1.0 Introduction. 1.1 Purpose and Scope. M. J. Hartman

Transcription

1 1.0 Introduction M. J. Hartman The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) monitors groundwater at the Hanford Site to fulfill a variety of state and federal regulations, including the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), and Washington Administrative Code. DOE manages these activities through the Hanford Monitoring Project, which is conducted by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. 1.1 Purpose and Scope Hanford Site Monitoring for Fiscal Year 2002 (Figure 1.1-1) presents results of groundwater monitoring, vadose zone monitoring and characterization, and groundwater modeling. This report also summarizes groundwater remediation and well installation activities for the fiscal year. Monitoring results primarily rely on data from samples collected between October 1, 2001, and September 30, Data received after November 14, 2002, may not have been considered in the interpretations. This report is designed to meet the following objectives: provide a comprehensive report of groundwater conditions on the Hanford Site and adjacent areas This report describes groundwater conditions on the Hanford Site and fulfills regulatory reporting requirements. It also summarizes groundwater remediation, vadose zone studies, and groundwater modeling. monitoring helps the U.S. Department of Energy develop solutions to Hanford Site cleanup issues. The protection of the Columbia River corridor is of primary importance. Pictured above is part of the Hanford Reach. Introduction 1.0-1

2 U.S. Department of Energy Richland Operations River Corridor Central Plateau Waste Management U.S. Department of Energy Office of River Protection Tank Farm Vadose Zone Characterization Bechtel Hanford, Inc. Fluor Hanford, Inc. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory CH2M HILL Hanford Group, Inc. Environmental Restoration Protection Program Surface Water Surveillance Vadose Zone Characterization Vadose Zone Characterization Remediation Modeling Vadose Zone Monitoring Well Installation, Decommissioning, and Maintenance Vadose Zone Characterization and Testing Well Installation at Tank Farms Monitoring Project Hanford Site Monitoring Annual Report ecs03003 Figure The Hanford Monitoring Project Produces the Annual Report for the U.S. Department of Energy with Input from Many Contributors fulfill the reporting requirements of RCRA, CERCLA (for operable units with no active groundwater remediation), DOE orders, and Washington Administrative Code summarize the results of groundwater monitoring conducted to assess the effects of remediation or interim measures conducted under CERCLA describe the results of vadose zone monitoring and characterization summarize groundwater modeling activities summarize the installation, maintenance, and decommissioning of Hanford Site monitoring wells remediation and associated monitoring of pumping wells was the responsibility of Bechtel Hanford, Inc. until the end of June After that time, the work moved to Fluor Hanford, Inc. Bechtel Hanford, Inc. continues to remediate surface facilities and near-surface contamination in the vadose zone. Vadose zone monitoring and characterization are conducted by Bechtel Hanford, Inc.; CH2M HILL Hanford Group, Inc.; Fluor Hanford, Inc.; and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Supporting information for RCRA, CERCLA, and other waste units regulated under federal and state requirements are presented in Appendix A. Table summarizes highlights or changes for those units and indicates where to find additional information. Appendix B describes results of the quality control program. Appendix C contains a list of wells currently used to monitor groundwater on the Hanford Site, a list of dry wells, and a summary of laboratory analyses run on samples in fiscal year Background information, including descriptions of regulatory requirements, waste sites, analytical methods, regional geology, and statistics is included in a Hanford Site Monitoring 2002

3 separately-published companion volume, Hanford Site : Setting, Sources and Methods (PNNL-13080), and in the most recent update, which was provided in PNNL-13788, Appendix C. Those changes have been incorporated into the electronic version of this groundwater monitoring report. As in previous reports, the compact disk and Internet website contain groundwater data for the fiscal year and historical data for selected constituents. 1.2 Related Reports Other reports and databases relating to Hanford Site groundwater in fiscal year 2002 include the following: Hanford Site Environmental Report for Calendar Year 2001 (PNNL-13910) This annual report summarizes environmental data, describes environmental management performance, and reports the status of compliance with environmental regulations. Topics include effluent monitoring, surface water and sediment surveillance, soil and vegetation sampling, vadose and groundwater monitoring, radiological surveys, air surveillance, and fish and wildlife surveillance. Hanford Environmental Information System (HEIS) This is the main environmental database for the Hanford Site that stores groundwater chemistry data, as well as other environmental data (e.g., soil chemistry, survey data). Quarterly data transmittals DOE transmits letters quarterly to the Washington State Department of Ecology after groundwater data collected for the RCRA program have been verified and evaluated. These letters describe changes or highlights of the quarter with reference to HEIS for the analytical results. Fiscal Year 2001 Annual Summary Report for the 200-UP-1 and 200-ZP-1 Pumpand-Treat Operations (DOE/RL ) This report describes results of remediation and monitoring in two groundwater operable units in the 200 West Area. Calendar Year 2001 Annual Summary Report for the 100-HR-3, 100-KR-4, and 100-NR-2 Operable Units and Pump-and-Treat Operations (DOE/RL ) This report describes results of remediation and monitoring in groundwater operable units in the 100-K, 100-N, 100-D, and 100-H Areas. Fiscal Year 2001 Annual Summary Report for the In-Situ REDOX Manipulation Operations (DOE/RL ) This report describes activities related to the remediation system in the southwest 100-D Area. 1.3 Protection Program The goal of the Protection Program at the Hanford Site is to clean up groundwater contaminants, avoid future groundwater contamination, and prevent groundwater contaminants from migrating to the Columbia River. Fluor Hanford, Inc. manages the Protection Program, formerly known as Abbreviations and Acronyms CFR Code of Federal Regulations DOE U.S. Department of Energy DOE/RL U.S. Department of Energy, Richland Operations Office CERCLA Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act DCG derived concentration guide DWS drinking water standard Ecology Washington State Department of Ecology EPA U.S. Environmental Protection Agency HEIS Hanford Environmental Information System MCL maximum contaminant level NAVD88 North American Vertical Datum of 1988 PUREX Plutonium-Uranium Extraction (Plant) RCRA Resource Conservation and Recovery Act ROD Record of Decision Tri-Party Agreement Hanford Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order WAC Washington Administrative Code Introduction 1.0-3

4 Radionuclides and Their Half-Lives Symbol Radionuclide Half-Lives 3 H tritium yr 14 C carbon-14 5,730 yr 60 Co cobalt yr 90 Sr strontium yr 99 Tc technetium ,000 yr 106 Ru ruthenium d 129 I iodine million yr 137 Cs cesium yr 234 U uranium ,000 yr 239 Pu plutonium ,000 yr 240 Pu plutonium-240 6,500 yr the /Vadose Zone Integration Project, for DOE. The Hanford Monitoring Project is under the umbrella of the Protection Program. To accelerate groundwater cleanup, the Protection Program requires a strategy to contain and reduce contaminants in the Central Plateau. The Central Plateau includes the 200 East and 200 West Areas. Numerous facilities formerly used for producing nuclear materials, as well as Hanford s 177 underground tanks for storing high-level radioactive waste, are located in the 200 Areas. DOE plans to eventually transition the Central Plateau to a safe and stable waste storage area. To achieve this goal, DOE must limit potential exposure to humans or the ecosystem from direct contact with contamination via the soil and groundwater. The Protection Program has five focus areas: isolating waste sites preventing water from moving contaminants through the soil shrinking the contaminated area resolving pump-and-treat operation issues integrating Hanford groundwater monitoring needs The Protection Program also is working to develop and apply technology that solves some of Hanford s toughest groundwater problems. In addition, the program performs site-wide assessments aimed at understanding contaminant behavior and associated risks. The program also manages Hanford s key environmental data systems. Throughout its work, the Protection Program will continually seek the active involvement of regulators, tribal governments, the state of Oregon, stakeholders, and the public. 1.4 Helpful Information The companion volume to this report (PNNL-13080) describes techniques used to interpret the data and conventions for plotting. Contaminant plume maps in this report show data from fiscal years 2000 and 2001 if there were no new data for a well in fiscal year Wells that monitor plumes that change slowly are sampled every 3 years, so this convention allows us to see the most recent data. Trend plots in this report use open symbols to show levels of contaminants that were so low the laboratory could not detect them. These results are typically reported as a value that represents the detection limit of the analytical method or instrument and are Units of Measure flagged undetected in the database. Analytical results that appear to be erroneous remain on the plots if they do not distort the scale or obscure the data trends. If the outlying data distort the figure, they are not plotted. All of the data from fiscal year 2002 are included µg/l µs/cm mg/l mm/yr pci/g pci/l micrograms per liter microsiemens per centimeter milligrams per liter millimeters per year picocuries per gram picocuries per liter in the data files that accompany this pci/mg picocuries per milligram report and in the HEIS database. Nitrate and nitrite are expressed as the NO 3 and NO 2 ions. Figures showing ppb ppm ppmv parts per billion parts per million parts per million volume Hanford Site Monitoring 2002

5 chromium results include total chromium in filtered samples and hexavalent chromium in filtered or unfiltered samples. Dissolved chromium in Hanford Site groundwater is virtually all hexavalent, so filtered total chromium represents hexavalent chromium. This report compares contaminant concentrations in groundwater with state or federally enforceable maximum contaminant levels and other limits for drinking water. Although Hanford Site groundwater is not generally used for drinking, these levels provide a useful indicator to provide perspective on contaminant concentrations. See Table 5.1 in PNNL for a complete list of updated standards. Conversion Table The primary units of measurement in this report are metric. To convert metric units to English units, use the information provided in this table. Multiply By To Obtain centimeters inches meters 3.28 feet kilometers miles kilograms pounds liters gallons square meters square feet hectares 2.47 acres square kilometers square miles cubic meters cubic yards curie 3.7 x becquerel picocurie becquerel rem 0.01 sievert C ( C x 9/5) + 32 F Introduction 1.0-5

6 Table Regulated Units and Operable Units on the Hanford Site Type of Monitoring Influence on Compliance FY 2002 Site or Operable Unit Program Text (a) Issues Highlights RCRA Units (well location maps, well/constituent tables, statistics tables, and flow rates in Appendix A) 116-N-1 (1301-N) Indicator evaluation None A.1.1 No CIP exceedance; (b) new facility 116-N-3 (1325-N) Indicator evaluation None A.1.3 No CIP exceedance; (b) new facility 120-N-1, 120-N-2 Indicator evaluation None A.1.2 No CIP exceedance; (b) new (1324-N/NA) facilities 116-H-6 (183-H) basins Corrective action , A.1.4 Monitoring during IRA. Chromium, nitrate, technetium-99, uranium. 216-A-29 ditch Indicator evaluation None A.1.5 No CIP exceedance (b) 216-B-3 pond Indicator evaluation None A.1.6 Revised ; demonstration of alternative statistical method 216-B-63 trench Indicator evaluation None A.1.7 No CIP exceedance; (b) new 216-S-10 pond and ditch Indicator evaluation None A.1.8 No CIP exceedance; (b) one upgradient and one downgradient well remain; new 216-U-12 crib Assessment A.1.9 Continued assessment; two downgradient wells remain process trenches Corrective action , A.1.10 Monitoring during natural attenuation IRA. New ; demonstration of alternative statistical method. LERF Indicator evaluation None A.1.11 Insufficient wells; no statistical comparisons LLWMA 1 Indicator evaluation None A.1.12 No CIP exceedance (b) LLWMA 2 Indicator evaluation None A.1.13 No CIP exceedance; dry well LLWMA 3 Indicator evaluation None A.1.14 No CIP exceedance; (b) dry wells LLWMA 4 Indicator evaluation None A.1.15 No CIP exceedance; (b) two downgradient wells remain NRDWL Indicator evaluation None A.1.16 No CIP exceedance PUREX cribs Assessment A.1.17 Continued assessment; nitrate. Dry well. SST WMA A-AX Indicator evaluation None A.1.18 No CIP exceedance; (b) revised SST WMA B-BX-BY Assessment A.1.19 Continued assessment; nitrate, nitrite SST WMA C Indicator evaluation None A.1.20 New interpretation of flow; temporarily ceased CIP comparisons. Revised. SST WMA S-SX Assessment A.1.21 Continued assessment; chromium, nitrate; revised. New assessment report Hanford Site Monitoring 2002

7 Table (contd) Type of Monitoring Influence on Compliance FY 2002 Site or Operable Unit Program Text (a) Issues Highlights SST WMA T Assessment A.1.22 Continued assessment; chromium, nitrate; revised. New assessment report. SST WMA TX-TY Assessment A.1.23 Continued assessment; chromium, nitrate; revised. New assessment report. SST WMA U Assessment A.1.24 Continued assessment; nitrate Other Regulated Units (well location maps, well/constituent tables in Appendix A) 100-K fuel storage basins Atomic Energy Act A.2.1 No leaks detected; new of Areas TEDF WAC None A.2.2 No influence in upper aquifer 4608 B/C process ponds WAC None A.2.3 No permit limits exceeded ERDF CERCLA A.2.4 None A.2.4 No permit limits exceeded in calendar year 2001 SALDS WAC A.2.6 No permit limits exceeded; tritium plume possibly reached 200 West boundary SWL WAC A constituents exceeded background or standards; low levels of organics CERCLA Operable Units 100-BC-5 Long-term monitoring A.3.1 Began to integrate CERCLA and Atomic Energy Act of 1954 monitoring 100-FR-3 Long-term monitoring A.3.2 Began to integrate CERCLA and Atomic Energy Act of 1954 monitoring 100-HR-3 IRA; interim ROD A.3.3 Chromium > cleanup (D pump and treat) target; new extraction well 100-HR-3 IRA; interim ROD A.3.3 Chromium > cleanup (D redox site) target; new injections 100-HR-3 IRA; interim ROD A.3.3 Chromium > cleanup (H pump and treat) target 100-KR-4 IRA; interim ROD A.3.4 Chromium > cleanup target 100-NR-2 IRA; interim ROD A.3.5 No decrease in plume size 1100-EM-1 Natural attenuation; A.3.11 TCE <5 in all wells final ROD 200-BP-5 Long-term monitoring A.3.6 Data quality objectives report; began to integrate CERCLA and Atomic Energy Act of 1954 monitoring Introduction 1.0-7

8 Table (contd) Type of Monitoring Influence on Compliance FY 2002 Site or Operable Unit Program Text (a) Issues Highlights 200-PO-1 Long-term monitoring A.3.7 Data quality objectives report; began to integrate CERCLA and Atomic Energy Act of 1954 monitoring 200-UP-1 Interim action ROD A.3.8 Technetium-99 and uranium > cleanup goals 200-ZP-1 Interim action ROD A.3.9 Heart of plume contained 300-FF Area Natural attenuation; , A.3.10 TCE levels decreasing interim ROD 300-FF-5 north Operations and A soil-gas survey Maintenance plan (a) Influence of the facility or site for constituents of interest (e.g., RCRA-regulated constituents, CERCLA constituents of concern). (b) Analysis of CIP provided no evidence of groundwater contamination with hazardous constituents from the unit. CERCLA = Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act. CIP = Contamination indicator parameters. ERDF = Environmental Restoration Disposal Facility. FY = Fiscal year. IRA = Interim remedial action. LERF = Liquid Effluent Retention Facility. LLWMA = Low-Level Waste Management Area. NRDWL = Nonradioactive Dangerous Waste Landfill. PUREX = Plutonium-Uranium Extraction Plant. RCRA = Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. ROD = Record of decision. SALDS = State-Approved Land Disposal Site. SST = Single-shell tank. SWL = Solid Waste Landfill. TCE = Trichloroethene. TEDF = Treated Effluent Disposal Facility Hanford Site Monitoring 2002