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Description
Tom Foster, Savannah River Remediation President & Project Manager, talks about SRR's mission of processing high-level radiation waste that resulted from Cold War-era activities at Savannah River Site. This episode continues a series focusing on the purpose of Savannah River Site and its impact on our community.
A
This
is
John
big
Michael
I'm,
your
host
for
akin
business
matters,
and
we
are
delighted
today
to
have
with
us
a
very
special
guest
mr.
Tom
Foster
Tom
is
the
president
and
project
manager
for
Savannah
River.
Remediation
he's
also
a
group
vice
president
for
AECOM,
and
that's
a
that's
a
quite
a
big
job
and
I
hope
that
you'll
enjoy
hearing
Tom,
tell
us
a
little
bit
about
himself
and
about
the
operations
that
he's
responsible
for
at
the
Savannah
River
Site
Tom.
Thank
you
so
much
for
being
with
us
today.
Welcome!
A
B
So
we
we
went
out
to
Eastern
Washington
and
I
worked
at
Hanford
there
for
a
number
of
years,
a
similar
type
of
work
in
the
nuclear
business,
and
then
we
got
the
opportunity
to
go
overseas,
and
so
we
went
to
the
United
Kingdom
and
I
worked
at
a
place
called
sellafield
for
about
five
years
and
then
just
last
May.
We
came
back
to
the
back
almost
a
year
now
and
well.
B
A
B
And
then
we
take
that
glass
and
pour
it
into
a
stainless
steel
container.
It's
about
10
feet,
tall
couple
feet
around
and
and
once
that
material
is
put
in
that
container
and
welded
up
it's
at
a
very
safe
and
stable
form,
it's
impervious
to
weather
and-
and
you
know,
tornadoes
and
earthquakes
that
sort
of
thing.
So
it's
a
great
place.
In
fact,
if
you
get
a
chance,
there's
a
replica
of
one
of
those
containers
outside
the
a-come
office,
on
Newbury
Street
and
in
the
middle
of
the
road
they're
crying
in
the
media.
B
A
B
Vss
yeah
the
the
process
of
making
glass,
it
was
called
vitrification
and
it's
been
studied.
It
really
cost
the
world.
Since
the
1960s,
we
started
the
defense
waste
processing
facility
and
it's
about
Riverside's
in
the
early
1980s
or
late
1980s.
Actually,
so
we
actually
just
celebrated
our
20th
anniversary.
Last
year
we
had
a
celebration
at
the
site
to
commemorate
the
4,000
containers
that
we
had
made
and
we
also
have
closed
8
waste
tanks
during
that
time.
So
it
was,
it
was
a
great
event
to
kind
of
commemorate
the
accomplishments
right
now,.
A
B
The
double
stack
into
it
yeah.
This
is
a
real,
innovative
idea,
the
when
we
formed
those
containers,
I
guess
so
we
have
4,000
of
them
and
and
we
have
a
building
that
we
put
up
actually
two
of
them.
We
call
a
glass
waste,
storage
building
and
the
way
that
building
is
built.
It's
a
it's
like
a
concrete
monoliths.
It
has
cylindrical
holes
in
it
and
we
put
a
container
in
each
one
of
those
holes.
B
Again,
it's
a
very
safe,
stable
way
to
store
them,
and
when
the
buildings
were
designed,
the
idea
was
to
put
one
container
in
each
hole
and
in
the
buildings
are
expensive.
It
costs
like
140
million
dollars
each
for
the
buildings
and
the
guys
started
thinking
about
what
could
there
be
a
way
we
could
get
two
containers
in
each
hole?
That's
a
simple
idea,
but
it's
a
sort
of
out-of-the-box
thinking,
because
it
wasn't
designed
that
way
and
and
they're
quite
a
bit
of
calculations,
I'd
be
done
to
say
what
do
get
too
much
heat
loading.
B
Can
the
concrete
would
stay
in
that?
How
can
we
fit
him
in
there?
We'll
have
to
modify
the
enclosures
and
they
work
through
all
that
and
and
now
we're
on
to
actually
doing
what
we
call
double
stack.
So
we
put
two
containers
in
each
hole.
It
sounds
simple,
but
there
was
quite
a
bit
of
work
to
get
there
and
in
the
end,
it
saves
us
from
having
to
build
an
entire
another
building,
had
a
cost
of
over
100
million
dollars.
A
A
B
It's
interesting
I,
some
of
those
places
that
I've
been
you
know
we
have
high-level
waste
out
at
Hanford.
I
was
managing
the
high-level
waste
program
in
the
UK.
When
I
went
over
there,
I
had
an
opportunity
to
visit
the
similar
facilities
in
France
and
Japan
was
doing
overseas.
Work
and
I'll
tell
you
that
none
of
those
places
have
closed
a
tank
other
than
Savannah
River.
So
we
are
in
the
leading
edge
of
actually
getting
this
work
done,
but
there
were
51
tanks
at
this
point.
We've
closed
eight
of
them.
When
we
say
closed.
B
What
we
do
is
we
we
get
all
of
the
waste
that
we
possibly
can
get
out
of
the
tank
and
we
work
with
the
South
County
DHEC
to
establish
and
say:
yes,
it's
empty
right
and
when
it's
empty,
then
we
come
back
and
fill
it
with
grout,
which
is
kind
of
like
a
concrete
type
mixture.
And
then
it's
stable,
it's
empty.
It's
stable
and
it's
left
there
in
that
configuration
how.
B
Have
a
number
of
methods
of
first
thing
we
do
is
like
I
mentioned
the
pumps
that
right
Laurie
up
the
material
and
pump
it
all
out,
and
then
you
can
find
some
residual
material
still
left.
So
we
have
robots
and
crawlers
to
go
around
and
help
us
do
some
of
the
final
cleaning.
And
then
we
have
video
that
we
look
in
there
and
take
measurements
to
make
sure
that
we
get.
You
know
all
the
ways
that
can
possibly
be
removed
out.
You.
A
B
Is
you
know,
safety
is
our
number-one
value
and
we
refer
to
safety
as
a
value,
not
as
a
priority,
because
it's
not
like
safety
or
something
else.
It's
the
way
that
we
do
work.
We
know
we
have
work
to
do
but
we're
all
about
doing
it
in
a
safe
manner.
Cesta,
that's
the
first
priority
and
it
is,
it
is
hazardous.
I
mentioned
this
celebration
that
we
had
last
year
and
Governor
nikki
Haley
sent
us
a
letter
congratulating
the
window.
A
B
The
workforce
on
what
they
had
done
and
in
that
letter
she
referred
to
the
to
the
high
level
waste
in
those
tanks
as
a
single
greatest
environmental
hazard
in
the
state
of
South
Carolina.
So
so
we
know
that
that
that's
our
obligation
to
go
clean
that
up
and
we
work
on
it
a
very
safe
manner
right
now.
One
of
the
things
we
do
is
track.
How
long
we
work
without
having
an
injury,
an
injury
that
might
be
significant
as
if
someone
would
have
to
say
stay
home.
A
That
is
integrated
so
closely
with
the
mission
attempt,
because
you
can't
do
it
without
the
people
and
you
want
the
results
to
be
great
and
one
thing
that
that
I
see
that
permeates
an
awful
lot
and
I
do
know
a
number
of
folks
that
work
with
with
your
organization
with
with
srr
and
also
aecom
and
I
noticed.
One
thing
that
kind
of
really
stands
out
to
me
is
the
fact
it
is
an
awful
lot
of
teamwork.
A
I,
don't
see
people
wanting
to
take
credit,
I,
see
people
always
say
hey,
it's
a
team
thing:
it's
you
know
they
look
around
it.
They're
they're
their
mentors
and
and
and
also
they're
their
co-workers
to
talk
about
so
I
think
that's
something
that
is
really
driven
from
the
top
and
I
appreciate
your
leadership
and
doing
that.
Well,
that's.
B
A
I
mentioned
to
you:
we
have
values
core
values
that
we
use
to
kind
of,
explain
who
we
are
as
a
company
we
want
to
be,
as
people
and
and
safety
is
the
first
one
and
another
one
is
teamwork
because
you're
right,
there's,
none
of
us
is
as
smart
as
all
of
us
and
and
the
only
way
we
get
work
done
in
a
complex
environment
like
span
river
is,
is
to
work
together.
So
there's
a
tremendous
amount
of
that
and
there's
collaboration
across
the
site
as
well
I
mean
we
are.
B
A
It
it
really
has
to
be
because
it's
such
a
complex
and
a
very
technologically
challenging
environment
to
work
in
on
a
on
a
day
to
day
basis
and
I
know
that
you
have
so
many
redundancies
built-in
for
safety
and
for
things
like
that.
One
thing
that
really
kind
of
was
pointed
out
by
the
double
stacking
is
that
the
impression
that
I
get
is
that
you
are
always
looking
to
improve
the
process.
Is
that
a
fair
statement.
B
Innovation
is,
is
the
key
to
making
things
work.
I'll
give
you
another
example:
we're
actually
changing
out
one
of
our
melters
now
in
the
defense
waste
processing
facility,
so
the
melter
is
where
I
mentioned.
We
pour
the
waste
and
the
same
light
material,
inviting
it
up,
and
that's
heated
up
in
a
big
pot
that
we
call
a
melter,
and
you
can
imagine
you
know
highly
radioactive
waste
in
there
heated
up
to
you
know
hundreds
and
hundreds
agrees.
So
it's
a
harsh
environment.
A
B
The
last
one
lasted
for
14
years,
and
that
was
through
innovation
that
you
just
talked
about.
There
was
a
number
of
things
that
the
guys
did
working
with
the
Savannah
River
lab
working
with
our
own
engineering
team
and
the
operations
guys
and
came
up
with
with
ideas
on
how
they
could
improve
the
melter
operation,
extend
the
life
and
it's
another
big
cost-saving,
because
the
melter-
probably
something
in
the
40
to
50
million
dollar
range.
To
do
this
whole
change
out.
B
A
Somebody
as
challenged
as
I
am
with
math,
can
figure
out
that
that's
a
that's
a
huge
savings
and
the
amount
of
money
today
is
opposed
to
what
you
put
into
it.
Initially,
that
was
certainly
a
great
economic
boon
to
to
you
in
your
operations.
So
you
bet
you've
had
a
number
of
things
on
your
side
of
with
us,
our
that,
as
has
really
benefitted
the
taxpayers,
the
the
mission
of
the
site,
and
that
you
know
we
talked
about
the
cost
savings
and
money
for
equipment,
but
it's
more
than
that.
B
Opposed
to
happen
to
say,
build
another
building
or
by
another
melter,
so
it
really
advances
the
whole
program.
The
intent
here
is
just
to
get
it
done
as
soon
as
possible.
You
know
that's
the
idea.
You
know
the
waste
is
in
tanks
that
are
decades
old
time
is
our
enemy.
Here,
I'd
say
it
was
like
any
man-made
object.
The
tanks
will
degrade
over
time,
whether
they're
safe.
Now
we
do
a
lot
of
monitoring
and
we're
very
careful
to
manage
them,
but
but
they
won't
last
forever.
It's
just
just
a
fact.
B
A
B
A
B
It's
a
jigsaw
puzzle.
It's
like
three-dimensional
chess
that
it's
hard
to
I,
can't
even
explain
it
to
you.
What
has
to
happen
is
there's
a
little
complexity
here
is
that
that
we
have
to.
We
have
to
mix
the
waste
into
a
what
we
call
a
batch
right
and
that
batch
then
has
certain
chemical
characteristics
that
we
then
work
with
the
spent
river
lab
to
be
able
to
make
glass
out
of
it.
B
So
it's
not
just
as
simple
as
mixing
two
together
heating
up
there's
a
lot
of
high-level
chemistry
involved,
so
we've
got
to
you
have
to
move
the
waste
around
and
various
tanks
to
be
able
to
separate
the
solids,
the
sludge
apart
from
what
we
call
the
salt
part
and
then
some
tanks
we
use
to
feed
DWP
F
other
tanks
we
use
to
receive
from
DMAP
F,
there's
other
tanks
that
we
use
to
process
the
salt
waste.
There's
other
things
we
use
to
support
the
evaporators
which
get
rid
of
the
liquid.
B
A
A
B
Have
people
from
place
in
France
called
la
hog,
which
is
a
similar
kind
of
operation
there?
We
certainly
collaborate
a
great
deal
with
other
people
across
the
world,
because
this
problem
isn't
unique
to
Savannah
River
right
I
would
suggest
it
that
we're
making
the
most
active
progress,
but
but
other
people
have
high
low
waste
as
well
at
they
work
on
is
oh.
A
B
B
Some
of
it,
the
we
put
the
highly
radioactive
sludge
material
into
glass.
Another
product
is
we.
After
we
take
out
some
of
the
radioactive
cesium
and
other
components.
We
make
a
product
called
salt
stone
right.
So
it
is
a
it's
like
a
grout
cement
material,
but
it
has
this
radioactive
salt
has
very
residual
amounts
of.
It
is
basically
decontaminated,
but
they
help
us
back
to
the
lab.
So
they
help
us
with
the
formulations
for
the
salt
stone.
B
We've
got
one
that
that
we're
working
on
right
now
that
we
call
tank
closures,
cesium
removal
at
TCC,
our
and
we
call
it
ticker
and
and
what
that
is
is
it
is
an
alternate
way
to
maybe
clean
up
some
of
the
some
other
we
refer
to
as
the
salt
waste
right.
So
this
is
material
that
has
largely
caesium
and
some
strontium
in
there
and
those
are
radioactive
materials
that
that
need
to
be
removed
from
the
tank.
B
And
it's
actually
this
point,
the
largest
component
of
what
remains
to
be
cleaned
up
is
this
so-called
salt
waste
and
the
idea
behind
this
ticker
project
is
to
install
some
resin
columns
on
exchange
columns
like
to
think
of
it
like
as
a
big
filter
and
and
we're
going
to
install
those
right
next
to
one
of
the
tanks
and
pump
the
the
waste
through
the
column
and
essentially
filter
out
some
of
the
radioactive
material
and
that'd
be
an
alternate
way
to
help
us
clean
up
some
some
ways.
So
it's
a
bit
of
a
pilot
project.
B
B
B
Probably
we
have
to
build
another
one,
but
you
could
you
could
put
them
at
various
locations
around
the
site,
so
we're
we're
looking
at
this
as
a
pilot
technology.
Now
the
state
of
South
Carolina
is
very
interested
in
this
and
because
it
provides
an
opportunity
to
get
get
work
done
quickly
right,
and
so,
if
it
turns
out
to
be
successful,
we
might
do
some
more
of
them
and
it
potentially
has
application
out
at
Hanford
and
Eastern
Washington
with
their
tanks
as
well.
So
back.
A
That's
that's
tremendous
I
think
that
one
of
the
things
that
people
will
appreciate
is
and
I've
always
appreciated
the
relationship
between
the
site
and
the
community
and
I
think
you
know
we
think
of
the
site,
but
I
think
sometimes
it's.
We
lose
sight
of
the
fact
that
there's
a
huge
economic
engine
that
is
driven
out
there
that
supports
our
community
and
other
things
about
how
many
people
are
actually
employed
at
the
site.
It's
probably.
B
A
little
more
than
ten
thousand
you
know
cost
aside
with
all
the
different
contractors
and
the
Department
of
Energy.
We've
got
about
2,200
that
work
at
Savannah,
River,
remediation
and
and
your
to
your
point
about
the
economic
impact
that
you
know.
Our
payroll
alone
is
over
150
million
dollars
and
in
pretty
much
almost
two-thirds
of
those
people
with
in
Aiken
County.
So
that's
a
real
economic.
You
know
driver
for
Aiken.
We
also
spend
a
lot
of
money.
B
B
A
As
a
result
of
having
and
you
as
a
neighbor
one
thing
that
it's
real
key
I
know
that
you
there's
a
challenge
for
employees
to
getting
good
people
to
come
to
work
at
the
site.
For
you
and
all
the
other
contractors
too.
How
important
is
the
new
program
that
the
University
of
South
Carolina
here
in
Aiken,
has
with
the
new
engineering
program
that
they've
initiated
last
year.
B
A
A
B
A
A
B
And
it's
very
you
know
highly
technical,
that's
a
there's,
a
nuclear
quality
assurance
that
goes
along
with
the
welding
that
we
do
so
I.
You
have
to
be
very
skilled
at
it
and
had
to
understand.
You
know
the
way
that
the
the
welds
had
to
be
made
to
pass.
All
this
district
requirements
of
a
nuclear
industry
met
with.
A
Tom
I
can
tell
from
just
our
conversation
how
proud
you
are
of
your
organization
and
the
people
that
work
in
it
and
the
job
that
you
do
to
support
the
site
and
do
e.
What
is
if
you
wanted
to
leave
our
viewers
with
one
final
thought:
what
really
makes
it
worthwhile
for
you
go
to
work
every
day.
What
is
it,
what
is
the
real
thing
that
energizes
you
to
go?
Do
this
complex
job
that
that
your
your
organization
is
responsible
for
Willie.
B
Yeah
I'll
be
honest
with
you
I
the
the
general
manager
of
a
you
come
here
in
Aiken
is
a
dividual
may
know.
Dr.
Todd,
right
and
I've
worked
with
him
for
several
years
decades,
and
he
often
refers
to
the
work
we
do.
We
do
as
a
noble
mission
and
what
it
gets
back
to
is.
Is
you
know
we
all
were
here
as
part
of
the
Cold
War,
the
Cold
War
is
over
and
we've
got
this
legacy.
B
That's
left,
you
know
across
the
country
actually,
and
those
of
us
involved
in
this
are
doing
it
because
it's
hard
work,
it's
technical
work
requires
perseverance
and
patience
and
dedication
and
all
those
things,
but
it's
important
thing,
important
work
that
needs
to
be
done
so
I
think
really
the
to
me.
The
reason
I
continue
to
stay
energized
and
continue
to
work
on
it
is,
is
understanding
that
it's
a
difficult
task.
Someone
needs
to
do
and
we're
Savannah
River
remediation.
B
A
I
know
that
our
viewers,
from
just
hearing
you
talk
about
it,
that
your
years
you're,
certainly
a
very
typical
of
the
people
that
you
have
working
with
you
and
for
you
and
I
can't
tell
you
how
much
we
as
a
community
appreciate
all
the
things
that
you
do
to
continue.
The
missions
at
Savannah,
River,
Site
and
especially,
as
we've
said
before,
you've
mentioned
several
things
where,
where
you're
involved
with
the
community
you're
involved
with
the
educational
processes
here
too,
to
help
us
be
more
prepared
to
to
have
more
of
an
impact
on
our
young
people.
B
B
I
talk
about
the
you
mentioned
that
you
know
the
people
in
the
involvement
in
a
community.
Our
workforce
is
involved
in
so
many
things
in
the
community.
You
know
that
a
huge
supporter
of
United
Way
right
I
that
do
the
Heart
Walk
every
year
involved
in
Habitat
for
Humanity
just
a
whole
whole
spectrum
of
the
activities
like
that.
B
You
know
before
Christmas
people
bring
toys
and
then
they
get
collected
in
one
central
area
at
the
end
and
get
loaded
on
these
18
wheel,
trucks,
and
when
you
go
see
that
there's
like
more
than
10,000
toys,
there's
hundreds
and
hundreds
of
bicycles,
every
toy
imaginable,
and
it's
just
it's
just
a
sea
of
toys.
And
what
strikes
you?
That
is,
you
think
of
all
that's
going
to
children
to
live
in
our
area
that
otherwise
wouldn't
really
have
a
Christmas.
You
know
that
is
I.
A
A
Thank
you
so
much
again
and
pass
on
to
your
your
staff
and
your
employees
to
how
much
the
community
does
appreciate,
and
we
do
understand
and
and
I
think
that
our
viewers
will
get
a
better
understanding
that
of
what
Savannah
River
remediation
is
all
about.
When
you
see
s
rRNA,
you
know
what
it
stands
for
and
what
it
does
on
a
day
to
day
basis.
But
again,
thank
you
for
joining
us
on
a
convince
Matt
errs.
We
appreciate
you
and
if
you
have
any
ideas
or
thoughts,
please
please
feel
free
to
communicate
with
us.
A
I
know.
James
is
always
good
about
putting
up
our
contact
information
and
we
appreciate
James
too.
He
does
a
great
job
for
getting
all
this
information
together
so
that
you
can
see
it
in
a
in
an
enjoyable
format.
Thank
you
so
much
and
we
look
forward
to
seeing
you
next
time
on
a
teen
business
matter.