Characterization and packaging of transuranic waste using mobile systems

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Carlsbad Area Office (CAO) is obtaining the support of mobile system vendors to conduct waste characterization and packaging operations for contact-handled transuranic (TRU) waste at several sites across the country to prepare their waste for transportation to and disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). Because of the large number of sites and their varying needs and schedules, the CAO is obtaining services from several mobile waste management companies. The larger DOE TRU waste sites are preparing to perform most, if not all, of the required characterization and packaging operations, although the availability of facilities and trained staff could result in lower throughput than desired for the near term. Smaller sites, including several private-sector sites where TRU materials were processed, have either very limited or no capability to characterize or package waste to meet the stringent WIPP Waste Acceptance Criteria