Adrian Hedden
A nuclear waste repository in Carlsbad recently accepted its first large cask of low-level waste in six years, following an accidental radiological release and unrelated truck fire in 2014 that led to the facility’s three-year cease in operations.
The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant received the package of transuranic (TRU) waste, containing contaminated glove boxes, used motors and large-scale analytical equipment, from the Savannah River Site in South Carolina.
To transport the waste, U.S. Department of Energy workers used the Transuranic Package Transporter Model 3 (TRUPACT-III), which allow generator sites such as Savannah River to package and ship large shipments of TRU waste in a singe box, instead of breaking it down into smaller packages, read a DOE news release.
The Savannah River Site ships the third-most loads of nuclear waste to WIPP with 1,671 as of Wednesday, behind Rocky Flats Environmental Technology site at 2,045 and Idaho National Laboratory at 6,406 shipments, records show.
The TRUPACT-III cask measures 8 feet square and 14 feet in length and weighs more than 50,000 pounds when loaded.
It is transported via a customized trailer.
The commonly used TRUPACT-II weighs just 19,250 pounds when loaded.
Read more at Savannah River Site sends first large shipment of nuclear waste to WIPP since 2014 incident
