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Global Project Profile
Savannah River Site & National Laboratory

Savannah River Site & National Laboratory

Project Location:

Aiken, South Carolina

Client:

U.S. Department of Energy

Scope:

Management & Operations

Project Overview

Washington Division has managed and operated the U.S. Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site since 1989. Dedicated to maintaining the highest possible safety standards, the Savannah River Site is a key U.S. Department of Energy industrial complex responsible for stewardship of the environment, the nuclear weapons stockpile and nuclear materials. The site also develops and deploys technologies to improve the environment and treat nuclear and hazardous wastes left over from the Cold War.

The complex covers 198,344 acres, or 310 square miles, encompassing parts of Aiken, Barnwell and Allendale counties in South Carolina, bordering the Savannah River.

Highlights & Accomplishments

The Savannah River Site has received VPP Star Demonstration status in recognition of safety excellence.

  • Savannah River National Laboratory
    Managed by Washington Division at the site, the Savannah River National Laboratory is the nation’s newest national laboratory. The laboratory serves as an applied research and development laboratory focusing on developing and deploying practical technology solutions to current, pressing technical challenges.

  • Defense Waste Processing Facility
    Washington Division brought the largest radioactive waste vitrification plant in the world on line in 1996 and currently operating the facility. Liquid radioactive waste is converted into glass for long-term storage and disposal.

  • Disposition of Surplus Facilities
    More than 300 facilities at the Savannah River Site which were used to support various past missions have been identified as surplus. The current decommissioning program concentrates on quickly reducing risk, cost and the facility footprint across the site with the mission of pursuing geographic area closures.

    The facility disposition process managed by Washington Division focuses on four activities:

    • Shutdown/Transition
    • Deactivation
    • Safe Storage
    • Decommissioning

  • New Missions
    Washington Savannah River Company has been designated to extract tritium from commercial reactors. Nuclear material management missions already being conducted at the site will be expanded to include materials form dismantled weapons and surpluses from other U.S. Department of Energy sites.

  • Small Business
    WSRC has been received numerous awards at the local, regional and national levels for commitments to small and disadvantaged business.