TRANSPORT OF DUF6 CYLINDERS

In the 2002 timeframe, the United States Department of Energy (US-DOE) embarked upon a plan for the accelerated cleanup of the K-25 site, the former gaseous diffusion plant located in Oak Ridge TN. Renamed, The East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP), K-25 was slated for a full remediation and reindustrialization program originally estimated to cost $1.6B (USD). The project required the demolition of buildings, associated remediation projects, legacy waste management and the removal of over 5,000 depleted uranium hexafluoride (DUF6) cylinders from the former weapons material site. This accelerated closure plan was developed to remove long standing environmental hazards, reclaim significant portions of valuable industrial land and reducing the risk associated with long term management of the acres of contaminated land. In February of 1999, the US-DOE entered into a Consent Order with the Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) of the State of Tennessee for the management and disposition of UF6 stored at the ETTP site. This paper describes the transportation of 5,952 depleted uranium hexafluoride (DUF6) cylinders from the ETTP site in Oak Ridge to the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP) in Portsmouth OH. Visionary Solutions LLC, (VS), under a transportation tender with the US-DOE supported the remediation contractor, Bechtel Jacobs Company (BJC), with all aspects of transportation necessary to prepare the cylinders and make the shipments. Visionary Solutions, an 8(a) certified small disadvantaged business, was responsible for marshalling the necessary transportation assets including motor carriers, Government approved drivers, and transportation equipment to effect the transport via the accelerated schedule. In addition, VS developed the transportation route, interfaced with law enforcement, first responder and regulatory p