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150-672: The Fernald Feed Materials Production Center (commonly referred to simply as Fernald or later NLO ) is a Superfund site located within Crosby Township in Hamilton County, Ohio , as well as Ross Township in Butler County, Ohio , in the United States . It was a uranium processing facility located near the rural town of New Baltimore , about 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Cincinnati , which fabricated uranium fuel cores for

300-409: A 2 + 5 ⁄ 8 " RB-6 Acme-Gridley machine and were centerless ground before the drilling operation. The oversize slug blank was then loaded into a magazine loader on a 1 + 5 ⁄ 8 " Acme and thence through a four-step drilling operation making a hole halfway through the blank. The blank was then reversed and again placed in the magazine loader. After a four-step drilling sequence produces

450-530: A consent decree subject to public comment (section 122). This was to address sweetheart deals between industry and the Reagan-era EPA that Congress had discovered. In 1994 President Bill Clinton issued Executive Order 12898, which called for federal agencies to make achieving environmental justice a requirement by addressing low income populations and minority populations that have experienced disproportionate adverse health and environmental effects as

600-432: A Li 2 CO 3 -K 2 CO 3 molten salt to be heated to 1,150–1,200 °F before being discharged singly to the mill table. The ingot was passed back and forth through the blooming mill until it was reduced to an oval billet approximately 2" to 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 ". The ends of the billet were then cut off by a cropping shear before it was pushed into an equalizing furnace. The billet was reheated to 1,150–1,200 °F in

750-486: A Medart Straightener. Rods to be beta heat treated by-pass the cooling bed and were lifted into the beta heat treating furnace by means of a hoist, to be held at 1,320–1,365 °F for 11–20 minutes and then quenched in cold water. After quenching, these rods were conveyed to the Medart straightener for straightening. The rods were located in 2 + 5 ⁄ 8 -inch Acme-Gridley automatic screw machines where slugs were cut from

900-458: A Superfund site. In 1978, residents of the rural black community of Triana, Alabama were found to be contaminated with DDT and PCB , some of whom had the highest levels of DDT ever recorded in human history. The DDT was found in high levels in Indian Creek, which many residents relied on for sustenance fishing. Although this major health threat to residents of Triana was discovered in 1978,

1050-496: A capacity of 3.6 metric tons or 55 gallon drums. This pneumatic transfer of the product was known as Gulping. The Green Salt Plant , the common name for Plant 4 , produced "green salt" ( uranium tetrafluoride ) from UO 3 . Green salt was the key intermediate compound in the overall process of producing uranium metal. This plant contains 12 banks of furnaces for the conversion of uranium trioxide to uranium tetrafluoride. Each bank consists of four furnaces in series. The first furnace

1200-467: A charge of derbies and solid recycle scrap. The loaded crucibles were then mechanically positioned in induction melting and casting furnaces that were designed to give a maximum of flexibility and a minimum of human exposure to radioactivity. The uranium metal was melted under high vacuum to minimize contamination of the melt with atmospheric gases and to permit purification of the metal by distillation of volatile contaminants. At approximately 2,550 °F,

1350-430: A common source of contamination in areas that were industrialized before about 1960. Coal naturally concentrates lead and zinc during its formation, as well as other heavy metals to a lesser degree. When the coal is burned, most of these metals become concentrated in the ash (the principal exception being mercury). Coal ash and slag may contain sufficient lead to qualify as a "characteristic hazardous waste ", defined in

1500-401: A condition known as a "boilover" results. The reaction generates so much gas that it becomes a foam and boils over the sides of the vat. Many workers were told to not step in any puddles on the floor as they were probably nitric acid left from one of these "boilover" incidents. The site employed their own cobblers just to repair work boots that had been exposed to too much acid. Another hazard was

1650-706: A contractor for the Department of Energy . These Fernald Settlement Funds are administered by a US Federal Court, which maintains oversight of the Fernald Medical Monitoring Programs. The Fernald (Residents) Medical Monitoring Program (FMMP) is a voluntary ongoing medical surveillance program for community residents living within five miles of the perimeter of the Fernald site, and the Fernald Workers Medical Monitoring Program (FWMMP)

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1800-456: A contribution action under the CERCLA. CERCLA liability has generally been judicially established as joint and several among PRPs to the government for cleanup costs (i.e., each PRP is hypothetically responsible for all costs subject to contribution), but CERCLA liability is allocable among PRPs in contribution based on comparative fault. An "orphan share" is the share of costs at a Superfund site that

1950-537: A degreasing tank, pickling tank, two rinse tanks and a hot air dryer before depositing the slug basket in the Inspection Department. The slugs were inspected for seams, striations, dimensions and handling defects with the good slugs being packed for shipment. In addition to the solid slugs produced in Plant 6, hollow fuel element production was started about January 1, 1956. Hollow slug blanks were produced oversize on

2100-491: A diameter and distance between pipes making a criticality incident nigh impossible. Plant 2/3 was known as the Ore Refinery & Denitration Plant . It was called Plant 2/3 because two separate functions occur in the same building. Here uranium values were recovered from feed materials (i.e., ores, concentrates and residues) and were converted to concentrated uranium trioxide , also called orange salt. In addition to uranium,

2250-656: A high in 1960 of 10,000 metric tons to a low in 1975 of 1,230 metric tons. Refining uranium metal was a process requiring a series of chemical and metallurgical conversions that occurred in nine specialized plants at the site. Workers at the site were represented by the Fernald Atomic Trades and Labor Council. Releases from the Fernald site to the surrounding area resulted in exposure to community residents included ionizing radiation, soluble and insoluble forms of uranium, and various other hazardous chemicals. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has conducted

2400-509: A historical exposure characterization and developed dose estimation models through the Fernald Dose Reconstruction Project, with an endpoint of developing an algorithm to estimate doses to individual persons who lived within the exposure assessment domain (the area within a ten kilometer radius from the center of the plant site). In addition to radioactive materials, many other non-radiological toxic substances were present in

2550-500: A hole all the way through the blank, a reamer was passed through this hole in the final position. The oversize Outer Diameter was turned concentric with the finished Inner Diameter on an automatic Sundstrand lathe. Subsequent operations were the same as those for the solid slug. Plant 7 was known as the 6 to 4 Plant because UF 6 was converted to UF 4 here. It was basically a high-temperature gas-to-solid reactor system that only operated for two years: 1954–1956. To produce UF 4 ,

2700-477: A lesser chance of successful listing and cleanup than areas with higher income levels. After the executive order had been put in place, there persisted a discrepancy between the demographics of the communities living near toxic waste sites and their listing as Superfund sites, which would otherwise grant them federally funded cleanup projects. Communities with both increased minority and low-income populations were found to have lowered their chances of site listing after

2850-470: A part of land degradation is caused by the presence of xenobiotic (human-made) chemicals or other alteration in the natural soil environment. It is typically caused by industrial activity, agricultural chemicals or improper disposal of waste . The most common chemicals involved are petroleum hydrocarbons , polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (such as naphthalene and benzo(a)pyrene ), solvents , pesticides, lead , and other heavy metals . Contamination

3000-541: A production facility for various processes. In the early years, derbies were produced there, in the manner described in Plant 5. Another process operated on a production scale was the direct conversion of uranium hexafluoride to green salt. This production process was operated with UF 6 that contained as much as 2.5% U235. A two-step procedure was used. First was the vaporization of UF 6 : solid UF 6 in large 10 or 14 ton cylinders were heated in autoclaves at approximately 110 °C to produce gaseous UF 6 . The next step

3150-524: A pure metal. However, improvement in production techniques permitted the eventual development of an oxalate precipitation process capable of producing pure thorium metal. Interest in this item declined during the 1956–1957 period and the plant operations evolved to the casting of enriched uranium ingots larger than those being processed in the Metals Production and Metals Fabrication Plants. Ingots were cast up to 13-inch diameter, 38-inch length and having

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3300-996: A reduction in crop yields. This has a secondary effect upon soil conservation , since the languishing crops cannot shield the Earth's soil from erosion . Some of these chemical contaminants have long half-lives and in other cases derivative chemicals are formed from decay of primary soil contaminants. Heavy metals and other soil contaminants can adversely affect the activity, species composition and abundance of soil microorganisms, thereby threatening soil functions such as biochemical cycling of carbon and nitrogen. However, soil contaminants can also become less bioavailable by time, and microorganisms and ecosystems can adapt to altered conditions. Soil properties such as pH, organic matter content and texture are very important and modify mobility, bioavailability and toxicity of pollutants in contaminated soils. The same amount of contaminant can be toxic in one soil but totally harmless in another soil. This stresses

3450-482: A result of their programs, policies, and activities. The EPA regional offices had to apply required guidelines for its Superfund managers to take into consideration data analysis, managed public participation, and economic opportunity when considering the geography of toxic waste site remediation. Some environmentalists and industry lobbyists saw the Clinton administration's environmental justice policy as an improvement, but

3600-577: A separate processing route for putting the uranium into solution. Uranium oxides are dissolved in 6000 gallon vats of pure nitric acid in the Oxide Digester (also known as the west metal dissolver), miscellaneous residues that required filtration were dissolved in the Slag Leach Digester, and metals were dissolved in the Metal Dissolver. If the ore was poured too rapidly into the nitric acid vats

3750-574: A site for the NPL is intended primarily to guide the EPA in: Despite the name, the Superfund trust fund has lacked sufficient funds to clean up even a small number of the sites on the NPL. As a result, the EPA typically negotiates consent orders with PRPs to study sites and develop cleanup alternatives, subject to EPA oversight and approval of all such activities. The EPA then issues a Proposed Plans for remedial action for

3900-418: A site on which it takes public comment, after which it makes a cleanup decision in a Record of Decision (ROD). RODs are typically implemented under consent decrees by PRPs or under unilateral orders if consent cannot be reached. If a party fails to comply with such an order, it may be fined up to $ 37,500 for each day that non-compliance continues. A party that spends money to clean up a site may sue other PRPs in

4050-401: A system of conveyors, which conveys the material to a surge hopper that feeds the ring roll mill. The particle size output from the mill was controlled to about 100 mesh by an air classifier mounted directly on the mill. The undersized material was blown to a cyclone separator that was mounted directly above the first Gallagher sampler. The three Gallagher samplers in series each took a 10% cut of

4200-403: A threat to the environment, to food safety and to sustainable agriculture. According to a scientific sampling, 150 million mu (100,000 square kilometres) of China's cultivated land have been polluted, with contaminated water being used to irrigate a further 32.5 million mu (21,670 square kilometres) and another 2 million mu (1,300 square kilometres) covered or destroyed by solid waste. In total,

4350-405: A vector for disease or cause a nuisance. Although there are benefits to the use of pesticides, there are also drawbacks, such as potential toxicity to humans and other organisms. Herbicides are used to kill weeds, especially on pavements and railways. They are similar to auxins and most are biodegradable by soil bacteria. However, one group derived from trinitrotoluene (2:4 D and 2:4:5 T) have

4500-415: A weight approaching 2,000 pounds. As such the processes and equipment used were almost identical to those of Plants 5 and 6. The Pilot Plant consists of small size equipment for piloting refinery operations, hexafluoride reduction, derby pickling, ingot casting, and other equipment for special purposes. This plant was used for numerous process testing and experimental operations as well as being employed as

4650-578: Is a United States federal environmental remediation program established by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 ( CERCLA ). The program is administered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The program is designed to investigate and clean up sites contaminated with hazardous substances. Sites managed under this program are referred to as Superfund sites . Of all

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4800-557: Is a need to control this so that pathogenic microorganisms do not get into water courses and to ensure that there is no accumulation of heavy metals in the top soil. A pesticide is a substance used to kill a pest. A pesticide may be a chemical substance, biological agent (such as a virus or bacteria), antimicrobial, disinfectant or device used against any pest. Pests include insects, plant pathogens, weeds, mollusks, birds, mammals, fish, nematodes (roundworms) and microbes that compete with humans for food, destroy property, spread or are

4950-523: Is a possible polluter who may eventually be held liable under CERCLA for the contamination or misuse of a particular property or resource . Four classes of PRPs may be liable for contamination at a Superfund site: The liability scheme of CERCLA changed commercial and industrial real estate, making sellers liable for contamination from past activities, meaning they can't pass liability onto unknowing buyers without any responsibility. Buyers also have to be aware of future liabilities. The CERCLA also required

5100-623: Is a program for former workers who were employed when National Lead of Ohio was the contractor. Activities of the medical monitoring programs include both periodic medical examinations and diagnostic testing and yearly questionnaire data collection. In January 2007, there were 9,764 persons enrolled in the FMMP and 2716 former workers enrolled in the FWMMP. The FMMP has an extensive computer database available for research studies. Samples of whole blood, serum, plasma and urine were obtained from all FMMP participants at

5250-449: Is attributable to a PRP that is either unidentifiable or insolvent. The EPA tries to treat all PRPs equitably and fairly. Budgetary cuts and constraints can make more equitable treatment of PRPs more difficult. Upon notification of a potentially hazardous waste site, the EPA conducts a Preliminary Assessment/Site Inspection (PA/SI), which involves records reviews, interviews, visual inspections, and limited field sampling. Information from

5400-652: Is correlated with the degree of industrialization and intensity of chemical substance. The concern over soil contamination stems primarily from health risks, from direct contact with the contaminated soil, vapour from the contaminants, or from secondary contamination of water supplies within and underlying the soil. Mapping of contaminated soil sites and the resulting clean ups are time-consuming and expensive tasks, and require expertise in geology , hydrology , chemistry , computer modelling , and GIS in Environmental Contamination , as well as an appreciation of

5550-505: Is intended that the SGVs replace the former ICRCL values. The CLEA SGVs relate to assessing chronic (long term) risks to human health and do not apply to the protection of ground workers during construction, or other potential receptors such as groundwater, buildings, plants or other ecosystems. The CLEA SGVs are not directly applicable to a site completely covered in hardstanding, as there is no direct exposure route to contaminated soils. To date,

5700-412: Is known to be associated with a higher incidence of leukemia. Mercury and cyclodienes are known to induce higher incidences of kidney damage and some irreversible diseases. PCBs and cyclodienes are linked to liver toxicity. Organophosphates and carbonates can cause a chain of responses leading to neuromuscular blockage . Many chlorinated solvents induce liver changes, kidney changes, and depression of

5850-411: Is often pointed to as the roots of the environmental justice movement. PCBs were illegally dumped into the community and then it eventually became a PCB landfill . Community leaders pressed the state for the site to be cleaned up for an entire decade until it was finally detoxified. However, this decontamination did not return the site to its pre-1982 conditions. There has been a call for reparations to

6000-733: Is presented in a Proposed Plan for public review and comment, followed by a selected alternative in a ROD. The site then enters into a Remedial Design phase and then the Remedial Action phase. Many sites include long-term monitoring. Once the Remedial Action has been completed, reviews are required every five years, whenever hazardous substances are left onsite above levels safe for unrestricted use. As of December 9, 2021 , there were 1,322 sites listed; an additional 447 had been delisted, and 51 new sites have been proposed. Historically about 70 percent of Superfund cleanup activities have been paid for by potentially responsible party (PRPs). When

6150-635: Is the Church Rock uranium mill spill on the Navajo Nation. It was the largest radioactive spill in the US but received a long delay in government response and cleanup after being placed as a lower priority site. Two sets of five-year cleanup plans have been put in place by US Congress, but contamination from the Church Rock incident has still not been completely cleaned up. Today, uranium contamination from mining during

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6300-450: Is thought to be responsible for the decline of the numbers of birds of prey like ospreys and peregrine falcons in the 1950s – they are now recovering. As well as increased concentration via the food chain, it is known to enter via permeable membranes, so fish get it through their gills. As it has low water solubility, it tends to stay at the water surface, so organisms that live there are most affected. DDT found in fish that formed part of

6450-505: The Environmental Protection Act 1990 . As part of this framework, generic Soil Guideline Values (SGVs) have currently been derived for ten contaminants to be used as "intervention values". These values should not be considered as remedial targets but values above which further detailed assessment should be considered; see Dutch standards . Three sets of CLEA SGVs have been produced for three different land uses, namely It

6600-701: The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act reauthorized an excise tax on chemical manufacturers, for ten years starting in July 2022. The EPA and state agencies use the Hazard Ranking System (HRS) to calculate a site score (ranging from 0 to 100) based on the actual or potential release of hazardous substances from a site. A score of 28.5 places a site on the National Priorities List, eligible for long-term, remedial action (i.e., cleanup) under

6750-417: The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act . The new chemical excise tax is effective July 1, 2022, and is double the rate of the previous Superfund tax. The 2021 law also authorized $ 3.5 billion in emergency appropriations from the U.S. government general fund for hazardous site cleanups in the immediate future. CERCLA authorizes two kinds of response actions: A potentially responsible party (PRP)

6900-738: The Institute of Occupational Medicine to undertake a review of methods to assess risk to human health from contaminated land. The overall aim of the project is to work up guidance that should be useful to Scottish Local Authorities in assessing whether sites represent a significant possibility of significant harm (SPOSH) to human health. It is envisaged that the output of the project will be a short document providing high level guidance on health risk assessment with reference to existing published guidance and methodologies that have been identified as being particularly relevant and helpful. The project will examine how policy guidelines have been developed for determining

7050-496: The food chain may ingest alien chemicals, which normally become more concentrated for each consuming rung of the food chain. Many of these effects are now well known, such as the concentration of persistent DDT materials for avian consumers, leading to weakening of egg shells, increased chick mortality and potential extinction of species. Effects occur to agricultural lands which have certain types of soil contamination. Contaminants typically alter plant metabolism, often causing

7200-427: The nitrogen dioxide fumes coming off the nitric acid vats. There were so many fumes that on high humidity days during the summer there appeared to be an orange cloud encasing this building and anyone just walking past would experience a sensation as if he had wandered into a swarm of bees. The resulting "UNH" ( uranium nitrate hexahydrate ) material pumped out of the vats was then processed through extraction to purify

7350-498: The soil organic matter (SOM) content (which can be calculated from the total organic carbon (TOC) content). As an initial screen the SGVs for 1% SOM are considered to be appropriate. As of February 2021, there are a total of 2,500 plus contaminated sites in Canada . One infamous contaminated sited is located near a nickel-copper smelting site in Sudbury, Ontario . A study investigating

7500-410: The uranium hexafluoride was first heated to form a gaseous compound and was then reduced to UF 4 . The reduction occurs in a reaction with hydrogen. UF 6 vapor and hydrogen will be mixed at the top of each reactor by means of a cyclonic type mixer. The bulk of the reduction reaction will occur at the top of the reactor. The UF 4 formed will be a powdery solid that falls like snow to the bottom of

7650-574: The Cold War era remains throughout the Navajo Nation, posing health risks to the Navajo community. The data in the Superfund Program are available to the public. While the simple and relatively easy sites have been cleaned up, EPA is now addressing a residual number of difficult and massive sites such as large-area mining and sediment sites, which is tying up a significant amount of funding. Also, while

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7800-546: The European Union, the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive allows sewage sludge to be sprayed onto land. The volume is expected to double to 185,000 tons of dry solids in 2005. This has good agricultural properties due to the high nitrogen and phosphate content. In 1990/1991, 13% wet weight was sprayed onto 0.13% of the land; however, this is expected to rise 15 fold by 2005. Advocates say there

7950-539: The Oil Pollution Act. CERCLA created the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). The primary goal of a Superfund cleanup is to reduce the risks to human health through a combination of cleanup, engineered controls like caps and site restrictions such as groundwater use restrictions. A secondary goal is to return the site to productive use as a business, recreation or as a natural ecosystem. Identifying

8100-524: The PA/SI is used by the EPA to develop a Hazard Ranking System (HRS) score to determine the CERCLA status of the site. Sites that score high enough to be listed typically proceed to a Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study (RI/FS). The RI includes an extensive sampling program and risk assessment that defines the nature and extent of the site contamination and risks. The FS is used to develop and evaluate various remediation alternatives. The preferred alternative

8250-565: The Redevelopment of Contaminated Land (ICRCL) has been formally withdrawn by DEFRA , for use as a prescriptive document to determine the potential need for remediation or further assessment. The CLEA model published by DEFRA and the Environment Agency (EA) in March 2002 sets a framework for the appropriate assessment of risks to human health from contaminated land, as required by Part IIA of

8400-463: The Refinery was capable of extracting and purifying a number of different materials. The Ore Refinery consists of three major process areas designated digestion (Plant 2), extraction and denitration (Plant 3). Support areas include nitric acid recovery, raffinate treatment and refinery sump. The digestion, extraction, and raffinate areas included 'hot' and 'cold' sides. To provide radiation protection from

8550-444: The Superfund balance had decreased to about $ 4 billion, Congress chose not to reauthorize collection of the tax, and by 2003 the fund was empty. Since 2001, most of the funding for cleanups of hazardous waste sites has come from taxpayers. State governments pay 10 percent of cleanup costs in general, and at least 50 percent of cleanup costs if the state operated the facility responsible for contamination. By 2013 federal funding for

8700-475: The Superfund program each year. Consequently, less than half the number of sites were cleaned up from 2001 to 2008, compared to before. The decrease continued during the Obama administration , and since under the direction of EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy Superfund cleanups decreased even more from 20 in 2009 to a mere 8 in 2014. In November 2021, Congress reauthorized an excise tax on chemical manufacturers, under

8850-478: The Superfund program, the EPA and state agencies use the HRS to calculate a site score (ranging from 0 to 100) based on the actual or potential release of hazardous substances from a site through air , surface water or groundwater . A score of 28.5 places the site on the National Priorities List, making the site eligible for long-term remedial action (i.e., cleanup) under the Superfund program. Federal actions to address

9000-516: The Superfund program. As of March 23, 2022 , there were 1,333 sites listed; an additional 448 had been delisted, and 43 new sites have been proposed. Superfund also authorizes natural resource trustees, which may be federal, state, and/or tribal, to perform a Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA). Natural resource trustees determine and quantify injuries caused to natural resources through either releases of hazardous substances or cleanup actions and then seek to restore ecosystem services to

9150-442: The U.S. nuclear weapons production complex from 1951 to 1989. During that time, the plant produced 170,000 metric tons uranium (MTU) of metal products and 35,000 MTU of intermediate compounds, such as uranium trioxide and uranium tetrafluoride . Fernald came under criticism in 1984 when it was learned that the plant was releasing millions of pounds of uranium dust into the atmosphere, causing major radioactive contamination of

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9300-459: The US as containing more than 5 mg/L of extractable lead using the TCLP procedure. In addition to lead, coal ash typically contains variable but significant concentrations of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs; e.g., benzo(a)anthracene, benzo(b)fluoranthene, benzo(k)fluoranthene, benzo(a)pyrene, indeno(cd)pyrene, phenanthrene, anthracene, and others). These PAHs are known human carcinogens and

9450-625: The United States EPA Region 9 Preliminary Remediation Goals (U.S. PRGs), the U.S. EPA Region 3 Risk Based Concentrations (U.S. EPA RBCs) and National Environment Protection Council of Australia Guideline on Investigation Levels in Soil and Groundwater. The immense and sustained growth of the People's Republic of China since the 1970s has exacted a price from the land in increased soil pollution. The Ministry of Ecology and Environment believes it to be

9600-522: The acceptability of risks to human health and propose an approach for assessing what constitutes unacceptable risk in line with the criteria for SPOSH as defined in the legislation and the Scottish Statutory Guidance. Not unexpectedly, soil contaminants can have significant deleterious consequences for ecosystems. There are radical soil chemistry changes which can arise from the presence of many hazardous chemicals even at low concentration of

9750-508: The acceptable concentrations of them in soil are typically around 1 mg/kg. Coal ash and slag can be recognised by the presence of off-white grains in soil, gray heterogeneous soil, or (coal slag) bubbly, vesicular pebble-sized grains. Treated sewage sludge , known in the industry as biosolids , has become controversial as a " fertilizer ". As it is the byproduct of sewage treatment, it generally contains more contaminants such as organisms, pesticides, and heavy metals than other soil. In

9900-414: The area accounts for one-tenth of China's cultivatable land, and is mostly in economically developed areas. An estimated 12 million tonnes of grain are contaminated by heavy metals every year, causing direct losses of 20 billion yuan ($ 2.57 billion USD ). Recent survey shows that 19% of the agricultural soils are contaminated which contains heavy metals and metalloids. And the rate of these heavy metals in

10050-412: The breakout station was conveyed to the slag recycling plant, where it was stored awaiting processing for reuse as refractory liner. The slag recovery process consists of crushing, pulverizing, and classifying the slag, which was then transferred back to the reduction area for use. The next step in the plant consists of melting massive uranium metal and casting an ingot. Graphite crucibles were loaded with

10200-399: The breakout station. The yields expected from this operation were about 95%. There are many documented explosions of these furnaces due to improperly packed refractory lining or a magnesium flare. Whatever the cause, the building would fill with radioactive smoke along with a real probability that molten uranium metal would come pouring out of the bottom of the furnace. The MgF 2 slag from

10350-422: The central nervous system. There is an entire spectrum of further health effects such as headache, nausea, fatigue, eye irritation and skin rash for the above cited and other chemicals. At sufficient dosages a large number of soil contaminants can cause death by exposure via direct contact, inhalation or ingestion of contaminants in groundwater contaminated through soil. The Scottish Government has commissioned

10500-399: The chemical reactor. The off-gases from the reduction reactors were passed to a hydrogen burner where the excess hydrogen was burned and then passed through a dust collector to remove any entrained uranium dioxide that might have been present. The UO 2 in the reduction furnace passed through a seal hopper and a feed screw to the first of the three hydrofluorination furnaces. The bed of UO 2

10650-415: The cleanup of the lead-contaminated hot spots. It wasn't until 1993 that the site was declared a Superfund site, and at the time it was one of the largest ones. However, it was not until 2004 when the EPA completed the clean-up efforts and eliminated the lead pollutant sources from the site. The Afton community of Warren County, North Carolina is one of the most prominent environmental injustice cases and

10800-523: The cleanup operations. Through the 1980s, most of the funding came from an excise tax on petroleum and chemical manufacturers. However, in 1995, Congress chose not to renew this tax and the burden of the cost was shifted to taxpayers in the general public. Since 2001, most of the cleanup of hazardous waste sites has been funded through taxpayers generally. Despite its name, the program suffered from under-funding, and by 2014 Superfund NPL cleanups had decreased to only 8 sites, out of over 1,200. In November 2021,

10950-632: The community which has not yet been met. Bayview-Hunters Point, San Francisco , a historically African American community, has faced persistent environmental discrimination due to the poor remediation efforts of the San Francisco Naval Shipyard , a federally declared Superfund site. The negligence of multiple agencies to adequately clean this site has led Bayview residents to be subject to high rates of pollution and has been tied to high rates of cancer, asthma, and overall higher health hazards than other regions of San Francisco. One example

11100-407: The contaminant species. These changes can manifest in the alteration of metabolism of endemic microorganisms and arthropods resident in a given soil environment. The result can be virtual eradication of some of the primary food chain, which in turn could have major consequences for predator or consumer species. Even if the chemical effect on lower life forms is small, the lower pyramid levels of

11250-461: The country's central repository for another radioactive metal, thorium . The plant was located in the rural town of Fernald, which is about 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Cincinnati, Ohio , and occupies 1,050 acres (425 hectares). This location was chosen because it was between the uranium ore delivery ports of New York and New Orleans , and it was accessible to the other main AEC sites. In addition,

11400-427: The disproportionate health and environmental disparities that minority and low-income populations face through Executive Order 12898 required federal agencies to make environmental justice central to their programs and policies. Superfund sites have been shown to impact minority communities the most. Despite legislation specifically designed to ensure equity in Superfund listing, marginalized populations still experience

11550-517: The end of FY 2003. Since that time Superfund sites for which the PRPs could not pay have been paid for from the general fund. Under the 2021 authorization by Congress, collection of excise taxes from chemical manufacturers will resume in 2022. The Hazard Ranking System is a scoring system used to evaluate potential relative risks to public health and the environment from releases or threatened releases of hazardous wastes at uncontrolled waste sites. Under

11700-427: The equalizing furnace and was then discharged into the finishing mill. The finishing mill consists of six stands that reduce the rod to the final diameter of 1.43" for Hanford rods, and 1.12" for Savannah River rods. The rods were cut into 22-foot lengths as they leave the last stand by means of a flying shear. The Savannah rods were air cooled to room temperature on the cooling bed and then were cold straightened in

11850-401: The executive order, while on the other hand, increases in income led to greater chances of site listing. Of the populations living within 1 mile radius of a Superfund site, 44% of those are minorities despite only being around 37% of the nation's population. As of January 2021, more than 9,000 federally subsidized properties, including ones with hundreds of dwellings, were less than a mile from

12000-686: The facility. Fluor Fernald, part of the Fluor Corporation , was awarded the contract in 1992 for cleanup of the site. Fluor Fernald completed their portion of the cleanup in October 2006, 12 years ahead of schedule and 7.8 billion dollars below the original cost estimate. The waste was permanently buried at Waste Control Specialists . The site is permanently unfit for human habitation, according to federal scientists, and "will have to be closely monitored essentially forever". Cleanup costs were estimated at $ 1 billion over 10 years. The $ 4.4 billion cleanup of

12150-456: The federal government did not act until 5 years later after the mayor of Triana filed a class-action lawsuit in 1980. In West Dallas, Texas , a mostly African American and Latino community, a lead smelter poisoned the surrounding neighborhood, elementary school, and day cares for more than five decades. Dallas city officials were informed in 1972 that children in the proximity of the smelter were being exposed to lead contamination. The city sued

12300-430: The federal government has reserved funding for cleanup of federal facility sites, this clean-up is going much more slowly. The delay is due to a number of reasons, including EPA's limited ability to require performance, difficulty of dealing with Department of Energy radioactive wastes, and the sheer number of federal facility sites. Soil contamination Soil contamination , soil pollution , or land pollution as

12450-408: The fifth smallest state in the U.S., is the location of about ten percent of the priority Superfund sites, a disproportionate amount. The EPA seeks to identify parties responsible for hazardous substances released to the environment (polluters) and either compel them to clean up the sites, or it may undertake the cleanup on its own using the Superfund (a trust fund) and seek to recover those costs from

12600-709: The first ten of fifty-five contaminant SGVs have been published, for the following: arsenic, cadmium , chromium, lead, inorganic mercury, nickel, selenium ethyl benzene, phenol and toluene. Draft SGVs for benzene, naphthalene and xylene have been produced but their publication is on hold. Toxicological data (Tox) has been published for each of these contaminants as well as for benzo[a]pyrene, benzene, dioxins, furans and dioxin-like PCBs, naphthalene, vinyl chloride, 1,1,2,2 tetrachloroethane and 1,1,1,2 tetrachloroethane, 1,1,1 trichloroethane, tetrachloroethene, carbon tetrachloride, 1,2-dichloroethane, trichloroethene and xylene. The SGVs for ethyl benzene, phenol and toluene are dependent on

12750-516: The following (non-exhaustive list): The most common chemicals involved are petroleum hydrocarbons , solvents , pesticides, lead , and other heavy metals . Any activity that leads to other forms of soil degradation ( erosion , compaction , etc.) may indirectly worsen the contamination effects in that soil remediation becomes more tedious. Historical deposition of coal ash used for residential, commercial, and industrial heating, as well as for industrial processes such as ore smelting , were

12900-429: The food chain through plants that reside in soils containing high concentrations of heavy metals. This tends to result in the development of pollution-related diseases . Most exposure is accidental, and exposure can happen through: However, some studies estimate that 90% of exposure is through eating contaminated food. Health consequences from exposure to soil contamination vary greatly depending on pollutant type,

13050-560: The framework for implementing the program came from the oil and hazardous substances National Contingency Plan. The EPA published the first Hazard Ranking System in 1981, and the first National Priorities List in 1983. Implementation of the program in early years, during the Ronald Reagan administration , was ineffective, with only 16 of the 799 Superfund sites cleaned up and only $ 40 million of $ 700 million in recoverable funds from responsible parties collected. The mismanagement of

13200-408: The heavy metal pollution in the vicinity of the smelter reveals that elevated levels of nickel and copper were found in the soil; values going as high as 5,104ppm Ni , and 2,892 ppm Cu within a 1.1 km range of the smelter location. Other metals were also found in the soil; such metals include iron, cobalt, and silver. Furthermore, upon examining the different vegetation surrounding the smelter it

13350-417: The history of industrial chemistry. In North America and South-Western Europe the extent of contaminated land is best known for as many of the countries in these areas having a legal framework to identify and deal with this environmental problem. Developing countries tend to be less tightly regulated despite some of them having undergone significant industrialization . Soil pollution can be caused by

13500-578: The human food chain caused concern, but the levels found in the liver, kidney and brain tissues was less than 1 ppm and in fat was 10 ppm, which was below the level likely to cause harm. However, DDT was banned in the UK and the United States to stop the further buildup of it in the food chain. U.S. manufacturers continued to sell DDT to developing countries, who could not afford the expensive replacement chemicals and who did not have such stringent regulations governing

13650-537: The hydrometallurgical recovery system. A brief description of the Winlo process follows: The primary purpose of Plant 9 , the Special Products Plant was to process slightly enriched uranium and to cast larger ingots than those produced in Plant 5. The plant contains facilities for producing derbies, ingots, slugs, and washers of various enrichments. Construction of the plant as a thorium metal production process

13800-415: The impurity dioxin, which is very toxic and causes fatality even in low concentrations. Another herbicide is Paraquat . It is highly toxic but it rapidly degrades in soil due to the action of bacteria and does not kill soil fauna. Insecticides are used to rid farms of pests which damage crops. The insects damage not only standing crops but also stored ones and in the tropics it is reckoned that one third of

13950-683: The intended reuse early in the cleanup often results in faster and less expensive cleanups. EPA's Superfund Redevelopment Program provides tools and support for site redevelopment. CERCLA was enacted by Congress in 1980 in response to the threat of hazardous waste sites, typified by the Love Canal disaster in New York , and the Valley of the Drums in Kentucky . It was recognized that funding would be difficult, since

14100-404: The jaw crusher, rotary dryer, ring roll mill, air classifier, and cyclone separator. In addition to sampling incoming ores this plant reconditions 30 and 55 gallon drums used to transport and store radioactive materials onsite. It also contains a safe-geometry digestion system used to process enriched uranium materials assaying up to 5% U. This digester was so named because the piping was of such

14250-464: The large quantities of incoming ore concentrates. This plant was divided into two main processing lines, one for Q-11 and one for INX. Q-11 was the term used to refer to radium bearing ores primarily mined in the Belgian Congo while INX was a non-radium concentrate. The problem with handling radium bearing ores was that one of radium's daughter particles is radon : an invisible radioactive gas. Q-11

14400-444: The lead smelters in 1974, then reduced its lead regulations in 1976. It wasn't until 1981 that the EPA commissioned a study on the lead contamination in this neighborhood and found the same results that had been found a decade earlier. In 1983, the surrounding day cares had to close due to the lead exposure while the lead smelter remained operating. It was later revealed that EPA Deputy Administrator John Hernandez had deliberately stalled

14550-545: The main contaminants contributing around 60% to soil contamination. In terms of budget, the management of contaminated sites is estimated to cost around 6 billion Euros (€) annually. Generic guidance commonly used in the United Kingdom are the Soil Guideline Values published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and the Environment Agency . These are screening values that demonstrate

14700-563: The minimal acceptable level of a substance. Above this there can be no assurances in terms of significant risk of harm to human health. These have been derived using the Contaminated Land Exposure Assessment Model (CLEA UK). Certain input parameters such as Health Criteria Values, age and land use are fed into CLEA UK to obtain a probabilistic output. Guidance by the Inter Departmental Committee for

14850-1110: The molten metal was poured into a graphite mold and the ingot was allowed to cool and solidify. Additional equipment was provided for the ingot to be removed from the mold, weighed, cropped, sampled, and stored for further processing in the Metals Fabrication Plant [Plant 6]. The ingot was approximately 7" in diameter, by 45" long, and weighs about 1,200 pounds. Plant 6 was known as the Metals Fabrication Plant . "Ingots from Plant 5 and MCW Mallinckrodt Chemical Works were bloomed into billets and then rolled into rods that were straightened and machined to finished reactor slug dimensions. The finished product consists of either hollow or solid uranium slugs, designed for both internal and external cooling during pile irradiation. The product shipped from Plant 6 must pass rigid inspection for dimensional tolerances, metal quality, and surface conditions." Uranium ingots were charged into an automated ingot preheat furnace where they were lowered into

15000-490: The natural resource trustees appointed by state's governors. Federally recognized Tribes may act as trustees for natural resources, including natural resources related to Tribal subsistence, cultural uses, spiritual values, and uses that are preserved by treaties. Tribal natural resource trustees are appointed by tribal governments. Some states have their own versions of a state Superfund law and may perform NRDA either through state laws or through other federal authorities such as

15150-552: The need for soil-specific risks assessment and measures. Cleanup or environmental remediation is analyzed by environmental scientists who utilize field measurement of soil chemicals and also apply computer models ( GIS in Environmental Contamination ) for analyzing transport and fate of soil chemicals. Various technologies have been developed for remediation of oil-contaminated soil and sediments There are several principal strategies for remediation: Various national standards for concentrations of particular contaminants include

15300-481: The needs of development projects and special orders. Some of the equipment that was available for and had been used in enriched processing was as follows: The Fernald Closure Project is a program run by the United States Department of Energy to clean up the former uranium processing site Fernald Feed Materials Production Center. In 1990, Congress approved closure of the site and environmental cleanup of

15450-438: The order did not receive bipartisan support. The newly elected Republican Congress made numerous unsuccessful efforts to significantly weaken the program. The Clinton administration then adopted some industry favored reforms as policy and blocked most major changes. Until the mid-1990s, most of the funding came from an excise tax on the petroleum and chemical industries, reflecting the polluter pays principle. Even though by 1995

15600-454: The party either cannot be found or is unable to pay for the cleanup, the Superfund law originally paid for site cleanups through an excise tax on petroleum and chemical manufacturers. The last full fiscal year (FY) in which the Department of the Treasury collected the excise tax was 1995. At the end of FY 1996, the invested trust fund balance was $ 6.0 billion. This fund was exhausted by

15750-759: The pathway of attack, and the vulnerability of the exposed population. Researchers suggest that pesticides and heavy metals in soil may harm cardiovascular health, including inflammation and change in the body's internal clock. Chronic exposure to chromium , lead , and other metals, petroleum, solvents, and many pesticide and herbicide formulations can be carcinogenic, can cause congenital disorders , or can cause other chronic health conditions. Industrial or human-made concentrations of naturally occurring substances, such as nitrate and ammonia associated with livestock manure from agricultural operations, have also been identified as health hazards in soil and groundwater. Chronic exposure to benzene at sufficient concentrations

15900-521: The plant area, storage of residual waste onsite, and filtering of uranium contamination from the Great Miami River aquifer. These cleanup operations, along with restrictions on establishing new wells in areas exceeding water contaminant limits, will continue for the foreseeable future. The following are links that provide additional information about the Fernald site and the health risks associated with its processes: Superfund Superfund

16050-512: The production area as materials, by-products or products. Workers were exposed to chlorinated and non-chlorinated solvents, metals and metal salts, and nuisance dusts. Community residents may have been exposed to these substances through ground water pathways, soil contamination , and air dispersion of emissions from the site. Two separate medical surveillance programs, for former workers and community residents, have been funded by settlements of class action litigation against National Lead of Ohio,

16200-445: The program had decreased from $ 2 billion in 1999 to less than $ 1.1 billion (in constant dollars). In 2001, the EPA used funds from the Superfund program to institute the cleanup of anthrax on Capitol Hill after the 2001 anthrax attacks . It was the first time the agency dealt with a biological release rather than a chemical or oil spill. From 2000 to 2015, Congress allocated about $ 1.26 billion of general revenue to

16350-463: The program under Anne Gorsuch Burford , Reagan's first chosen Administrator of the agency, led to a congressional investigation and the reauthorization of the program in 1986 through an act amending CERCLA. The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA) added minimum cleanup requirements in Section 121 and required that most cleanup agreements with polluters be entered in federal court as

16500-467: The public through conservation, restoration, and/or acquisition of equivalent habitat. Responsible parties are assessed damages for the cost of the assessment and the restoration of ecosystem services. For the federal government, EPA, US Fish and Wildlife Service, or the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration may act as natural resource trustees. The US Department of Interior keeps a list of

16650-402: The radium-bearing Q-11 ore [the "hot" material], concrete shielding was provided around appropriate process equipment and the 'hot' side of each area was enclosed by concrete walls. The principal function of Plant 2/3 was uranium purification and conversion of uranium bearing materials into uranium trioxide (UO3), or orange oxide. There are three principal forms of uranium residues, each having

16800-457: The reactor. The Scrap Recovery Plant , the name given to Plant 8 , process primarily involves upgrading uranium recycle materials from FMPC and off-site operations to prepare feed materials for head-end processing in the Refinery. Operations include drum washing, filtering Refinery tailings, operation of rotary kiln, box, muffle, and oxidation furnaces, and screening of furnace products. Bomb liner material received from Plant 5 in mobile hoppers

16950-400: The responsible parties through settlements or other legal means. Approximately 70% of Superfund cleanup activities historically have been paid for by the potentially responsible parties (PRPs), reflecting the polluter pays principle . However, 30% of the time the responsible party either cannot be found or is unable to pay for the cleanup. In these circumstances, taxpayers had been paying for

17100-499: The responsible parties were not easily found, and so the Superfund was established to provide funding through a taxing mechanism on certain industries and to create a comprehensive liability framework to be able to hold a broader range of parties responsible. The initial Superfund trust fund to clean up sites where a polluter could not be identified, could not or would not pay (bankruptcy or refusal), consisted of about $ 1.6 billion and then increased to $ 8.5 billion. Initially,

17250-546: The revision of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan 9605(a)(NCP). The NCP guides how to respond to releases and threatened releases of hazardous substances , pollutants, or contaminants. The NCP established the National Priorities List, which appears as Appendix B to the NCP, and serves as EPA's information and management tool. The NPL is updated periodically by federal rulemaking. The identification of

17400-462: The rods. The Hanford slugs were then placed in the Heald machine, which cuts the slugs to desired lengths and finishes and radiuses the ends. The Savannah River slugs were reduced to exact dimensions of size, surface, and straightness on a centerless grinder after which a contour was placed on the surface by a thread rolling machine. The slugs were numbered and put on a basket on a conveyor that passes through

17550-463: The site was close to Cincinnati's large labor force, the landscape was level making the site's construction easy, it was isolated, which provided safety and security, and it was located 30 to 50 feet above a large water aquifer , which supplied the water needed for uranium metal processing. From 1951 to 1989 Fernald converted uranium ore into metal, and then fabricated this metal into target elements for nuclear reactors. Annual production rates ranged from

17700-408: The sites selected for possible action under this program (and there are tens of thousands across the U.S.), 1178 (as of 2024) remain on the National Priorities List (NPL) that makes them eligible for cleanup under the Superfund program. Sites on the NPL are considered the most highly contaminated and undergo longer-term remedial investigation and remedial action (cleanups). The state of New Jersey ,

17850-475: The soil has been increased dramatically. According to the received data from Member states, in the European Union the number of estimated potential contaminated sites is more than 2.5 million and the identified contaminated sites around 342 thousand. Municipal and industrial wastes contribute most to soil contamination (38%), followed by the industrial/commercial sector (34%). Mineral oil and heavy metals are

18000-419: The solution. The UNH solution was passed through a multistage liquid-liquid counter current tower with tributyl phosphate and kerosene to extract the uranyl nitrate. The impurities exit the tower as the raffinate stream for further processing. The extract solution was passed through another counter current extraction tower to re-extract the uranyl nitrate from the kerosene into deionized water . The kerosene

18150-465: The solution. The solution was concentrated from 90 grams uranium per liter to 1300 grams uranium per liter in two stages. The concentrated solution now in 250 gallon batches was further heated, in a process known as Pot Denitration, to thermally denitrate the UNH to uranium trioxide . The uranium trioxide material was then pneumatically removed from the denitration pots and packaged out in hoppers with

18300-446: The stream fed to it, producing a sample approximately 0.1% of the original lot size. The main stream was conveyed to a drumming station where it was packaged in 55-gallon or 30-gallon drums for use in the Refinery. The official weight was taken at this point. The INX line was similar to the Q-11 line except that the thawing tunnel has been omitted and a hammer mill and bucket elevator replaces

18450-546: The surface areas was completed in December 2006, and the site was turned into the Fernald Preserve nature preserve . Thousands of tons of contaminated concrete, sludge, liquid waste, and soil were removed from the site and replaced with man-made wetlands and greenery. Ongoing cleanup operations include routine monitoring of the environmental conditions with test wells, including the uranium groundwater plume extending south of

18600-478: The surrounding areas. News about the plant's operations led to the 1989 closure of nearby Fort Scott Camp , then the oldest Roman Catholic summer camp in the country. In 1948 the Atomic Energy Commission , predecessor to the U.S. Department of Energy , established "a large scale integrated facility for the production of fabricated uranium fuel cores by chemical and metallurgical techniques". The plant

18750-534: The testing of Anthrax as a potential biological weapon contaminated the whole island of Gruinard . Contaminated or polluted soil directly affects human health through direct contact with soil or via inhalation of soil contaminants that have vaporized; potentially greater threats are posed by the infiltration of soil contamination into groundwater aquifers used for human consumption, sometimes in areas apparently far removed from any apparent source of above-ground contamination. Toxic metals can also make their way up

18900-411: The time of the initial examination, and over 100,000 one-ml aliquots of these biospecimens have been stored at −80 °C since then. In June 1984, 39-year-old pipe fitter, David "Dave" Bocks disappeared on shift and was reported missing. A witness reported seeing Bocks and a supervisor inside of a vehicle at about 4:00 AM with the windows rolled up on a hot night having a serious discussion. At 5:00 AM,

19050-613: The total condenser. These were passed through potassium hydroxide scrubbers to remove the last traces of acid and then discharged to the atmosphere. Plant 5 , the Metals Production Plant main process equipment consisted of eleven jolters, five filling machines, forty-four reduction furnaces, two breakout stations in the Reduction Area and twenty-eight vacuum casting furnaces in the Recast Area. The conversion of UF to metal

19200-415: The total production is lost during food storage. As with fungicides , the first insecticides used in the nineteenth century were inorganic e.g. Paris Green and other compounds of arsenic . Nicotine has also been used since 1690. There are now two main groups of synthetic insecticides: 1. Organochlorines include DDT , Aldrin , Dieldrin and BHC. They are cheap to produce, potent and persistent. DDT

19350-534: The transmitter substance acetylcholine, resulting in uncontrolled muscle movements. The disposal of munitions, and a lack of care in manufacture of munitions caused by the urgency of production, can contaminate soil for extended periods. There is little published evidence on this type of contamination largely because of restrictions placed by governments of many countries on the publication of material related to war effort. However, mustard gas stored during World War II has contaminated some sites for up to 50 years and

19500-652: The uranium levels were more than 60 times the maximum safe limit. In 2012, the Government of India confirmed that the ground water in Malwa belt of Punjab has uranium metal that is 50% above the trace limits set by the United Nations' World Health Organization (WHO). Scientific studies, based on over 1000 samples from various sampling points, could not trace the source to fly ash and any sources from thermal power plants or industry as originally alleged. The study also revealed that

19650-422: The use of pesticides. 2. Organophosphates , e.g. parathion , methyl parathion and about 40 other insecticides are available nationally. Parathion is highly toxic, methyl-parathion is less so and Malathion is generally considered safe as it has low toxicity and is rapidly broken down in the mammalian liver. This group works by preventing normal nerve transmission as cholinesterase is prevented from breaking down

19800-438: The witness reported seeing Bocks and speaking with him, who stated he was putting up his tools and headed toward Plant 4. His remains were later discovered inside a uranium processing furnace located in Plant 6; a sudden 28-degree drop in furnace temperature (which was kept at a constant 1350 degrees F) had been recorded at 5:15 AM during the night of Bocks' disappearance. The investigations found insufficient evidence that foul play

19950-490: Was accomplished by the thermite reduction of green salt with magnesium in a refractory lined steel reaction vessel. 450 pounds of green salt were blended with approximately 72 pounds of magnesium. The resulting mixture was uniformly packed into the reduction "bomb", which has previously been lined with refractory slag in a jolting apparatus. Following these steps, the bomb was capped with refractory, sealed, and placed in one of 49 electric muffle furnaces. The furnace temperature

20100-430: Was completed in 1954 and the thorium process was begun in October 1954. Plant 9 was originally designed and constructed as a thorium metal production plant, yet had to be regarded as a semi-development works because of a lack of process information. The two basic processes, hydrofluoric acid precipitation of thorium fluoride and induction de-zincing and melting, which were used to start the plant, were not able to produce

20250-415: Was constructed of stainless steel for the hydrogen reduction of orange oxide to uranium dioxide , by the reaction: UO 3 + H 2 → UO 2 + H 2 O. The UO 2 was then fed directly to the first of the next three furnaces in series. These furnaces were constructed of Inconel for the hydrofluorination of uranium dioxide to green salt. The reaction was: UO 2 + 4HF → UF 4 + 2H 2 O. Orange oxide

20400-411: Was emptied at an unloading station and elevated to a surge hopper. Material as needed was sent from the surge hopper through a jaw crusher and into a shelf type oxidation furnace. Here the metallic uranium was oxidized to triuranium octoxide (U 3 O 8 ). The material discharged from the furnace was lifted to a surge hopper and then as needed was sent through a roll mill and ground to -325 mesh size. It

20550-552: Was evident that they too had been affected; the results show that the plants contained nickel, copper and aluminium as a result of soil contamination. In March 2009, the issue of uranium poisoning in Punjab attracted press coverage. It was alleged to be caused by fly ash ponds of thermal power stations, which reportedly lead to severe birth defects in children in the Faridkot and Bhatinda districts of Punjab . The news reports claimed

20700-409: Was filtered and the uranium bearing cake was introduced to a drying furnace. The dried UAP was sent to the refinery. In addition to the wet system described, several furnaces were installed in the plant for massive metal oxidation, pyrohydrolysis, drying, chip and sludge combustion, etc. Most of the furnaces can be used for more than one of the above operations. During the summer of 1962, a new facility

20850-601: Was involved. However, some, including Bocks' family, believed that he was murdered by one or more coworkers who suspected him of being a whistleblower in the 1984 nuclear emissions scandal. The production process at the Fernald Feed Materials Production Center begins at Plant 1 , also known as the Sampling Plant . The principal function of the Sampling Plant was to obtain representative samples of

21000-609: Was known as the Feed Materials Production Center since the uranium fuel cores it produced were the 'feed' for the AEC's plutonium production reactors. These nuclear reactors were located at Oak Ridge, Tennessee , the Savannah River Site in South Carolina and at Hanford in the state of Washington. The uranium metal produced was in the form of derbies, ingots, billets and fuel cores. The FMPC also served as

21150-491: Was moved through the hydrofluorination furnace by ribbon flight screws and contacted counter-currently by hydrofluoric acid vapors. The UF 4 was removed from the third furnace and conveyed to a packaging station where the product was packaged in 10-gallon pails for use in the Metal Plant, or in 5-ton containers for shipment to the cascades. The off-gases containing water vapor formed in the reaction and excess hydrofluoric acid

21300-454: Was raised to approximately 1,225 °F and after about four hours the thermite type reduction reaction occurs: UF 4 + 2Mg → 2MgF 2 + U (metal). The charge was then allowed to separate and cool in the furnace for 10 minutes, after which it was removed and cooled to room temperature. Finally, the solidified uranium metal (derby) was separated from the slag and liner materials in a sequence of manual and mechanical operations that take place at

21450-421: Was received from the Refinery in five-ton mobile hoppers, which were mounted on seal hoppers to feed the reduction furnace at a rate of approximately 375 pounds per hour for producing metal grade UF 4 . The powder was agitated and carried through the reduction furnace by a ribbon flight screw. Dissociated ammonia was metered to the reduction reactors and passed counter-currently to the bed of uranium oxide within

21600-419: Was received in 55-gallon drums. The drums were deheaded before processing and were conveyed through a thawing tunnel, which also provided surge capacity of deheaded drums. The drums were lifted to the top of the building by a skip hoist where they were emptied into a surge hopper that feeds the magnetic separator and jaw crusher. From the jaw crusher, the one-half inch material passes through a rotary drum dryer to

21750-483: Was removed from the first furnace and were sent to hydrofluoric acid recovery. The gases first passed to a partial condenser that removed all of the water in the form of 70% aqueous hydrofluoric acid. The remainder of the gases was then passed to a total condenser, which condenses the remainder of the acid as anhydrous hydrofluoric acid. The gases at this point contain only the nitrogen from seals and purge gases and small amounts of hydrofluoric acid that did not condense in

21900-549: Was started in Plant 8 for the production of UF 4 by an aqueous precipitation technique known as the Winlo process. The Winlo process was developed for the low-cost chemical conversion of relatively pure uranium concentrates to green salt by a hydrometallurgical process. The feed to the plant Winlo system was made up of a combination of black oxide (U 3 O 8 ) generated by burning metallic residues, uranyl chloride solutions generated by dissolving massive metal residues in hydrochloric acid, and UAP produced from low-grade residues in

22050-587: Was the reduction of the UF 6 gas, which involved mixing it with hydrogen gas at 480–650 °C in metal reactors to produce UF 4 powder. Hydrogen fluoride was a valuable byproduct of the reaction, which was: UF 6 + H 2 → UF 4 + 2HF. In addition, most of the thorium production activity at the FMPC took place inside the Pilot Plant. Thorium production activities began in 1964 and continued until 1980. The Pilot Plant met

22200-462: Was then fed into carbon brick digestion tanks where the uranium was dissolved in hydrochloric acid containing a little sodium chlorate . The undissolved solids were filtered off and dumped into a truck, which hauls the spent material to a scrap dump. Uranium in the filtrate was sent to a precipitation tank and precipitated with ammonium hydroxide (NH 4 OH), in presence of phosphoric acid to form UAP (uranyl ammonium phosphate). The resulting slurry

22350-408: Was then processed through a wash to be recycled back through the extraction process. The resulting UNH solution was now ready for further concentrating and thermal denitration. The UNH solution was concentrated through a process known as "boildown". In this process, heat was applied to the solution from steam coils inside the boildown tanks. The water was removed through evaporation, thus concentrating

22500-514: Was used on a massive scale from the 1930s, with a peak of 72,000 tonnes used 1970. Then usage fell as the harmful environmental effects were realized. It was found worldwide in fish and birds and was even discovered in the snow in the Antarctic . It is only slightly soluble in water but is very soluble in the bloodstream. It affects the nervous and endocrine systems and causes the eggshells of birds to lack calcium causing them to be easily breakable. It

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