Some big safety milestones have been surpassed in the cleanup at Paducah and its sister Department of Energy site in Portsmouth, Ohio.
The Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management oversees the Portsmouth Paducah Project Office. They said on Tuesday that the four contractors that are working to clean up the former uranium enrichment sites have all-total worked 18 million man-hours without an incident or injury.
In Paducah, deactivation and remediation contractor, Four Rivers Nuclear Partnership moved past four million hours of safe working in March. Mid-America Conversion Services, which works with both Portsmouth and Paducah, passed the 2.5 million safe hour mark during March. Swift and Staley crossed the 1 million-hour threshold without an injury back in February.
Portsmouth Paducah Project Office Manager Joel Bradburne said, "Our contractors make safety the highest priority. Seeing these milestones reaffirms what we already know: The most important thing is ensuring our team goes to work each morning and returns home safely each and every day."
For Four Rivers Nuclear Partnership, the safety record dates back to February of 2023 and is the most consecutive safe hours of any contractor at the Paducah site.
Site Program Manager Myrna Redfield said, "This accomplishment reflects the dedication, vigilance and teamwork of everyone involved as we continue the critical work that will lead to investment in future reindustrialization for our nation's energy industry and the community that supports our work."
The numbers reflect the concept that safety at the site is paramount in completing the cleanup projects.
The Swift & Staley Team, the infrastructure support services contractor at the Paducah Site, gathers for a photo after achieving 1 million hours without a recordable injury.
