Aptim Federal Services, LLC (APTIM), a market leader in decommissioning and environmental solutions, announced today that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Baltimore District has awarded the Company a contract to Decommission and Dismantle the SM-1A Reactor Facility located at Fort Greely, Alaska. In addition to managing the decommissioning and dismantlement of the decades-old reactor, the APTIM-led team will integrate and utilize mature, proven innovations to dispose of both hazardous and radioactive soil and debris from the remote Alaskan installation to the lower-48.
The contract was awarded to APTIM-Amentum Alaska Decommissioning, LLC (A3D), which is a joint venture led by APTIM and Amentum Technical Services, LLC. Other members of A3D’s team include Heritage – M2C1 Joint Venture, a HUBZone small business location in Delta Junction, AK; Lynden Logistics; Brice Environmental; Oak Ridge Technologies; ReNuke Services; AECOM Technical Services; and Delta Junction Medical.
The standalone C-contract has an estimated value of $95.5M, over a 6-year ordering period. The work to be performed under this contract includes planning, permitting, and engineering; site preparation; demolition and disposal of facilities, including components from the deactivated and defueled nuclear reactor, related wells and utility corridors, plus other ancillary facilities. The contract also includes remediation of contaminated soils, a final status survey, and site restoration.
David Lowe, Senior Vice President of APTIM’s Nuclear Decommissioning business unit, said, “APTIM and our heritage companies have a long history of supporting USACE and the Army Reactor Office (ARO) and have managed numerous Decontamination and Decommissioning projects across the federal complex. Our extensive experience performing reactor decommissioning projects for USACE and the ARO enables us to bring advanced innovations and solutions to complete the work safely and effectively at Fort Greely.” Mr. Lowe continued, “We will partner with USACE , regulators, and community stakeholders to eliminate the environmental liabilities of this legacy, aging nuclear facility.”
“We appreciate USACE’s confidence in APTIM and our partners to perform this critical work. We have a tremendous track record of successfully managing high hazard decommissioning work and look forward to bringing innovations and an experienced team to the last standing nuclear reactor constructed as part of the Army Nuclear Power Program (ANPP),” said Steve Moran, APTIM’s Army Reactor Program Manager and the Project Manager for the SM-1A project.
The SM-1A reactor achieved criticality in 1962 and was shut down in March of 1972, followed by the removal and disposition of the spent nuclear fuel in 1973. The primary mission of the single-loop, 20.2 megawatt-thermal pressurized water reactor was to establish a cold-weather nuclear power plant to support power to Fort Greely, with a secondary mission to study the economics of operating a nuclear electric power plant as compared to operating a conventional oil-fired system in a remote location.
An on-site kickoff meeting at Fort Greely will in late October 2023, paving the way for our preparatory work at the site. The team is targeting a full mobilization to the site by mid-2024. Project completion is currently anticipated by 2029. Project information can also be found on the USACE website www.nab.usace.army.mil/SM-1A/.
Arcadis U.S. Inc, a leading global design and consultancy organization for natural and built assets, is pleased to announce its selection to perform environmental and remediation services for the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Huntsville District. Arcadis is one of nine firms to be selected as part of an $800 million shared capacity framework contract.
During the contract's five-year performance period, companies will compete for projects under a competitive bidding process. The scope of services under the framework includes the removal, transport and disposal of Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF) containing Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) from fire suppression systems. PFAS are a widely used group of chemicals that do not break down in the environment and are therefore difficult to treat. Arcadis will be employing innovative techniques including creating an AFFF foam transition digital tool to collect, organize and report data gathered by field personnel during foam transition activities, as well as replacing firefighting foams with equivalent substances that do not contain PFAS.
These AFFF support services will be delivered at various U.S. Department of Defense commands and installations and other federal agencies located across the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii, the U.S. territories and outlying areas.
Tom Rose, Federal Sector Leader for Arcadis, said: "We're honored to provide long-term clients like USACE with our proven solutions and leading technical expertise that not only address and limit the environmental impacts of PFAS, but also support global efforts around sustainability."
Frank Goossensen, Global Resilience Growth Leader for Arcadis, added: "PFAS and other emerging contaminants are a big issue around the globe and, as we grow our understanding of their impact on the environment, we are also making huge strides in learning how to contain or treat them so as to minimize future harm. Rapidly evolving regulations make this an increasingly important issue and I'm pleased that, by working with clients such as USACE, we can apply our technical innovation to tackle one of the biggest remediation challenges of today."
ABOUT ARCADIS
Arcadis is the leading global design & consultancy organization for natural and built assets. We maximize impact for our clients and the communities they serve by providing effective solutions through sustainable outcomes, focus and scale, and digitalization. We are 36,000 people, active in more than 70 countries that generate €4.0 billion in gross revenues. We support UN-Habitat with knowledge and expertise to improve the quality of life in rapidly growing cities around the world. www.arcadis.com
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Buffalo District is pleased to announce that it has awarded a $40 million contract to Enviro-Fix Solutions LLC for Niagara Falls Storage Site (NFSS) Remedial and Site Services.
The first task order was awarded on Aug. 4, 2023 for $11,984,341.90, which includes remediating contaminated media in accordance with the Record of Decision for the Balance of Plan (BOP) and Groundwater Operable Units (OU). This work is being carried out under the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP).
Selected Remedy:
The selected remedy in the Record of Decision for the Balance of Plant and Groundwater Operable Units (OUs) Niagara Falls Storage Site is the complete removal of contaminated media and off-site disposal at a properly permitted or licensed facility. Following completion of excavation and off-site disposal, the site would be remediated to levels suitable for industrial use (i.e., protective of construction, industrial, and maintenance workers, as well as adolescent and adult trespassers).
The major components of the selected remedy for the NFSS BOP and Groundwater OUs include:
Next Steps/Anticipated Schedule:
Site Services:
In the future, the USACE intends to utilize available contract capacity to support ongoing NFSS Interim Waste Containment Structure Disposal (IWCS) Remedial Design Activities. Activities may include environmental and geotechnical data collection and site infrastructure construction.
NFSS Project Information Website:
All documents (fact sheets, reports, video, etc.) related to the Niagara Falls Storage Site project can be found at:
https://www.lrb.usace.army.mil/Missions/HTRW/FUSRAP/Niagara-Falls-Storage-Site/.
Administrative Record:
All documents used during the decision-making process for FUSRAP activities at the NFSS site are available at:
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has awarded an $800 million contract to nine companies to carry out government installation cleanup efforts, with a primary focus on addressing fire suppressants that contain perfluoroalkyl chemicals.
The contract is a firm-fixed-price award that includes services for film-forming foam removal, disposal, and replacement, as stated by the Department of Defense on Thursday.
Out of the 14 bids submitted for the project, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers selected the following nine companies:
The project is expected to conclude on February 14, 2029.
Emerging chemicals of environmental concern in water represent a major challenge for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, in terms of exposure risks to humans and the environment.
The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) is working to understand detection, fate and transport, and remediation of a group of these chemicals, generally known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
PFAS are found in everyday consumer products — from non-stick cookware to water-resistant clothing. They are also found in certain foams, known as aqueous film forming foam, used to fight fires on military and commercial airfields. PFAS may enter the environment at sites where these chemicals are made, used or disposed of and can make their way into groundwater systems through runoff or soil seepage.
The Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) and the Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP), funded by the Department of Defense, have a core mission to address challenges, such as PFAS, and improve environmental performance.
ERDC partnered with SERDP/ESTCP on a project to identify the best technologies to characterize, treat and manage PFAS in groundwater environments, as well as to determine how mineral-based amendments can increase the removal efficiency of natural sediments.
“The project’s goal is to understand how substances like activated carbon and iron can aid in immobilizing PFAS from groundwater and how altering key chemical variables, like concentration and ionic strength, will impact adsorption over time,” said Dr. Amanda Barker, a research chemist with ERDC’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory. “Our work also investigates overall amendment integrity and how it might physically change once distributed in groundwater systems.”
Using amendments as a simple and rapid tool to remove PFAS from groundwater is ideal for remote locations or those where it isn’t possible to completely remove impacted soil and groundwater and destroy the PFAS.
“Removal of groundwater and soil is difficult and costly, and we’ve shown amendments may aid in reducing the risk of off-site migration, which at the very least would potentially slow down the risk to humans and the environment,” Barker said.
In a laboratory setting, Barker and her team have been able to show complete removal of select PFAS using activated carbon sourced from peat mixed with iron.
“We are very excited about our recent developments as this information will be able to directly aid other basic research programs interested in understanding how PFAS migrate in the environment,” she said.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntsville Center (CEHNC) intends to issue a 100% small-business set-aside, Multiple Award Task Order Contract (MATOC), Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract for services in support of the Ordinance & Explosives Directorate (OED).
Small businesses will provide services, that include being able to safely locate, identify, recover, evaluate, assess, package, transport, manage, and make final disposition, as required, of Munitions and Explosives of Concern (MEC) and Hazardous, Toxic and Radioactive Waste (HTRW) at various currently and formerly used defense sites, property adjoining currently and formerly used defense sites, and other federally controlled/owned sites.
This contract is intended to support sites located throughout the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii, the U.S. territories, outlying areas as defined by FAR 2.101, and territorial waters.
The MATOC will have a total shared capacity of $960 Million (M) with a period of performance (POP) of 10 years (2-year base period with four 2-year option periods).
It is anticipated that an RFP will be issued on or about July 1, 2023.
AECOM announced today that its joint venture was awarded a contract from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to deliver per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) remedial investigations, feasibility studies, removal actions, and associated work at Army National Guard (ARNG) facilities nationwide. This work builds on AECOM’s prior experience executing extensive preliminary PFAS investigations at ARNG facilities for USACE.
“PFAS present a social and environmental challenge, one we’re tackling aggressively through our Sustainable Legacies strategy,” said Lara Poloni, AECOM’s president. “Our track record in PFAS extends over two decades, and our teams bring deep technical excellence and a drive to continuously innovate solutions as we partner with new and long-term clients to address the impact of PFAS on communities.”
Using the latest in analytics and treatment technologies, the joint venture will work with USACE to define nature and extent for regulated PFAS at ARNG facilities nationwide, take quick action where necessary, and design and implement long-term treatment solutions.
“The ARNG and all of the Department of Defense continue to take proactive measures against PFAS in the environment, and we’re proud to support them as a leader in PFAS remediation,” said Frank Sweet, chief executive of AECOM’s global Environment business. “Our suite of PFAS services, spanning characterization, evaluation, mitigation and destruction, and our ever-growing team of global experts enable us to provide clients with powerful PFAS capabilities, which we expect to be especially valuable as countries around the world take further action to address and limit PFAS.”
PFAS are a diverse group of synthetic chemicals used for over 50 years in industrial applications that, due to distinct properties, can prove difficult to break down and are subject to increasingly stringent federal regulations. AECOM brings an unrivalled depth and breadth of experience, having helped clients address the impact of PFAS since 2001 and on approximately 500 sites globally.
