So What’s the Problem?
Unfortunately, BNL has not always been as ecologically friendly as it is today. In the past, when problems were found—such as small amounts of leaching waste seeping into the ground—the scientists’ did not immediately take clean-up action; rather they chose to ignore these miniscule impacts on the environment. Due to Long Island’s water aquifers (an underground bed or layer yielding ground water for wells and springs), these problems would eventually spread out past the laboratory property. When civic action groups in the surrounding communities began to get word of such problems, they began testing rivers, soil and, most important, the aquifers in the nearby areas. Small amounts of tritium had leached into several of these areas, enough for the EPA to get involved, which meant things would have to change. One would have a hard time believing there were radiological hazards needing to be cleaned up at BNL, a pristine, 5000-acre facility set in the Pine Barrens of Long Island. Early arrivals at the lab were met by birds chirping, squirrels rushing through the brush and dozens of deer out for their morning meal. Flocks of turkeys were commonly spotted by most of the workers as they cruised to their wooded workplaces.
However, due to the lab’s poor policing of itself, the machine at the center of the laboratory’s existence for years—the Brookhaven Graphite Research Reactor (BGRR)—was forced to shut down. Come to find out, the BGRR was the source of the leaching tritium, thus was disassembled and would never operate again. Along with the BGRR, several support buildings, tunnels, piping and ductwork would be included in the final closing of this chapter of BNL’s history.
The below-ground ducts at the facility that housed the BGRR were used to carry dirty radiated air, which ventilated through to a filter system and then to the 300-foot exhaust stack. The two ducts were about 200 feet long and varied in size from 14 to 20 feet wide and about 12 feet high. Laboratory workers had been removing debris and cleaning the duct interiors for months, so they could eventually be decommissioned and sealed. Engineers wanted to be 100 percent sure if any moisture entered the duct and possibly met with any trace of radioactive particles remaining in the duct that the water would run to an isolated trench where it could be gathered, monitored and disposed of properly. To obtain the “flow” of any water on the rusting pitched steel floors, the engineers specified the application of a 100 percent pure polyurea coating system. A 60-mil application of polyurea would serve as a liner over all horizontal surfaces and approximately 1 foot up the walls.
Once lab engineers decided on their requirements, specifications were prepared along with various other contract documents—most importantly, safety requirements—to work this radiological confined space. Bid packages were arranged and sent to various prospective bidders. Due to the difficult nature of the project, as well as the radiological hazards, only three bids were submitted, with The Gombert Organization being the apparent low bidder. Due to traces of contamination still present in the ducts, part of the bid was to give BNL employees radiological training and instruction as to how to apply the polyurea technology. The Gombert Organization decided to have our own trained mechanics operate the plural component pumping equipment above ground, rather than permitting access into the ducts. After the contract was awarded, The Gombert Organization put together a combination classroom and field training course. We trained six BNL employees on the plural component technology with a strong emphasis on safety precautions and spray techniques.
OBSTICLE ONE: Equipment
At the lab, our pre-construction meeting included the Health Physics Department. It was mutually determined that because the work was to be performed in a confined spaceand the lab could not guarantee adequate air exchange, any and all entrants during the coatings installation would be equipped with full-face masks and supplied air. Along with adding to the costs of the project, this created another obstacle—BNL did not have either the equipment available or the trained personnel for this type of respiratory protection.
OBSTICLE TWO: Training
The Gombert Organization was brought in again because our employees did have the proper respirator training, medicals and fit tests to use supplied air, as well as confined space and radiation training. Only one problem remained: our employees did not have the OSHA 40-hour “Hazwopper” training, also required by the lab for dealing with radiological waste. Therefore, we made an agreement between BNL and Miller Environmental Group, a local environmental contractor that provides “Hazwopper” training. In just a few days, our employees were trained and ready to get to work.
Let’s Get Started, Already
The first days of the project were spent in site-specific planning and safety meetings, along with mobilizing equipment for the job. Our workers were required to sleeve the plural component hoses into a flexible eight-inch-wide tube, so the scuff jacket would not pickup any residual radiological waste.
OBSTICLE THREE: Gear
The donning of personal protective equipment was a chore in itself. First our workers put on scrubs and work boots followed by full Tyvex suits, including attached booties and hood. Next, they wore a pair of thin cotton liners for their hands, followed by two pairs of vinyl gloves, the first of which was duct taped to the sleeves of the suits. Then, thick rubber boots were squeezed onto each foot. A lab Facility Support Technician (FST) then assisted with securing the full-face supplied air equipment and duct taped the hood to the mask where necessary. Finally, a pair of leather work gloves were worn, to protect from ripping the interior gloves. This “dressing” process took about a half hour for every entrant. AND – due to the cumbersome PPE and extreme work environments, our employees were closely monitored, and were only able to work one- to two-hour shifts for fear of exhaustion.
Now We’re In
Once in the tunnel, the spray hose was slipped through a collar in the roof of the tunnel and work could begin. One man was spraying and one man was backing him up on the hose. The third man had the most important and perhaps most difficult job -- he was responsible for keeping three supplied air lines and the spray hose from getting tangled.
OBSTICLE FOUR: Communication
The workers started at the far end and worked their way back, so back coiling of the lines became difficult. Although there was some air movement, visibility was another major hurdle during spray operations. By the use of two-way radios, in plastic bags of course, the workers communicated with each other, as well as the support personnel above ground. Basically, a project that would have taken two or three days under normal conditions, took almost two weeks.
OBSTICLE FIVE: Exiting
Upon completion of work shifts, exit from the tunnel could be just as challenging as entry. Climbing the exit ramp after a 90-minute shift was grating on our worn Gombert employees. While still in the “hot zone,” workers removed their rubber boots, then leather gloves for reuse on the next entry. Then, with assistance from the lab’s FST (also in PPE), the respiratory equipment and the workers’ hoods were removed. Next the outside gloves, vinyl gloves, Tyvex suits and the secondary vinyl gloves came off. At this point the workers would lose their cotton gloves and stepped to a “clean” area. There the workers would “frisk” themselves with a portable device to check for any contamination. If there were no issues, the workers were then directed to a portal, which they stepped into to receive full examinations to determine possible radiation exposure. All worker counts were reported as zero. The exit process along with the radiological checks took about 30 minutes. In retrospect, spraying the polyurea system was the easy part; dealing with the safety issues was the real challenge. Upon completion, engineers and support personnel were impressed with The Gombert Organization’s commitment and patience to complete the project with a perfect safety rating. This is only one of several dozen different installations of polyurea technology at BNL. What will they think of next—and what obstacles will arise? Hopefully, this article will be a “to be continued” case study, and will keep safety as the No. 1 priority when overcoming such challenges as the obstacles faced at BNL. |
