|
|||
| ARGONNE HOME PAGE | ARGONNE INTRANET | NEWS HOME PAGE | BACK ISSUES |
|
|
|||
| ARGONNE HOME PAGE | ARGONNE INTRANET | NEWS HOME PAGE | BACK ISSUES |
Thanks to a long-standing on-site waste remediation project, Argonne has been awarded the 2002 DOE Award for Pollution Prevention in the Environmental Restoration category.
The project has kept approximately 120,000 cubic yards of industrial waste out of landfills and saved taxpayers approximately $7.7 million.
"We were assigned to clean up waste sites in the best way possible," said Greg Borland, manager of the environmental remediation program at the Plant Facilities and Services division. "Instead of simply burying waste, we found ways to treat it and even use it."
The waste came from two different areas on site. Most of it was lime sludge left over from Argonne's former water treatment system.
"We found a way to use 100,000 cubic yards of sludge as a soil conditioner that can help farmland," Borland said. "To date, 70 percent of it has been used for agriculture, and the rest should be used over the next year or two."
The rest of the waste was contaminated soil from the 317 area. Liquid chemicals were disposed of there in the late 1950s, a practice common at the time. By a two-step process, the team has put the contaminated soil on the road to recovery.
"We first used a soil mixing process that included blowing hot air and steam through the soil and included the addition of iron particles, which removed 80 percent of the chemicals," said Greg Borland. "Then we planted trees on the site, which draw chemicals out of the ground and break them down into less hazardous compounds."
More than 800 trees were planted and are now helping to detoxify the contaminants.
"Observations in 2000 and 2001 indicate that the trees are doing the job," Borland said. "The system will continue to be monitored during the maturation process."
The plantation will mature in four to five years, at which time the system will achieve a high rate of contaminant removal.
Borland said that other methods might have disposed of the waste more quickly, but that their solutions will prove to be more environmentally sound.
"This project takes the long term into account," Borland said. "Taxpayers will need to spend less money caring for the waste as a result."
-- Chad Boutin
by Beverly Hartline
Deputy Laboratory Director
Argonne is about people doing forefront science and engineering in the national interest. We each come to work every day planning to return home safe and sound to our loved ones. Thanks to everyone's attention and involvement, injuries at Argonne are down by a third since last year, and when things go wrong, their consequences are typically milder than in the past.
These improvements are not a matter of luck. They provide bottom-line evidence that Integrated Safety Management (ISM) is implemented and effective here.
Argonne-East will soon get an opportunity to show the U.S. Department of Energy how we have integrated safety and environmental protection into our science and engineering. For two weeks in April, a large team from DOE headquarters will visit Argonne-East to evaluate our environment, health, safety and emergency management programs. The DOE team will look at documentation, observe our work (including meetings), inspect workplaces, and interview workers and managers. They will also assess our preparedness for emergencies of any type. Fourteen of the team members plan to be here Feb. 26-28 for scoping meetings and tours. To help ensure Argonne-East is fully prepared for this audit, the directorate, associate laboratory directors, and division directors are taking every opportunity to get into the workspaces and to hear from you about concerns and vulnerabilities. They will also provide assistance, if needed, with remedies and improvements.
It is worth reiterating what we expect of every member of the Argonne community in the area of safety, security, health and environmental protection.
1. Supervisors and managers who are:
2. Workers who are:
3. Prompt and candid communication of progress, problems, abnormal events and potential vulnerabilities up and down the line-management chain followed by prompt and responsive remedies, corrective actions, improvements and sharing of lessons learned.
4. Consistently good housekeeping.
5. Full cooperation with the DOE team, without compromising safety, security or the environment.
As a national laboratory, we are in the public spotlight. We owe it to ourselves, our families, Argonne's neighbors, and the taxpayers to be safe and responsible stewards of public resources. Your attention, involvement and good judgement give everyone here the best chance to do or support outstanding science and engineering and to return home safe and sound from work every day.
A choir of Argonne and U.S. Department of Energy employees will sing a selection of gospel music in celebration of Black History Month Tuesday, Feb. 26.
The concert will begin at noon in Argonne-East's Building 213 Cafeteria and at 2 p.m. in the Building 201 Lobby.
The group is in its fourth year and is under the direction of Therese Williams (DOE).
The journal Nature is again available on Argonne-East and Argonne-West desktop computers via the Argonne Information Management (AIM) System.
The Argonne library system has purchased a 2002 subscription to this prestigious and widely cited scientific journal. Desktop access had stopped about a year ago when a test of the product concluded.
Employees at any location with access to the Argonne intranet can access Nature at www.aim.anl.gov.
To locate Nature, click on the "new subscription" message. Or search on the title in the library catalog at www.aim.anl.gov/alec/ or the library list of e-journals at www.aim. anl.gov/ejournal/.
The Argonne Child Development Center currently has openings in the infant and toddler program, serving children six weeks through 15 months old.
Part-time care options are available in the infant program, two or three days per week.
Summer camp registration is also under way. This program serves children who have completed kindergarten through fourth grade. The summer camp program runs from June 3 - Aug. 9.
The Argonne Child Development Center serves the families of Argonne, U.S. Department of Energy, University of Chicago and laboratory contractors.
For more information, contact the center at ext. 2-9601 or childcare@anl.gov.
ECT now provides hardware support for Dell notebooks, desktops and servers. Laboratory Dell users no longer need to send computers offsite for repair.
Through ECT, Dell users will receive advanced technical support, overnight delivery of in-stock parts and warranty labor reimbursements.
ECT is now stocking for sale Dell GX240 Mini-Tower PCs with Pentium 4 processors, 1.7 GHz, 256 MB SDRAM, 20 GB drive, DVD-CD-ROM combo, integrated 3-COM NIC and Windows 2000 Pro.
For more information, contact the ECT Client Computing Help Desk at ext. 2-6969.
A new "dining card" offered by the Argonne Guest House lets customers order a free dinner entrée for every $90 they spend at the restaurant.
The card is stamped by a server for each $15 purchase. Cards can be picked up at the front desk or in the restaurant.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued an alert about an e-mail scam that takes advantage of tax preparation season.
The scam e-mail says the recipient has been chosen for an IRS "e-audit" and must complete a questionnaire within 48 hours to avoid penalties and interest. The taxpayer is asked for social security numbers, bank account numbers and other confidential information.
The IRS does not conduct audits via the Internet, nor does it notify taxpayers of a pending audit via e-mail. The scam is probably an attempt at identity theft.
Suspected scam messages should be reported to the IRS at 1 (800) 829-0433.
Electronics and Computing Technologies will offer several computer courses in March.
Unless otherwise noted, all classes will meet in Argonne-East's Building 221, Room A142 and are limited to 10 students. Detailed class descriptions, schedules and enrollment forms are available online.
For information about enrollment procedures, contact Diane Cavazos (ECT) at ext. 2-7153 or dkcavazos@anl.gov.
"Beginning Unix" (ECT564) This class
consists of two three-hour sessions for a total of six hours. First session: Tuesday, March 5,
from 9 a.m. _ noon. Second session: Thursday, March 7, 9 a.m. -- noon p.m. Cost: $265.
"vi Editor in Unix" (ECT567) --
Friday, March 8, 9 a.m. - noon. Cost: $180.
"Advanced Word 2000" (ECT378) --
Monday, March 11, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Cost: $215.
"Advanced Excel 2000" (ECT379) --
Tuesday, March 12, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Cost: $215.
"Advanced Access 2000" (ECT380)
Wednesday, March 13, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Class size limited to 8. Cost: $215.
"Front Page 2000" (ECT383) --
Thursday, March 21, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., and Friday, March 22, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Class size limited to eight. Cost: $430.