Achieving Brownfields Clean Up at a Radium-Contaminated Site

One of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineer's (USACE) primary goals in the management of removal actions is to safely implement work activities and cost effectively clean up sites contaminated with residual radioactive materials. The US ACE has successfully pursued a removal action under the Brownfields Initiative at the Cuneo Press Site in Chicago, Illinois. The residual radioactive contamination at the site exceeded background radiation levels for the Chicago area. Residual quantities of Radium-226 (Ra-226) were detected during preremoval characterization surveys performed at the site. The aggressive removal action performed at the site demanded immediate and accurate radiological screening and exposure data. Radiological screening consisted of field monitoring using portable instruments and gamma spectroscopy analysis for Ra-226. The screening data provided verification of compliance to the off-site disposal facility waste acceptance criteria and the site clean up criteria. The screening data, along with the application of guidance presented in NUREG-1575, “Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Site Investigation Manual (MARSSIM)”, demonstrated that the removal action meet clean up criteria established by the Illinois Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the USACE.