Pre-operational environmental monitoring plan for the Device Assembly Facility at the Nevada Test Site

Nuclear explosives operations have been and may continue to be an important component of the DOE mission at the NTS. This mission has been to conduct the nation`s nuclear testing program in a safe, secure, and efficient manner while assuring full compliance with state and federal regulations, and DOE order`s and directives. These operations have generally included assembly, disassembly or modification, staging, transportation, and tesbng of nuclear explosive devices. They may also include maintenance, repair, retrofit, and surveillance. The Device Assembly Facility (DAF) was constructed to provide a dedicated facility in which to prepare nuclear explosives assemblies for their intended disposition. This facility will provide for combined operations (replacing two separate facilities) and incorporates state-of-the-art safety and security features while minimizing the risks of environmental impacts. The facility has been completed but not yet operated, so the impacts to be considered will b e based on normal operations and not on the impacts of construction activities. The impacts will arise from nuclear explosives operations that require the handling of high explosives in combination with special nuclear materials. Wastes from operation of the earlier device assembly facilities have included grams of epoxies, pints of solvents, and small quantities of waste explosives. These are hazardous (includes radioactive) wastes and are disposed of in accordance with state and federal regulations. Assuming similar operations at the DAF, non-hazardous (includes non-radioactive) solid waste would be transported to a permitted landfill. Waste explosives would be sent to the Area 11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit. Other hazardous waste would be sent to the Area 5 Radioactive Waste.Management Site for shipment or burial