INL eyes road to move radioactive material

IDAHO FALLS (AP) - The U.S. Department of Energy wants to build a new road at the Idaho National Laboratory so it can move radioactive material from one building to another without having to close U.S. Highway 20.

Officials say the Multipurpose Haul Road would be closed to the public and built within the 890-square-mile federal nuclear research area in eastern Idaho and would connect three facilities separated by about 20 miles.

Jeff Perry of the DOE told the Post Register that U.S. Highway 20, which cuts through the research area, has to be closed each time vehicles use it to move material.

"All of these shipments are radioactive shipments," said Perry. "Just from a public safety perspective, it makes sense to close the road."

The materials would be moved among the Advanced Test Reactor, Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center, and the Materials and Fuel Complex.

Perry said the material includes low-level waste from an ongoing cleanup of the INL from work over the last five decades, to spent fuel from the Advanced Test Reactor that must be prepared for storage before being shipped off the site.

He said the proposed road would make moving that material easier.

"It gives us a great deal of flexibility in our operation on how we are able to do our work," he said.

The shipments are usually made in the middle of the night for safety. But Perry said the shutdowns have to be scheduled and cost about $3,500 each.

He said there were only 13 times the road had to be shut down last year. However, he said anywhere from 11,000 to 18,000 shipments will eventually be required over the next 40 years, based on estimates in a draft environmental assessment for the road.

Perry said the new road will cost $9 million, far less than the tens of millions it will eventually cost for closing the highway for each shipment.

There are several alternatives for the new road, the preferred alternative being about a mile north of U.S. Highway 20.

Public comment on the draft environmental assessment is being taken until June 16.

Perry said if there are no problems, construction on the road could start this summer.

The road isn't "something that is absolutely required," Perry said. "However, we believe avoiding the highway will increase safety and reduce inconvenience to the public."