Ames Laboratory

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The Ames Laboratory is located on the Iowa State University Campus in the town of Ames, Iowa.

FACILITY MISSION

The Ames Laboratory was established in the 1940's to develop efficient uranium production processes for the Manhattan Project. The Laboratory's programs now emphasize research in the preparation, characterization, and evaluation of properties of metals and their alloys, especially rare earth metals. Involvement with academic programs and graduate students at Iowa State University has been continuous throughout the Laboratory's history. Ames Laboratory also performs materials research, high-performance computing, and environmental science and management efforts. It seeks solutions to energy­related problems through the exploration of physics, chemistry, engineering, applied mathematics, and materials sciences.

There are no current or planned Nuclear Materials and Facility Stabilization or decommissioning projects at the Ames Laboratory. The Department's Office of Energy Research is the landlord at the Ames Laboratory, and this baseline report assumes it will remain in this capacity for the duration of this estimate.

FUTURE USE

Environmental management at the site is currently scheduled to end in FY 2070, with no further activities planned. This estimate assumes that the site will be released to Iowa State University for Industrial use.

ENVIRONMENTAL RESTORATION

Environmental restoration activities at the Ames Laboratory included assessment and remedial action. Long-term surveillance and monitoring activities will also be performed to monitor ground water contamination associated with the Chemical Disposal Site. See the Site Map for the locations of Environmental Restoration program activities.

Past operations at the Laboratory, principally as a result of waste disposal practices, led to contamination of soils and ground water. Contaminants of concern included uranium, thorium, tritium, mercury, thallium, potassium, lithium, and kerosene.

Chemical Disposal Site

The Chemical Disposal site is a 7,440-square meter (80,000-square foot) waste burial site located north of Ontario Street off Scholl Road, east of the Ames Applied Sciences Complex. During its active life from 1958 to 1966, radiological and chemical waste was buried in nine unlined pits that vary in size. The largest is 3.8 meters by 1.9 meters (40 feet by 20 feet), and all are approximately 2 to 2.5 meters (7 to 8 feet) deep. Known pits were located on the southeast corner of the site. Waste was reported to be in steel pails, drums, glass containers and plywood boxes. Waste consisted of both radiological and hazardous elements.

Soil and ground-water assessment activities were completed in FY 1994. The results of this assessment determined that waste and contaminated soil remaining in the burial pits presented a risk to public health and the environment. In FY 1995, an interim remedial action was conducted that involved the excavation and offsite disposal of waste and contaminated soil. This baseline report assumes that there will be no further remedial action at the Ames Laboratory. All waste generated as a result of remedial actions was disposed of at appropriate commercial facilities. Future activities at the Laboratory are assumed to be limited to the long-term monitoring of ground water beneath the Chemical Disposal site until FY 2007.

Environmental Restoration Activities Cost Estimate

(Five-Year Averages, Thousands of Constant 1996 Dollars)
	FY 1996-2000	2005	2010	2015	2020	2025	2030	Life Cycle*
Long-Term Surveil. and Monitoring	146	97	97					1,700
Direct Program Management/Support	101	3	3					535
Total	247	100	100					2,235
* Total Life Cycle is the sum of the annual costs in constant FY 1996 dollars.

Direct Program Management/Support

Direct Environmental Restoration program management/support at Ames Laboratory consists of program planning, and direct project management. The Laboratory does not fund any grants or Agreements-In-Principle at this time.

WASTE MANAGEMENT

The Ames Laboratory manages hazardous waste, low-level waste, and very small amounts of low-level mixed waste. Because no large-scale treatment, storage, or disposal facilities are planned for the Laboratory, it will continue to ship low-level and hazardous waste to offsite facilities for treatment and/or disposal, as appropriate. However, low-level mixed waste will be brokered for inclusion in larger shipments for treatment and/or disposal, as appropriate. All waste generated at the Ames Laboratory is the result of research and development activities conducted by the Office of Energy Research. See the Site Map for the location of Waste Management program activities.

Low-Level Waste

All low-level waste generated at the Laboratory is collected in satellite accumulation areas and is then transferred to a central staging area for packaging and certification for shipment and disposal. This estimate assumes that Energy Research program activities will generate approximately 534 cubic meters (700 cubic yards) of low-level waste through FY 2070.

The Ames Laboratory does not treat, store, or dispose of low-level waste onsite. All low-level waste is shipped by Department of Transportation-approved carriers to the Department's Hanford facility in Washington State for final disposal.

Hazardous Waste

All hazardous waste generated at the Laboratory is collected in satellite accumulation areas and is then transferred to a central staging area for packaging and certification for shipment and disposal. This estimate assumes that Energy Research program activities will generate approximately 403 cubic meters (528 cubic yards) of hazardous waste through FY 2070.

The Ames Laboratory does not treat, store, or dispose of hazardous waste onsite. All hazardous waste is brokered and disposed of by appropriate commercial facilities.

Direct Program Management/Support

Direct Waste Management program management/support at the Ames Laboratory consists of program planning, and direct management of projects. The Laboratory does not fund any grants or Agreements-In-Principle at this time. Iowa State University is the managing and operating contractor for the Environmental Management activities at the Ames Laboratory.

DESCRIPTION OF PERSONNEL

The Department of Energy's Chicago Operations Office has the direct line responsibility for managing the contract with the Laboratory. All Full-Time Equivalents and support services contracts for Environmental Management program activities at the Ames Laboratory are included within personnel estimates in the Chicago Operations Office site summary.

FUNDING ESTIMATE

The following tables present estimated funding information for the Ames Laboratory.

COMPARISON WITH PREVIOUS ESTIMATE

The estimated life-cycle costs for the Ames Laboratory have increased by almost 80 percent over the estimate reported in the FY 1995 Baseline Report.

Comparison Table

Activity	FY 1995 Life Cycle	FY 1995 Only 1	FY 1996 Life Cycle	Change in Dollars	Change in Percent
	Thousands of Dollars
Nuclear Mat. & Fac. Stab.	-	-	-	-	-
Environmental Restoration	3,255	1,150	2,235	130	6
Waste Management	8,442	300	23,455	15,313	188
Landlord	-	-	-	-	-
Program Management 2	4,362	220	-	-	-
Site Total	16,059	1,670	25,690	11,301	79
1 The FY 1995 life-cycle and annual costs are provided to determine the corrected FY 1995 cost. 2 Program Management was reported in an independent cost table last year, but is reported as a line item in the relevant program (Nuclear Material and Facility Stabilization, Environmental Restoration, and Waste Management) activity cost estimate tables for the FY 1996 Baseline Report.

The Environmental Restoration program cost estimates for the Ames Laboratory in the FY 1996 Baseline Environmental Management Report reflect no major changes in scope, technical approach, scheduling or major assumptions from information presented in the FY 1995 report. However, program management costs were reported as a separate program cost in the FY 1995 report. This year they are reported at the activity level within the Environmental Restoration and Waste Management programs, as applicable. The 188 percent increase in the life-cycle cost estimate for Waste Management program activities is due primarily to an extension of the scheduled completion date of Waste Management activities from FY 2030 in the FY 1995 Report to FY 2070 in the FY 1996 Report.