U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Building Strong, Serving the Nation and the Armed Forces, 2020-2021

Page 16

engineers, legal and regulatory specialists, resource managers, contract specialists, industrial hygienists, and safety specialists, as well as members from the Radiological Health Physics Regional Center of Expertise (RCX). “Having the expertise of RCX professionals was integral to the success of the Sturgis project,” said Brenda Barber, Baltimore District program manager. “From the planning stages through the contract award and the day-to-day work of safely dismantling and disposing of the various aspects of this floating nuclear reactor,” said Barber, “the expertise of the RCX was crucial to the success of this complex project, and continues to play a role as we plan for the reactors at Fort Belvoir and Fort Greely.” The RCX’s decommissioning support is not limited geographically. The Baltimore District team, selected to execute the program because of its unique radiological expertise through the RCX team, is supporting SM-1 efforts at Fort Belvoir as well as SM-1A efforts at Fort Greely. The radiological decommissioning of the Sturgis was completed in Galveston, Texas, after the barge was towed from storage in Virginia, and its final shipbreaking was completed in Brownsville. “The [Baltimore] District’s highly trained and experienced team of health physicists provides radiation safety and technical support to the Corps of Engineers and other federal agencies across the United States and overseas for projects involving all aspects of radiological work,” said Hans Honerlah, one of the RCX’s trained radiological health physicists. “This can include providing coordination, oversight, and consultation for investigation, decommissioning, and radiation safety work.” The frequency of radiological projects within EMDC has afforded RCX team members the opportunity to become skilled experts who are efficient and cost-effective in addressing specific and complex challenges typically encountered on such projects. The Baltimore District can staff a complete project delivery team that understands these unique challenges and that can, when necessary or appropriate, seamlessly merge with local teams to provide even more robust capability and expertise. The end result is a team qualified and ready to identify project risks and develop strategies to manage those risks. In the late 1990s, USACE established an enterprisewide Radiation Safety Support Team (RSST) to provide radiological support to all USACE commands. Baltimore District was a charter member to the RSST, and the RCX is often called upon to support requests from the RSST or by partners throughout the Army and other agencies for work involving sites that require radiological proficiency. Planning the safe remediation of these sites with deactivated nuclear reactors is no simple task, nor a common one, which is why Baltimore District’s RCX plays a large role in supporting these efforts. “The RCX supports projects like these, and others, in many ways,” Honerlah said. “The RCX assists with the development and implementation of decommissioning plans, cost estimates, and several other aspects of the planning and execution of remedial work. The RCX team considers all legal and regulatory standards associated with occupational exposure to radioactive materials, site clean-up levels, and appropriate transportation and disposal requirements for the materials with residual radioactive materials.” 12

U.S. ARMY PHOTO BY BECCA NAPPI

NORTH ATL ANTIC DIVISION

Crews at a shipbreaking facility in Brownsville, Texas, pull the last piece of sectioned steel for recycling from the Sturgis ashore in March 2019, marking the completion of a five-year project to decommission and dismantle the U.S. Army’s long-retired floating nuclear plant, MH-1A. Baltimore District led the effort because of its unique radiological expertise through its Radiological Health Physics Regional Center of Expertise.

The RCX also provides its capabilities and expertise to other USACE districts. Support includes anything from remediation efforts at Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP) sites, with contamination stemming from the nation’s early nuclear research to auditing radioactive materials licenses for USACE’s dredges and gauges, plus they provide support to a variety of other federal agencies. While the Baltimore District team has been providing radiological expertise support for many years, it was officially recognized as an RCX in 2011. As a formal RCX, the district supports external partners including the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Park Service, and other Army commands as well as other branches of the military. The RCX is currently supporting ongoing depleted uranium demilitarization operations for U.S. Army Joint Munitions Command, which involves coordination of federal and state regulators to safely transport and dispose of demilitarized depleted-uranium rounds at a licensed low-level radioactive waste facility. “The RCX has in-house staff and equipment to self-perform smaller tasks for USACE as well as other customers,” Honerlah said. “As the issues and projects become larger, the staff can support the development and award of contracts for these specialized tasks related to radiological work. Post-award, the RCX can support the supervision, quality assurance, and technical oversight of these contracts throughout the period of performance.” With the safe completion of the radiological decommissioning and dismantling of the Sturgis behind them, the RCX is largely focused on upcoming decommissioning work for the SM-1 and SM-1A, all while standing ready for whatever additional radiological challenges may come their way. The team plans to start the decommissioning and dismantlement of SM-1 in spring 2021. n


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SOUTHWESTERN DIVISION

2min
page 66

416th THEATER ENGINEER COMMAND Answering the call to serve during COVID-19 pandemic

4min
pages 158-160

412th THEATER ENGINEER COMMAND

5min
pages 156-157

249th ENGINEER BATTALION (PRIME POWER)

3min
pages 24, 154-155

U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS FINANCE CENTER

3min
pages 136, 153

MARINE DESIGN CENTER MANAGING PROCUREMENT OF DREDGE FOR AZERBAIJAN

3min
pages 64, 152

OFTEN, THE QUESTION ARISES: “WHAT DOES AVIATION HAVE TO DO WITH LOGISTICS?” THE ANSWER IS: “A LOT MORE THAN YOU THINK!”

5min
pages 150-151, 162

U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS INSTITUTE FOR WATER RESOURCES

2min
pages 148-149, 163

LOCATION MATTERS

4min
pages 130, 146-147

A PART OF THE SOLUTION: HUNTSVILLE CENTER'S RESPONSE EFFORT TO SAVE LIVES

16min
pages 2, 6, 140-145

ERDC RESEARCHERS TACKLE HARMFUL ALGAL BLOOMS

4min
pages 137-139

ERDC RESEARCHERS IMPROVE NUMERICAL MODELING FOR POST-WILDFIRE FLOOD RISK MANAGEMENT

4min
pages 134-136

ERDC ANSWERS THE COVID-19 CALL

5min
pages 56, 132-133

U.S. ARMY ENGINEER RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER

1min
pages 7, 132-133

TASK FORCE ESSAYONS PROVIDES CRITICAL ENGINEERING SUPPORT

4min
pages 129-131

POWERING UP A COUNTRY, ONE TOWER AT A TIME

12min
pages 125-130, 163

MIDDLE EAST DISTRICT BUILDS STRONG DURING PANDEMIC

6min
pages 13-14, 123-125

FINDING THE SCRATCH BEFORE STARTING FROM SCRATCH

5min
pages 8, 122-123

TRANSATLANTIC DIVISION LEADS THE WAY IN CONTINGENCY SUPPORT

8min
pages 2, 4, 6, 8, 118-121

TRANSATLANTIC DIVISION

1min
pages 24, 32, 38, 118-121

PROCESSING THE FUTURE IN A PANDEMIC WORLD

2min
pages 75, 117

FINDING CONSTRUCTION ALTERNATIVES

3min
pages 4, 115-117

ENGINEERING CENTER’S EXPERTISE ENHANCES U.S. INDO-PACIFIC REGIONAL PRESENCE

3min
pages 112-113, 138

HONOLULU DISTRICT CONDUCTS 43 SITE ASSESSMENTS

3min
pages 8, 111-112

DISTRICT PROVIDES TECHNICAL SUPPORT DURING CONSTRUCTION OF ROK F-35A FACILITIES

5min
pages 38, 109-110, 116

ALASKA DISTRICT CONVERTS ARENA INTO ALTERNATE CARE SITE

1min
page 108

ALASKA DISTRICT DELIVERS FACILITIES TO SUPPORT F-35A AIRCRAFT ARRIVAL

5min
pages 106-108, 128, 130

PACIFIC OCEAN DIVISION

4min
pages 104-105, 107, 114

SAN FRANCISCO DISTRICT BIOLOGISTS WORK TO PRESERVE ENDANGERED SALMON

3min
pages 13, 102-103

BUILDING AN URBAN RANGER PROGRAM

4min
pages 2, 4, 98-101, 138, 162

SACRAMENTO DISTRICT DELIVERS DESPITE COVID-19 CHALLENGES

4min
pages 96-98, 136

RAPID COVID-19 RESPONSE IN THE HIGH DESERT

5min
pages 93-95, 130, 138

SOUTH PACIFIC DIVISION

2min
pages 92, 99

WALLA WALLA DISTRICT DEVELOPS FISH SUSTAINABILITY PROJECTS IN THE NORTHWEST

3min
pages 90-91, 136

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Building Strong, Serving the Nation and the Armed Forces, 2020-2021

3min
pages 89-90, 114

SPEED KEY TO BONNEVILLE LOCK REPAIR

3min
page 88

RESPONSE, RESTORATION, RESEARCH: REBUILDING MISSOURI

7min
pages 24, 32, 84-87

OMAHA DISTRICT SIMPLIFIES ITS CONTRACTING PROGRAMS

3min
pages 20, 83-84

NGA WEST PROJECT MAKING PROGRESS DURING COVID-19 CRISIS

2min
pages 4, 81-82

NORTHWESTERN DIVISION RALLIES TO COMPLETE MASSIVE COVID ASSESSMENT EFFORT

4min
pages 56, 79-81, 116

NORTHWESTERN DIVISION

2min
pages 78, 85

CONSTRUCTION OF KC-46A CAMPUS AT TINKER REMAINS ON TASK DESPITE PANDEMIC

2min
pages 77, 128

FLOOD OF 2019 AFFECTS MKARNS NAVIGATION

1min
pages 76, 114

TULSA DISTRICT SUPPORTS OKLAHOMA COVID-19 RESPONSE

1min
pages 74-75

OZARK-JETA TAYLOR’S SLANT-AXIS TURBINE REHAB

5min
pages 2, 72-73

DISTRICT EMPLOYEES ENLISTED FOR COVID-19 MODELING TASK FORCE

2min
pages 70-71, 80

PROVIDING SITE EVALUATIONS FOR ALTERNATE CARE FACILITIES

2min
pages 38, 69-70, 163

SOUTHWESTERN DIVISION EXECUTES HURRICANE HARVEY SUPPLEMENTAL PROGRAM

4min
pages 2, 13, 67-68, 163

EMERGENCY SUPPLEMENTAL PROJECTS TO AFFECT NORTH CAROLINA FOR DECADES

3min
pages 63-65, 162

DMCAS: SAVANNAH’S SOLUTION FOR PLACING DREDGED MATERIAL

3min
pages 14, 62-63

SAVANNAH HARBOR DEEPENING

3min
pages 6, 59-61

MOBILE DISTRICT NEARS COMPLETION OF SHIP ISLAND

3min
pages 8, 57-59

ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION FOUNDATION PROJECTS BRING WATER TO EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK

3min
pages 55-57

PENINSULA STUDY DRAWS SWEEPING PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT

2min
pages 53-54, 116

SOUTH ATLANTIC DIVISION

1min
pages 52, 58

VICKSBURG DISTRICT EMPLOYEE RECEIVES NATIONAL ENGINEERING AWARD

2min
pages 51, 86

USACE, SAMARITAN’S PURSE GO ABOVE AND BEYOND TO HELP STORM SURVIVOR

4min
pages 49-50, 128, 130

DISTRICT CONVERTS HOTEL INTO HOSPITAL WITHIN DAYS OF REQUEST

4min
pages 46-48, 80, 136

ROCK ISLAND DISTRICT SUPPORTS DERECHO RECOVERY EFFORTS ACROSS IOWA

2min
pages 44-45, 138

CONSTRUCTION REACHES NEW HEIGHTS ON RED RIVER OF THE NORTH PROJECT

3min
pages 42-43, 114

MISSISSIPPI VALLEY DIVISION

4min
pages 40-41, 46

WORKING AS ESSENTIAL PERSONNEL IN A COVID-19 ERA

3min
pages 37-39

NASHVILLE DISTRICT RESPONDS TO A GLOBAL PANDEMIC

2min
pages 36-37

TEAM EFFORT MAKES WAUGOSHANCE POINT TARGET PROJECT A SUCCESS

3min
pages 35-36

BLUESTONE DAM: THE FINAL PHASE

2min
page 34

DETROIT DISTRICT RAPIDLY RESPONDS TO MICHIGAN’S CORONAVIRUS CRISIS

2min
pages 31, 33

CHICAGO DISTRICT CIVIL WORKS REALIGNMENT

1min
pages 31-32

CHICAGO DISTRICT’S “OPERATION ENDURING HEALTH”

4min
pages 29-30

THE GREAT LAKES RESTORATION INITIATIVE

3min
pages 27-28

GREAT LAKES AND OHIO RIVER DIVISION

4min
pages 26-27

DISTRICT’S BRIDGE INSPECTION AND EVALUATION TEAM REACHES NEW HEIGHTS

3min
pages 23, 25, 160

FROM THE MID-ATLANTIC TO CANADA, FORESTERS MANAGE UNIQUE ARMY PROGRAM

3min
pages 21-24

NEW YORK DISTRICT CONSTRUCTS “STEAM” TEACHING SCHOOL

2min
pages 19-21

DESPITE COVID-19, USACE HITS 10-MILLION MILESTONE IN BOSTON HARBOR

3min
pages 8, 18-19

USACE HELPS OPEN CENTER FOR WOUNDED WARRIOR CARE IN REPUBLIC OF GEORGIA

2min
pages 17, 163

DISTRICT’S RADIOLOGICAL TEAM PROVIDES EXPERTISE THROUGHOUT USACE AND BEYOND

5min
pages 6, 15-16, 162

USACE PROVIDES A SIMPLE SOLUTION TO ADDRESS THE COMPLEX COVID-19 PROBLEM

4min
pages 2, 4, 11-12, 14, 162

NORTH ATLANTIC DIVISION

1min
pages 3, 10, 12-13
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