Quarterly ER public meeting scheduled

Contact: John Bass, jbass@lanl.gov, (505) 665-9204 (02-047)

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LOS ALAMOS, N.M., May 3, 2002 -- Los Alamos National Laboratory's Risk Reduction and Environmental Stewardship-Remediation Division (formerly the Environmental Restoration Project) will host its second quarterly public meeting to provide an update on recent cleanup activities from 5:30 to 8:00 PM on Wednesday, May 8, 2002, in the Great Room of the Betty Ehart Senior Center in Los Alamos.

An open house and poster displays will precede the presentations. The projects to be discussed are the Technical Area 16-260 outfall, the DP Tank Farm and the status of land transfer in Los Alamos County.

Due to discharge from the TA-16-260 outfall over the years, soils, surface waters and ground waters in Canon de Valle became contaminated with high explosive (HE) and barium that were at one time as high as 20 percent and 1 percent (by weight) in soils near the processing building. It is currently undergoing the first corrective measures study/corrective measures implementation (CMS/CMI) at the Laboratory. As an interim measure, 2,000 cubic yards of the most highly contaminated soil was removed in 2001.

The DP Tank farm was located near the intersection of DP Road and Trinity Drive directly east of the Knights of Columbus Hall parking lot. The Tank Farm was the primary fueling station supporting Laboratory operations from January 1946 to February 1988. Operations from two fueling stations and 15 storage tanks resulted in the release of diesel and gasoline fuel into the environment and are the sources for two hydrocarbon seepages in DP Canyon. The Laboratory removed the tanks and equipment, and later completed a Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) facility investigation (RFI) at the DP Tank Farm site where petroleum hydrocarbon products had been stored. The data from the numerous environmental investigations of the site indicated no chemicals of potential concern remain at the site in concentrations that pose an unacceptable risk to human health or the environment. The New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) approved the Laboratory's recommendation for no further action at the site in early 2002.

Also to be discussed is the status of transfer by DOE of Laboratory-associated lands to Los Alamos County, the New Mexico Highway Department or the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to be held in trust for San Ildefonso Pueblo. Public Law 105-119, enacted by Congress on November 27, 1997, requires that DOE lands be transferred which are no longer needed or prospectively needed to support the national security mission of the DOE, and which are suitable for "historic, cultural, or environmental preservation purposes, economic diversification purposes or community self-sufficiency purposes."

In February 1998, the DOE identified 10 parcels of land (4,796 acres) to be considered for conveyance and transfer. Since then, the original 10 parcels have been further subdivided into 28 sub-parcels to accelerate the land transfer process. Before any parcel can be conveyed or leased, the Laboratory must remediate any contaminated sites and comply with all applicable environmental laws. Thirteen (13) sub-parcels are scheduled for conveyance by the end of September, 2002.

The Betty Ehart Senior Center is located at 1001 Oppenheimer Drive in Los Alamos next to the Mesa Public Library.

For more information, contact Carmen M. Rodriguez at 665-6770 or write to carmenr@lanl.gov by electronic mail.

Los Alamos National Laboratory is operated by the University of California for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) of the U.S. Department of Energy and works in partnership with NNSA's Sandia and Lawrence Livermore national laboratories to support NNSA in its mission.

Los Alamos enhances global security by ensuring safety and confidence in the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction and improving the environmental and nuclear materials legacy of the cold war. Los Alamos' capabilities assist the nation in addressing energy, environment, infrastructure and biological security problems.