PPPL-5195
PPPL Annual Site Environmental Report 2014
Abstract: This report provides the U.S. Department of
Energy (DOE) and the public with information on the level of
radioactive and non-radioactive pollutants (if any) that are added
to the environment as a result of Princeton Plasma Physics
Laboratory's (PPPL) operations. The results of the 2014
environmental surveillance and monitoring program for PPPL's are
presented and discussed. The report also summarizes environmental
initiatives, assessments, and community involvement programs that
were undertaken in 2014. PPPL has engaged in fusion energy
research since 1951. The vision of the Laboratory is to create
innovations to make fusion power a practical reality - a clean,
alternative energy source. 2014 marked the sixteenth year of
National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX) operations. The NSTX
Project - a collaboration among national laboratories, universities,
and national and international research institutions - is a major
element in the US Fusion Energy Sciences Program. Its design tests
the physics principles of spherical torus (ST) plasmas has played an
important role in the development of smaller, more economical fusion
reactors. In 2014, construction of NSTX's first upgrade continued;
the fabrication of the center stack magnets and the addition of a
second neutral beam will allow for hotter plasmas and greater field
strength to maintain the fusion reaction longer. In 2014,
PPPL's radiological environmental monitoring program measured
tritium in the air at the NSTX Stack and at on-site sampling
stations. Using highly sensitive monitors, PPPL is capable of
detecting small changes in the ambient levels of tritium. The
operation of an in-stack monitor located on D-site is used to
demonstrate compliance with the National Emission Standard for
Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAPs) regulations. Also included in
PPPL's radiological environmental monitoring program, are water
monitoring of precipitation, ground, surface, and waste waters.
PPPL's radiological monitoring program characterized the background
levels of tritium in the environment; the data are presented in this
report. Ground water monitoring continued under the New Jersey
Department of Environmental Protection's Site Remediation Program.
PPPL monitored for non-radiological contaminants, mainly volatile
organic compounds (components of chlorinated degreasing solvents).
Monitoring continued to detect low levels of volatile organic
compounds in ground water samples. In 2014, PPPL was in compliance
with its permit limits for surface and sanitary discharges,
excepting one elevated total suspended solids and chlorine-produced
oxidant concentration. PPPL was honored with awards for its waste
reduction and recycling program, and its "EPEAT" electronics
purchasing.
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