Millions Paid to Nuclear Cleanup Contractors, But Is Piketon Still at Risk?

PIKETON, OH – The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced performance-based fee payments totaling millions of dollars to contractors tasked with nuclear cleanup across the country, including at Piketon’s Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant. While these payments are framed as a sign of progress, critics are raising alarm over the system’s broader implications, questioning whether taxpayer dollars are being effectively used.

Millions Awarded, but What’s the Cost?
Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth, the contractor managing decontamination and decommissioning at the Portsmouth site, received more than $16.4 million in fees for just six months of work in fiscal year 2024. Another contractor, Mid-America Conversion Services, earned nearly $3.5 million for its work at the same site during the same period. These substantial payouts are part of the DOE’s performance-based pay system, designed to reward contractors for meeting milestones and contractual obligations.

Many in the community remain skeptical about the effectiveness of these payments. Despite substantial spending, contamination concerns persist, and residents continue to face health and environmental uncertainties. Critics argue that the payouts highlight a broader issue with the performance-based system, which prioritizes meeting contractual benchmarks over addressing long-term impacts.

Broader Taxpayer Concerns
The performance-based pay system has come under scrutiny for incentivizing short-term progress while neglecting the broader and more difficult task of fully addressing nuclear contamination. Nationally, the DOE awarded over $160 million in performance fees in fiscal year 2024 to contractors at sites across the country, including Hanford, Savannah River, and Los Alamos. This raises questions about whether taxpayer dollars are being effectively utilized to serve the public interest or primarily benefiting contractors.

The system is seen by critics as rewarding contractors for meeting minimal criteria rather than achieving significant progress in addressing environmental risks. The ongoing concerns in Piketon, coupled with the sizable payouts, underscore the need for greater transparency and accountability in the use of public funds for these efforts.

Lingering Health and Safety Risks
The Portsmouth site, once a hub for uranium enrichment, has left a lasting legacy of environmental and health challenges for the Piketon community. Despite years of cleanup efforts, radioactive contamination has been detected in surrounding areas, and residents continue to report concerns about elevated cancer rates and other health issues.

The closure of Zahn’s Corner Middle School in 2019, after independent tests found radioactive isotopes on its premises, remains a stark example of the unresolved challenges facing the community. 

Calls for Reform and Oversight
Environmental groups and local advocates are pushing for reforms to the performance-based pay system. They argue that taxpayer dollars should focus on independent oversight and addressing long-term community impacts rather than rewarding contractors for meeting minimal criteria. Comprehensive oversight and a shift in priorities are seen as essential to ensure that cleanup efforts deliver meaningful results for affected communities.

A National Reckoning
The controversy in Piketon highlights broader concerns about the nation’s nuclear cleanup efforts. With hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars at stake, there is increasing pressure on the DOE to ensure that cleanup operations prioritize public safety and environmental restoration over short-term contractor incentives.

The ongoing issues at the Portsmouth site reflect a critical need for reform, as residents and advocates question whether current practices are truly addressing the environmental and health challenges posed by decades of nuclear activity. The debate over contractor payouts and taxpayer dollars underscores the complex and high-stakes nature of nuclear cleanup in the United States.

Following are the fee payments for the contractors over varying performance evaluation periods within fiscal year 2024:

• Washington River Protection Solutions, the Hanford Field Office (HFO) tank operations contractor, was awarded nearly $32.8 million, or 69% of the available fee of $47.5 million for fiscal year 2024.
• HFO 222-S Laboratory contractor Hanford Laboratory Management and Integration received nearly $4.5 million, or 95% of the available fee of almost $4.7 million for fiscal year 2024.
• Hanford Mission Integration Solutions, HFO mission support contractor, was awarded close to $22.2 million, or 94% of the available fee of nearly $23.6 million for fiscal year 2024.
• Savannah River Site (SRS) management-and-operations (M&O) contractor Savannah River Nuclear Solutions received almost $33.5 million, or 95% of the available fee of nearly $35.1 million for fiscal year 2024.
• Savannah River Mission Completion, the liquid waste contractor at SRS, received $3.9 million, or nearly all of the available fee for varying periods within fiscal year 2024.
• Centerra-Savannah River Site, the protective force services contractor at SRS, was awarded over $7 million, or 96% of the available fee of more than $7.3 million for the period of July 15, 2023, to Sept. 30, 2024.
• At Savannah River National Laboratory, M&O contractor Battelle Savannah River Alliance earned more than $5.7 million, or 94% of the available fee of nearly $6.1 million for fiscal year 2024.
• Four Rivers Nuclear Partnership, the Paducah Site cleanup contractor, received close to $9.7 million, or 96% of the available fee of over $10.1 million for fiscal year 2024.
• Salado Isolation Mining Contractors, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant M&O contractor, received close to $15.7 million, or 93% of the available fee of about $16.8 million for fiscal year 2024.
• Idaho Environmental Coalition, EM’s cleanup contractor at the Idaho National Laboratory Site, received nearly $22.6 million, or 99% of the available fee of almost $22.8 million for fiscal year 2024.
• Navarro Research and Engineering, EM’s cleanup contractor for the Nevada National Security Sites, was awarded close to $1.2 million, or 91% of the available fee of almost $1.3 million for fiscal year 2024.
• Newport News Nuclear BWXT-Los Alamos, the EM Los Alamos Field Office legacy cleanup contractor at Los Alamos National Laboratory, earned almost $13.7 million, or 79% of the available fee of nearly $17.4 million during fiscal year 2024.