U.S. Army Corps of Engineers begins transporting radioactive waste from Pennsylvania

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has commenced the transport of contaminated soil and radioactive materials from the Shallow Land Disposal Area (SLDA) in Parks Township, Pennsylvania. The first shipment of waste left the site on October 27, destined for a specialized disposal facility in Clive, Utah.

The cleanup process involves excavating material, placing it in soil bags, and using X-ray machines to characterize the waste. Once identified, the material is loaded into heavy-duty steel intermodal shipping containers. These containers are transported by truck to Wampum, Pennsylvania, where they are transferred to rail cars for the final journey to Utah.

The site was used for radioactive waste disposal between 1960 and 1970 by the Nuclear Materials and Equipment Corporation (NUMEC). The waste originated from uranium and plutonium processing activities. Under the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP), the USACE is responsible for the remediation of the site, which is currently owned by BWX Technologies.