Page 157 - Beyond Decommissioning

138 Beyond Decommissioning

Fig. 6.2 The P Reactor at SRS, SC (later entombed).
Credit to US DOE.

SRS has still a good deal of operational facilities and can be considered an
active site. However, SRS can offer large land for projects that can help ensure
the continuing socioeconomic performance of the site. A list of SRS excess facilities
eligible for reuse is given in SRS (1995), including a Facility Reuse Inquiry form for
prospective developers. The following project is described in SRS (2017).
The US military are faced with a shortage of large land for tactical maneuver train-
ing. Challenges stem from base closures, constant technological changes, and environ-
mental restrictions: all of these that can hinder training sessions. One possible strategy
to overcome these difficulties is to use federal sites. The SRS and the US DOE have a
vested interest in national security, and a partnership between the military and the
DOE offers reciprocal advantages.
The attractions SRS can offer to military training include its isolation, the fact that
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only 10% of its 800 km is in use, its terrain (swamps, timberland, roadways), and its
darkness (there are no major cities nearby). On the other hand, military’s work can
help SRS missions and goals. In an agreement stipulated in June 2007, it was stated
that the military shall have no interactions with SRS operations, no additional cost
shall incur to SRS, no live fire training shall be performed, and that the military shall
be responsible for operational safety. Training activities must protect the site’s envi-
ronmental and cultural assets. All military training is planned in advance, and a series
of coordination meetings are held before a training event.
Under the umbrella of this agreement, the South Carolina National Guard (SCNG)
has carried out several projects that have benefited the site, among others, installing a
new fire pond dam, replacing the B-area storm water basin and clearing 20 sludge
lanes damaged by the ice storm.