A Review of Metal Concentrations Measured in Surface Soil Samples Collected on and Around the Hanford Site

The data used in this report was collected by two separate projects. The Surface Environmental Surveillance Project collected routine samples in 2008 at 41 locations on and around the Hanford Site, and had them analyzed for metals in addition to the normal radiological constituents. In 2004 and 2005, soil samples were collected at 117 locations on the Hanford Reach National Monument (HRNM) in support of the radiological release of that property. In 2008, archived HRNM soil samples were analyzed for metals to supplement the radiological analyses. Concentration results for 30 individual metals were generated by the analytical methods. Selenium and antimony were not measured at detectable concentrations in most of the samples. Mercury was detected in about half of the samples analyzed. All other constituents were measured at detectable concentrations in nearly all samples analyzed. The average concentrations measured in this study were well below the soil cleanup levels for unrestricted land use established by the Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA). In addition to the average concentration being less than the benchmark, the 90th percentile concentration was also lower than the benchmark for the metals included in the MTCA. The results indicate that the measured concentrations of metals in surface soil were within the expected natural range of concentrations

Surface Environmental Surveillance Project: Locations Manual Volume 1 ? Air and Water Volume 2 ? Farm Products, Soil & Vegetation, and Wildlife

This report describes all environmental monitoring locations associated with the Surface Environmental Surveillance Project. Environmental surveillance of the Hanford site and surrounding areas is conducted by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Sampling is conducted to evaluate levels of radioactive and nonradioactive pollutants in the Hanford environs, as required in DOE Order 450.1, Environmental Protection Program, and DOE Order 5400.5, Radiation Protection of the Public and the Environment. The environmental surveillance sampling design is described in the Hanford Site Environmental Monitoring Plan, United States Department of Energy, Richland Operation Office (DOE/RL-91-50). This document contains the locations of sites used to collect samples for the Surface Environmental Surveillance Project (SESP). Each section includes directions, maps, and pictures of the locations. A general knowledge of roads and highways on and around the Hanford Site is necessary to successfully use this manual. Supplemental information (Maps, Gazetteer, etc.) may be necessary if user is unfamiliar with local routes. The SESP is a multimedia environmental surveillance effort to measure the concentrations of radionuclides and chemicals in environmental media to demonstrate compliance with applicable environmental quality standards and public exposure limits, and assessing environmental impacts. Project personnel annually collect selected samples of ambient air, surface water, agricultural products, fish, wildlife, and sediments. Soil and vegetation samples are collected approximately every 5 years. Analytical capabilities include the measurement of radionuclides at very low environmental concentrations and, in selected media, nonradiological chemicals including metals, anions, volatile organic compounds, and total organic carbon

Pesticide application technology in the 21st century

Since 1996, glyphosate has been the predominant herbicide used postemergence for weed control in corn, soybean and cotton in the United States. Because of that, glyphosate-resistant weeds have become increasingly more prevalent in glyphosate-resistant crops which have forced many growers to use other herbicides. Herbicide programs that relied primarily on glyphosate for weed control often used rates as low as 5 gallon/acre (GPA). The other herbicides being used in row crops often require a higher carrier volume according to the label when compared to glyphosate which can be burdensome to the applicator, requiring the transport of more water, more refills and more potential of mixing errors. Additionally, there is growing concern about off-target movement of pesticides and what can be done to mitigate pesticide drift. Both drift and efficacy can be affected by spray quality and application decisions such as nozzle selection, operating pressure and components of the spray solution

Soil Sampling to Demonstrate Compliance with Department of Energy Radiological Clearance Requirements for the ALE Unit of the Hanford Reach National Monument

The Hanford Reach National Monument consists of several units, one of which is the Fitzner/Eberhardt Arid Lands Ecology Reserve (ALE) Unit. This unit is approximately 311 km2 of shrub-steppe habitat located to the south and west of Highway 240. To fulfill internal U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) requirements prior to any radiological clearance of land, DOE must evaluate the potential for residual radioactive contamination on this land and determine compliance with the requirements of DOE Order 5400.5. Historical soil monitoring conducted on ALE indicated soil concentrations of radionuclides were well below the Authorized Limits. However, the historical sampling was done at a limited number of sampling locations. Therefore, additional soil sampling was conducted to determine if the concentrations of radionuclides in soil on the ALE Unit were below the Authorized Limits. This report contains the results of 50 additional soil samples. The 50 soil samples collected from the ALE Unit all had concentrations of radionuclides far below the Authorized Limits. The average concentrations for all detectable radionuclides were less than the estimated Hanford Site background. Furthermore, the maximum observed soil concentrations for the radionuclides included in the Authorized Limits would result in a potential annual dose of 0.14 mrem assuming the most probable use scenario, a recreational visitor. This potential dose is well below the DOE 100-mrem per year dose limit for a member of the public. Spatial analysis of the results indicated no observable statistically significant differences between radionuclide concentrations across the ALE Unit. Furthermore, the results of the biota dose assessment screen, which used the ResRad Biota code, indicated that the concentrations of radionuclides in ALE Unit soil pose no significant health risk to biota

Data Quality Objectives Supporting Radiological Air Emissions Monitoring for the PNNL Site

This document of Data Quality Objectives (DQOs) was prepared based on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Guidance on Systematic Planning Using the Data Quality Objectives Process, EPA, QA/G4, 2/2006 (EPA 2006) as well as several other published DQOs. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is in the process of developing a radiological air monitoring program for the PNNL Site that is distinct from that of the nearby Hanford Site. Radiological emissions at the PNNL Site result from Physical Sciences Facility (PSF) major emissions units. A team was established to determine how the PNNL Site would meet federal regulations and address guidelines developed to monitor and estimate offsite air emissions of radioactive materials. The result is a program that monitors the impact to the public from the PNNL Site

Soil Sampling to Demonstrate Compliance with Department of Energy Radiological Clearance Requirements for the McGee Ranch-Riverlands and North Slope Units of the Hanford Reach National Monument

The Hanford Reach National Monument (HRNM) was created by presidential proclamation in 2000. It is located along the Columbia River in south central Washington and consists of five distinct units. The McGee Ranch-Riverlands and the North Slope units are addressed in this report. North Slope refers to two of the HRNM units: the Saddle Mountain Unit and the Wahluke Slope Unit. The Saddle Mountain and Wahluke Slope Units are located north of the Columbia River, while the McGee Ranch-Riverlands Unit is located south of the Columbia River and north and west of Washington State Highway 24. To fulfill internal U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) requirements prior to any radiological clearance of land, the DOE must evaluate the potential for residual radioactive contamination on this land and determine compliance with the requirements of DOE Order 5400.5. Authorized limits for residual radioactive contamination were developed based on the DOE annual exposure limit to the public (100 mrem) using future potential land-use scenarios. The DOE Office of Environmental Management approved these authorized limits on March 1, 2004. Historical soil monitoring conducted on and around the HRNM indicated soil concentrations of radionuclides were well below the authorized limits (Fritz et al. 2003). However, the historical sampling was done at a limited number of sampling locations. Therefore, additional soil sampling was conducted to determine if the concentrations of radionuclides in soil on the McGee Ranch-Riverlands and North Slope units were below the authorized limits. Sixty-seven soil samples were collected from the McGee Ranch-Riverlands and North Slope units. A software package (Visual Sample Plan) was used to plan the collection to assure an adequate number of samples were collected. The number of samples necessary to decide with a high level of confidence (99%) that the soil concentrations of radionuclides on the North Slope and McGee Ranch-Riverlands units did not exceed the authorized limits was determined to be 27. Additional soil samples were collected from areas suspected to have a potential for accumulation of radionuclides. This included samples collected from the riparian zone along the Columbia River, Savage Island, and other locations across the North Slope and McGee Ranch-Riverlands units. The 67 soil samples collected from the McGee Ranch-Riverlands and North Slope units all had concentrations of radionuclides far below the authorized limits established by the DOE. Statistical analysis of the results concluded that the Authorized Limits were not exceeded when total uncertainty was considered. The calculated upper confidence limit for each radionuclide measured in this study (which represents the value at which 99% of the measurements reside below with a 99% confidence level) was lower than the Authorized Limit for each radionuclide. The maximum observed soil concentrations for the radionuclides included in the authorized limits would result in a potential annual dose of 0.23 mrem assuming the most probable use scenario, a recreational visitor. This potential dose is well below the DOE 100-mrem/year dose limit for members of the public. Furthermore, the results of the biota dose assessment screen, which used the RESRAD biota code, indicated that the sum of fractions is less than one. This assumed soil concentrations equal to the maximum concentrations of radionuclides measured on the McGee Ranch-Riverlands and North Slope units’ in this study. Since the sum of fractions was less than 1, dose to terrestrial biota will not exceed the recommended biota dose limit for the soil concentrations measured in this study

Radionuclide Concentrations in Terrestrial Vegetation and Soil Samples On and Around the Hanford Site, 1971 Through 2008

Environmental monitoring is conducted on the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Hanford Site to comply with DOE Orders and federal and state regulations. Major objectives of the monitoring are to characterize contaminant levels in the environment and to determine site contributions to the contaminant inventory. This report focuses on surface soil and perennial vegetation samples collected between 1971 and 2008 as part of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Surface Environmental Surveillance Project performed under contract to DOE. Areas sampled under this program are located on the Hanford Site but outside facility boundaries and on public lands surrounding the Hanford Site. Additional samples were collected during the past 8 years under DOE projects that evaluated parcels of land for radiological release. These data were included because the same sampling methodology and analytical laboratory were used for the projects. The spatial and temporal trends of six radionuclides collected over a 38-year period were evaluated. The radionuclides----cobalt-60, cesium-137, strontium-90, plutonium-238, plutonium-239/240, and uranium (reported either as uranium-238 or total uranium)----were selected because they persist in the environment and are still being monitored routinely and reported in Hanford Site environmental reports. All these radionuclides were associated with plutonium production and waste management of activities occurring on the site. Other sources include fallout from atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons, which ended in 1980, and the Chernobyl explosion in 1986. Uranium is also a natural component of the soil. This assessment of soil and vegetation data provides important information on the distribution of radionuclides in areas adjacent to industrial areas, established perimeter locations and buffer areas, and more offsite nearby and distant locations. The concentrations reflect a tendency for detection of some radionuclides close to where they were utilized onsite, but as one moves to unindustrialized areas on the site, surrounding buffer areas and perimeter location into the more distant sites, concentrations of these radionuclides approach background and cannot be distinguished from fallout activity. More importantly, concentrations in soil and vegetation samples did not exceed environmental benchmark concentrations, and associated exposure to human and ecological receptors were well below levels that are demonstratively hazardous to human health and the environment

100-NR-2 Apatite Treatability Test: High-Concentration Calcium-Citrate-Phosphate Solution Injection for In Situ Strontium-90 Immobilization

Following an evaluation of potential strontium-90 (90Sr) treatment technologies and their applicability under 100-NR-2 hydrogeologic conditions, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Fluor Hanford, Inc. (now CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Company [CHPRC]), Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and the Washington State Department of Ecology agreed that the long-term strategy for groundwater remediation at the 100-N Area should include apatite as the primary treatment technology. This agreement was based on results from an evaluation of remedial alternatives that identified the apatite permeable reactive barrier (PRB) technology as the approach showing the greatest promise for reducing 90Sr flux to the Columbia River at a reasonable cost. This letter report documents work completed to date on development of a high-concentration amendment formulation and initial field-scale testing of this amendment solution

100-NR-2 Apatite Treatability Test: An update on Barrier Performance

This report updates a previous report covering the performance of a permeable reactive barrier installed at 100N. In this report we re-evaluate the results after having an additional year of performance monitoring data to incorporate

Methods for Assessing the Relative Amounts of Groundwater Discharge into the Columbia River and Measurement of Columbia River Gradients at the Hanford Site’s 300 Area

This report summarizes FY08 activities conducted under the Remediation and Closure Sciences Project