In 1999, legacy transuranic solid waste (TRU Waste) at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) was packaged into large fiberglass-reinforced boxes and stored onsite. Now, the waste must be repackaged into different containers that meet current requirements before it is shipped off-site for later disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in Carlsbad, New Mexico. LANL established the TRU Waste Facility as a specialized nine-building campus where the waste inventory can be safely and efficiently repackaged and prepared for shipping.
“Transuranic” = Having atomic numbers greater than uranium
NV5 personnel performed the original geotechnical investigation for the facility and then performed specialized materials testing services during facility construction. For this work, we established a temporary on-site laboratory trailer for all soil and concrete testing and, as required by the LANL Building Official, received independent accreditation from the AASHTO Materials Reference Laboratory (AMRL).
All engineering and construction work on the project was performed under Nuclear Quality Assurance (NQA-1) program requirements and DOE’s Management Level 1 (ML-1) designation.