The nation’s nuclear defense facilities engaged in the production of nuclear weapons have historically produced a unique form of radioactive waste, called transuranic waste. On the Periodic Chart of the Elements, transuranic, that is “beyond uranium,” would be primarily plutonium.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), located just outside Carlsbad, New Mexico, was created by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) as a deep geologic deposit, or waste site, for this material.

Beginning in the 1970’s, many DOE facilities began shipping their transuranic waste to the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory so the waste could be stored, characterized and eventually sent to the WIPP site. As early as 1978, local responders along Interstate Highway 20 in Texas were being trained for WIPP shipments.

However, delays in opening the WIPP site created problems for Idaho, where the waste continued to accumulate. Eventually, DOE responded with an Agreement in Principle.

The WIPP site eventually began accepting shipments on March 26, 1999. States such as Texas that serve as shipping corridors to WIPP are funded by the U.S. Department of Energy to train local responders along the routes. Most shipments through Texas originate at Savannah River, South Carolina, with some originating at Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The first WIPP shipment through Texas was on May 10, 2001.

The State Energy Conservation Office (SECO) receives DOE funding through the Southern States Energy Board (SSEB) for the WIPP program in Texas. SECO passes DOE funds along to the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) for the purpose of training local responders, coordinating hospital training, and providing public outreach for communities along the WIPP route in Texas. SECO also passes DOE funds to the Governors Division of Emergency Management to work with local elected officials in keeping their emergency plans up-to-date and to track the WIPP shipments as they cross Texas via a secure website operated by a DOE contractor.

The goal of the program is to have safe and uneventful WIPP shipments, but in the event of an incident, we are ready to respond.

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WIPPTREX 2007
Report
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