Identification of Contaminants of Concern in Hanford Ground Waters.

摘要

More than 1500 waste disposal sites have been identified at the US Department of Energy (DOE) Hanford Site. At the request of the US Environmental Protection Agency, these waste-disposal sites were aggregated into four administrative areas in preparation for listing the Hanford Site on the National Priority List. Six hundred forty-six inactive waste sites within the four aggregate areas were selected for further evaluation using the Hazard Ranking System (HRS) (EPA 1984) methodology. During this period, ground-water monitoring efforts on the Hanford Site were expanded to address the presence and extent of chemical hazardous substances and additional radionuclides. Development of a monitoring network for this purpose for all areas of the Hanford Site requires a thorough review of past disposal practices. Data gathered to evaluate inactive waste sites by the HRS scoring process provided valuable information that was used to design a focused radiological and hazardous substance monitoring network. One aspect of the HRS scoring process considers the likelihood of ground-water contamination resulting from disposal practices at inactive waste sites. A monitoring network developed to investigate contaminants of concern at those facilities identified iodine-129, technetium-99, strontium-90, uranium, chromium, carbon tetrachloride, and cyanide as contaminants of concern in Hanford ground waters. 7 refs., 4 figs.