HANFORD SITE
I do not trust that the plan below, in the excerpt that I have copied from the article in the link, can actually 'chemically transform' or rather neutralize the contaminants by chemically changing them into something safe for both the environment and organic life.
If such a plan would work and could actually be implemented then why is it not used for such liquid waste eliminating any need for storage or holding tanks since it would be safe to simply reeintroduce it back into the environment.
Why hasn't it been used for the liquid waste problem at Fukushima?
My guess would be because this option does not really exist..
-excerpt
The liquid waste that had been poured onto the ground or held in ponds or trenches has long since evaporated or soaked into the soil on the Site. In doing so, the waste did contaminate some of the soil and is thought to have also created underground "plumes" of contaminants. A "plume" is kind of like an underground river where the contaminants join with the water that exists beneath the surface of the Earth. Many of these plumes move in varying speeds and move toward the Columbia River. Hanford employees are actively involved in projects designed to prevent any more of the contamination from reaching the river. Several different strategies are being used in that effort.
One strategy is simply to block the groundwater contamination from getting to the Columbia. Various kinds of barriers are placed in the ground which allows the clean groundwater to move through, while chemically altering any harmful contamination into a non-toxic form as it passes through. Another strategy is called "pump and treat". Through this process, contaminated groundwater is pumped out of the ground and treated with chemicals. These chemicals serve to change the chemical makeup of the contaminants which render them harmless to the environment. Once the treatment of the groundwater is complete, the cleansed water is pumped back into the ground. Yet another strategy in dealing with groundwater contamination is called "biostimulation". This is a new technology where crews pump materials like molasses and vegetable oil into the ground where tiny microorganisms in the soil eat the molasses and vegetable oil. The microorganisms then reproduce, and in doing so, they alter the chemistry of the groundwater and render the contaminants harmless to the environment. The process also prevents the contamination from moving any closer to the river.
