolving aluminum cladding during nuclear separation processes and in other chemical processes. Mercury has not been released to the environment from these processes; rather, an estimated 60,000 kilograms of mercury is in high-level waste tanks and throughout the liquid waste system. 

   Read the full plan here.