West Valley Demonstration Project Nuclear Timeline

1959
New York State establishes the Office of Atomic Development (OAD) to promote and coordinate the atomic industry within the state. The "Atomic Energy Plan for the State of New York" identifies nuclear fuel reprocessing as a viable commercial activity.

1961
While industrial interests explore the viability of commercial reprocessing, the state of New York moves to acquire land in the town of Ashford, near West Valley, for an atomic industrial area. The state Office of Atomic Development establishes the Western New York Nuclear Service Center (WNYNSC) on the 3,345 acres of land it has taken title to.

1962
Davison Chemical Company establishes Nuclear Fuels Services, Inc. (NFS) as a reprocessing company. It reaches an agreement with the state to lease the WNYNSC.

1966
Nuclear Fuels Services develops and operates 200 acres of the WNYNSC. It operates the site as a nuclear fuel reprocessing center from 1966 to 1972, and accepts radioactive waste for disposal until 1975. During the operation of the plant, 640 metric tons of spent reactor fuel are processed, resulting in 660,000 gallons of highly radioactive liquid waste. The liquid waste is stored in an underground waste tank. NFS also utilizes a 15-acre area for the disposal of radioactive waste from commercial waste generators, and another seven-acre landfill is used to dispose of radioactive waste generated from reprocessing.

1976
Following four years of pursuing modifications to the plant, NFS decides the costs and regulatory requirements of reprocessing make the venture impractical. The company decides to exercise its right to leave the site after its lease expires on December 31, 1980, transferring ownership and responsibility for the waste and facility to the state of New York. The state initiates talks with the Federal Energy Research and Development Administration to sort out ownership of the waste and environmental remediation responsibility.

1980
Congress passes the West Valley Demonstration Project Act, Public Law 96-368, directing the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to take the lead role in solidifying the liquid high-level waste and decontaminating and decommissioning the facilities at West Valley.

1982
The Department of Energy selects West Valley Nuclear Services, a Westinghouse subsidiary, to manage and operate the site. Control of the 200-acre developed site is turned over to DOE; the project is named the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP).

1983
DOE selects vitrification, or the incorporation of high-level radioactive waste into glass, as the preferred method for solidifying the waste NFS left at West Valley.

1984
The first non-radioactive glass is poured in a test canister at the WVDP. It marks the beginning of a five-year non-radioactive test program for vitrification.

1987
The decision to dispose of low-level waste at the WVDP leads to a legal disagreement between DOE and the Coalition on West Valley Nuclear Wastes. The disagreement is settled by a Stipulation of Compromise, which states low-level waste disposal at the site and the potential effects of erosion on the site be included in a comprehensive Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Project completion. Compilation of the EIS is to begin the following year.

1988
In preparation for radioactive vitrification, WVNS begins pre-treatment of the high-level waste. Solidification of the lower-level radioactive salt solution from the waste tank begins to reduce the amount of highly radioactive glass that will be produced. Waste pretreatment continues until 1995. 

1996
Radioactive vitrification begins. The highly successful operation continues into 2001, emptying the high-level waste tank and producing 251 10'-foot-tall stainless steel canisters of hardened radioactive glass. The draft Environmental Impact Statement for site closure is released to the public for a six-month review period.

1998
A Citizen Task Force (CTF) is convened to provide additional stakeholder input for the West Valley closure process. The CTF issues its report the following year, stating it finds the site unsuitable for permanent disposal of radioactive waste.

1999
Vitrification Expended Materials Processing (VEMP), is initiated to begin processing unserviceable equipment in the Vitrification Facility. VEMP’s success helps in the development of a Remote Handled Waste Facility (RHWF) to process large-scale, highly-contaminated equipment excessed during decontamination and decommissioning activities.

2000
The near completion of vitrification results in the restructuring of the Project workforce to support the new emphasis on decontamination and decommissioning the WVDP. Groundbreaking ceremonies for the RHWF are held.

2001
The spent nuclear fuel assemblies are removed from the storage pool and placed in shipping/storage containers. Two significantly contaminated areas are decontaminated: the Product Purification and Handling Glovebox and the Acid Recovery Process Room.

2002
Vitrification of the high-level waste is complete. This highly successful project results in 275 stainless steel canisters of solidified high-level waste, safe in storage and ready for transport to a disposal facility.

2003
The shipment of the remaining 125 spent nuclear fuel assemblies is safely completed, allowing for the decontamination of the Fuel Receiving and Storage Area of the former reprocessing plant. Other projects include removal and treatment of the sodium-bearing wastewater from underground storage tanks, decontamination of the Product Purification Cell – South.  Initial debris from the General Purpose Cell and Process Mechanical Cell is removed and packaged. The Vitrification Cell Dismantlement Project is initiated.

2004
Shipping low-level waste off-site for disposal is a major activity in 2004, with a record 104,427 cubic feet of low-level waste shipped for disposal. Footprint reduction begins with the removal of 20 office trailers from the site. Decontamination of four major cells (rooms) continues: Vitrification Cell, Process Mechanical Cell, General Purpose Cell, and Extraction Cell–2.

2005
The Final Waste Management Environmental Impact Statement is approved. Low-level waste shipments for offsite disposal increase significantly. The triennial emergency exercise, TRIEX 2005, is held in July. The exercise, intended to evaluate the WVDP’s ability to respond to an offsite transportation incident, included participants from Cattaraugus County Emergency Services, the Cattaraugus County HazMat Response Team, the West Valley Volunteer Hose Company, Bertrand Chaffee Hospital, the Genesee & Wyoming Railroad, and the WVDP.  Site foot print reduction activities escalate, and the majority of site employees are moved to an off-site building.