On March 26-27, the Oregon Department of Energy participated in one of our regular nuclear emergency exercises. Each year, ODOE staff activate our Agency Operations Center in Salem and send staff north to Washington to simulate and practice how we would respond in the event of a radiological emergency at the Hanford Site or the Columbia Generating Station nuclear power plant near Richland, WA.
Read MoreIn late June, the U.S. Department of Energy reported that radioactive contamination beneath a building at the Hanford Nuclear Site is worse than originally thought. What does that mean? Oregon Department of Energy Assistant Director for Nuclear Safety and Emergency Preparedness Maxwell Woods and Hanford Hydrogeologist Tom Sicilia weigh in.
Read MoreIn this month’s newsletter, we celebrate new federal funding coming to bolster Oregon energy efforts, help Oregonians rebuild from the 2020 wildfires, welcome U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm to Oregon, and more.
Read MoreAs part of ODOE’s work around radioactive materials disposal and transport, Director Janine Benner and some members of the ODOE Team recently toured two landfills owned by Waste Management in Gilliam County, south of the town of Arlington.
Read MoreIn this month’s newsletter, a new interactive mapping tool to connect renewable energy potential and other development, a big milestone for electric vehicles in Oregon, good news for the state's greenhouse gas reduction goal, and more.
Read MoreOregonians may be surprised to learn that for a very brief period in the late 1950s/early 60s, there were two active uranium mines in southern Lake County along with a uranium mill in Lakeview. While the sites are long since closed, the Oregon Department of Energy’s Nuclear Safety and Emergency Preparedness team, along with partners from federal and state agencies, completes annual inspections of the disposal sites. ODOE hydrogeologist, Tom Sicilia, recently conducted this year’s site visit at the mill tailings disposal cell and the former mine sites.
Read MoreIn this month’s newsletter, a new strategic plan sets ODOE's four-year direction, a determination on radioactive materials at an Oregon landfill, a focus on energy-resilient communities, and more.
Read MoreOn March 24, 2021 the Oregon Department of Energy issued a determination to Chemical Waste Management of the Northwest (CWM) in response to the company’s detailed risk assessment and corrective action plan regarding radioactive materials that were illegally disposed in CWM’s hazardous waste landfill outside Arlington, OR.
Read MoreIn this month’s newsletter, we’re launching our 2020 Biennial Energy Report, celebrating the City of Salem's latest renewable energy project, working to enhance rules for radioactive material disposal in the state, and more.
Read MoreJoin the Oregon Department of Energy for a virtual workshop on Monday, December 7, 2020 to discuss potential revisions to administrative rules for the enforcement of the laws and rules governing the transport and disposal of radioactive waste in Oregon.
Read MoreIn this month’s newsletter, Oregonians come together following devastating wildfires, ODOE publishes a new Electric Vehicle Dashboard, a report on our Solar + Storage Rebate Program progress, and more.
Read MoreThe Oregon Department of Energy will hold two public meetings on September 30, 2020 to discuss Chemical Waste Management of the Northwest’s risk assessment and corrective action plan following ODOE’s February Notice of Violation to the company for illegal disposal of radioactive materials in an Arlington landfill.
Read MoreFollowing a February 2020 Notice of Violation, Chemical Waste Management has submitted its required risk assessment and corrective action plan. We have now opened a 60-day window to seek public comments on the documents.
Read MoreIn this month’s newsletter, we’re discussing energy and climate change in Oregon, an update on ODOE's Notice of Violation for Radioactive Waste Disposal, a fond farewell to longtime Oregon Global Warming Commission Chair Angus Duncan, and more.
Read MorePreliminary documents for Chemical Waste Management’s corrective action plan and detailed risk assessment are now available on ODOE’s website. Final documents will be submitted by September 1.
Read MoreIn this month’s newsletter: life during COVID-19, a tour with McMinnville Water & Light, activating the Oregon Fuel Action Plan, a vacancy on the Energy Facility Siting Council, and more.
Read MoreIn our February newsletter, a successful launch for the Oregon Solar + Storage Rebate Program, ODOE issues Notice of Violation to an Oregon landfill, energy facility siting news, and more.
Read MoreThe Gilliam County Court is hosting two Town Hall meetings on Wednesday, March 4 regarding the Oregon Department of Energy’s recent Notice of Violation to a landfill in Arlington regarding disposal of radioactive materials in violation of Oregon state law.
Read MoreThe Oregon Department of Energy today issued a Notice of Violation for disposal of radioactive materials at the Chemical Waste Management hazardous waste landfill near Arlington, Oregon. Oregon law prohibits the disposal of radioactive materials in the state. In consultation with other State of Oregon agencies, ODOE determined there is no current threat to landfill workers, the public, or the environment from this waste.
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