Investigation of groundwater seepage from the Hanford shoreline of the Columbia River

McCormack, W.D.; Carlile, J.M.V.

doi:10.2172/5935182

Cited by 29 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…The first comprehensive survey of riverbank seepage along the Hanford Site shoreline was conducted between fall 1982 and fall 1983 by the Hanford Environmental Surveillance Program (McCormack and Carlile 1984). (Note: The Surveillance Program's objective was to evaluate discharges to the Columbia River that occurred as the result of Hanford operations.)…”

Section: Sitewide Environmental Surveillancementioning

confidence: 99%

Zone of Interaction Between Hanford Site Groundwater and Adjacent Columbia River

Peterson¹

2001

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SummaryThis report describes results for activities conducted under the Groundwater/River Interface task, which is part of the Science and Technology effort associated with the Groundwater/Vadose Zone Integration Project at the Hanford Site. The goal for the Groundwater/River Interface task is to improve the conceptual model for the zone of interaction and its interfaces with the river. The groundwater flow system beneath the Hanford Site represents a primary pathway for contaminants to migrate away from source areas and, for some contaminants, to ultimately discharge into the Columbia River. Near the river, groundwater flow is strongly influenced by the river stage. The rise and fall of the river stage create a dynamic zone of interaction between the two flow systems, thus influencing flow patterns and transport rates. Also, chemical and biological processes at the various interfaces between the aquifer and river channel may alter the characteristics of contaminants potentially moving with groundwater.The need for an improved understanding of the Hanford Site's groundwater/river interface is acknowledged in the Integration Project's Science and Technology roadmap (DOE/RL 2000, Appendix B, pp. B-51 to B-67). Technical information gaps identified in the roadmap are an outgrowth of workshops conducted in May 1999 during which several National Laboratories and site contractors collaborated to help define science and technology information needs. Information Need RL-SS37 has been addressed under the Groundwater/River Interface Task. This need is described in the roadmap as follows:• "Provide methodology to relate information derived from sitewide-scale groundwater flow modeling to the various scales associated with assessing impacts in the river environment."The roadmap also describes several aspects of research appropriate to address the information need. Two focus areas addressed in this report are:• "Develop the modeling capabilities to characterize the flow path of water within the zone of interaction, which is strongly influenced by river stage fluctuations."• "Develop the modeling capabilities to quantify the changes in groundwater characteristics that take place in the zone of interaction between the aquifer and the river." Water Movement Simulation (Flow Path Modeling Capabilities)Flow patterns in the zone of groundwater/river interaction (ZOI) are highly variable because of daily and seasonal fluctuations in river stage. Intermingling of groundwater and river water in the zone, along with the locations of groundwater discharge into the river channel, are key issues. The computer code Subsurface Transport of Multiple Phases (White and Oostrom 1996) was used to simulate movement in two dimensions along a cross section oriented perpendicular to the river at the 100-H Area. The simulation covers the entire year of 1998 in hourly increments and includes the transient hydraulic conditions created by the fluctuating river stage. The velocity field was animated using the graphical iv display capabilities of TecPlot...

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Section: Sitewide Environmental Surveillancementioning

confidence: 99%

Zone of Interaction Between Hanford Site Groundwater and Adjacent Columbia River

Peterson¹

2001

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“…In addition to permitted direct discharges of liquid effluents from Hanford facilities, contaminants in groundwater from previous discharges to the ground are known to seep into the river (McCormack and Carlile 1984;Dirkes 1990;Peterson 1992;DOE/RL-92-12). Effluents from each direct discharge point were routinely monitored and reported by the responsible operating contractor and were summarized in Hanford Site environmental reports (e.g., Poston et al 2005).…”

Section: 2mentioning

confidence: 99%

Summary of Radiological Monitoring of Columbia and Snake River Sediment, 1988 Through 2004

Patton¹,

Dirkes²

2007

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SummaryOperation of the single-pass reactors at the Hanford Site resulted in the deposition of radionuclides, primarily short half-life activation products, to sediment accumulation areas on the Columbia River. Operation of the single-pass reactors ended in 1971, and a number of studies were conducted that documented the rapid decline in the radionuclide inventory in the sediment from the decay of short-lived radionuclides and the deposition of fresh sediment material. For the period from 1975 through 1988, environmental monitoring of Columbia River sediment was limited.From 1988 through 2004, samples of upper-layer sediments from the Columbia River and Snake River were collected under the Hanford Site Surface Environmental Surveillance Project to document concentrations and trends of radionuclides. Low concentrations of potassium-40, cesium-137, uranium isotopes, and plutonium isotopes were detected consistently in sediment samples over the entire sampling period. The concentrations of most radionuclides were similar to values measured upstream of the Hanford Site behind Priest Rapids Dam. For all locations, the concentrations of radionuclides in sediment samples from the Columbia and Snake rivers were below concentrations that would result in a 1-mrem effective dose equivalent to a hypothetical exposed individual using a shoreline exposure scenario (i.e., 500 hr/yr of external dose). The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) limit for public exposure is 100 mrem/yr. Discerning changes in concentration trends for uranium isotopes in sediment was complicated by the use of different methods for analyzing for the presence of uranium. During the period covered by this report, uranium concentrations had been measured using both low-energy photon spectroscopy (U-LEPS) and alpha energy analysis (U-AEA). The U-LEPS method did not report values for uranium-234 and had higher detection limits for uranium-235, with most uranium-235 results reported as below the detection limit. Radionuclide concentrations in sediment collected from riverbank spring discharges along the Hanford Site shoreline were similar to levels in Columbia River sediment, with one exception-the 300 Area, where the average uranium concentrations were usually two to three times the concentrations measured at Priest Rapids. For all locations, the concentrations of radionuclides in riverbank spring sediment samples were below concentrations that would result in a 1-mrem effective dose equivalent to the hypothetical maximally exposed individual using a shoreline exposure scenario (i.e., 500 hr/yr of external dose), which is below the DOE public exposure limit of 100 mrem/yr.

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“…Hanford-origin contaminants have been documented in some of these groundwater discharges along the Hanford Reach (Dirkes 1990;DOE 1992~b;McCormack andCarlile 1984, Peterson and.…”

Section: Columbia Riverbank Seepagementioning

confidence: 99%

Hanford Site National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Characterization

Antonio¹,

Fosmire²,

Fowler³

et al. 1999

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Investigation of groundwater seepage from the Hanford shoreline of the Columbia River

Cited by 29 publications

References 2 publications

Zone of Interaction Between Hanford Site Groundwater and Adjacent Columbia River

Zone of Interaction Between Hanford Site Groundwater and Adjacent Columbia River

Summary of Radiological Monitoring of Columbia and Snake River Sediment, 1988 Through 2004

Hanford Site National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Characterization

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