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INL cleanup contractor flags WIPP shipping priority risk, outlines remaining cleanup milestones
Summary
Dana Kirkham of the Idaho Environmental Coalition briefed Bannock County commissioners on INL cleanup progress—saying 97% of settlement milestones are complete—but warned New Mexico priorities at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant might delay Idaho shipments; she highlighted three difficult remaining items (sodium‑bearing waste, calcine, spent fuel) and may seek county support in protecting Idaho’s shipment share.
Dana Kirkham, senior vice president for regulatory affairs at the Idaho Environmental Coalition, gave commissioners an overview of the Idaho Cleanup Project and warned of a potential threat to Idaho’s ability to ship waste to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico.
Kirkham said most legacy waste has been characterized and containerized and that about 97% of the Idaho settlement agreement milestones are complete. She identified the remaining high‑priority items as sodium‑bearing tank waste (liquid waste being treated), calcine (a highly radioactive granular material currently in secure bin sets) and spent nuclear fuel.
"We have met that 55% and then some," Kirkham said, describing Idaho’s historical share of shipments to WIPP. She said New Mexico entities have asked for priority access to WIPP — a request that could force Idaho drums to sit longer on site, increasing the risk of container deterioration and environmental exposure, and that the Idaho delegation and governor are engaged in the issue.
Kirkham said the cleanup contractor’s work has exhumed and characterized most wastes; drums are tracked and numbered and are safe to stand next to, she said, but prolonged storage raises integrity concerns. She also described the region’s workforce and the economic footprint of work at the Idaho National Laboratory, noting an estimated 172 local employees come from Bannock County and that cleanup and future reprocessing work support local contracting.
Kirkham said the InTech staging facility is the obvious site for any future reprocessing facility but cautioned that building treatment facilities — particularly to deal with calcine or spent fuel — would be extremely costly and take years to complete. She said she might ask counties to send letters supporting Idaho’s shipment share if WIPP priority changes proceed.
Commissioners asked about radiological risks, timelines and how reprocessing would fit into national and international practice; Kirkham said U.S. reprocessing lags some nations but that the region has workforce and facilities that could scale if funding and regulatory steps align. No county action was taken during the briefing.
