The Department of Energy's Office of Environmental Management (EM) has authorized the use of a second mega-volume saltstone disposal unit (SDU) at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina. Savannah River Remediation (SRR), EM's liquid waste contractor at SRS, received Critical Decision-4 for Saltstone Disposal Unit 7, marking the final step in the approval process before beginning operations. SDU 7 will receive decontaminated salt solution treated at Savannah River's Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) and Saltstone Production Facility (SPF). SDU 7 is scheduled to receive its first grout in this fiscal year, which began October 1. Salt waste at SRS is decontaminated at the Salt Waste Processing Facility through processes that remove radioactive isotopes, including cesium, strontium, and actinides. The treated solution is then sent to the Saltstone Production Facility, where it is mixed with dry slag and fly ash to form a grout. The grout is pumped to the aboveground SDUs, where it hardens to form saltstone.
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