Off-Site Source Recovery Project
Encyclopedia
The Off-Site Source Recovery Project (OSRP) is a U.S. government project funded by the Department of Energy
at Los Alamos National Laboratory
. The OSRP mission is to remove excess, unwanted, abandoned, or orphan radioactive sealed sources that pose a potential risk to health, safety, and national security.
This government project had its beginnings in the Energy Department's early Environmental Management program. Environmental management was intended to clean up environmental contamination and dispose of vast quantities of radioactive and hazardous waste stemming from several decades of nuclear weapons design, research, testing and production.
One of the issues faced by the early Environmental Management program was substantial amounts of radioactive and hazardous materials at universities and other locations left over from contracts and grants into various aspect of nuclear technology research. The Energy Department began addressing this problem with a low-budget effort called the Offsite Waste Program.
The initial scope of the OSR Project included all Greater than Class C (GTCC) sealed sources. However, since September 11, 2001, the mission expanded from environmental concerns to public safety and national security. As a result, OSRP direction and oversight moved from the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Environmental Management, to the National Nuclear Security Administration
in 2003.
The project mainly addresses sources containing americium
and plutonium
. The recently expanded mission also includes recovery of beta or gamma emitting sources, like caesium and strontium.
OSRP has been able to recover more than 18,000 sources from nearly 700 sites in 48 States, the DC area, Puerto Rico and a few foreign countries.
United States Department of Energy
The United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
at Los Alamos National Laboratory
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Los Alamos National Laboratory is a United States Department of Energy national laboratory, managed and operated by Los Alamos National Security , located in Los Alamos, New Mexico...
. The OSRP mission is to remove excess, unwanted, abandoned, or orphan radioactive sealed sources that pose a potential risk to health, safety, and national security.
This government project had its beginnings in the Energy Department's early Environmental Management program. Environmental management was intended to clean up environmental contamination and dispose of vast quantities of radioactive and hazardous waste stemming from several decades of nuclear weapons design, research, testing and production.
One of the issues faced by the early Environmental Management program was substantial amounts of radioactive and hazardous materials at universities and other locations left over from contracts and grants into various aspect of nuclear technology research. The Energy Department began addressing this problem with a low-budget effort called the Offsite Waste Program.
The initial scope of the OSR Project included all Greater than Class C (GTCC) sealed sources. However, since September 11, 2001, the mission expanded from environmental concerns to public safety and national security. As a result, OSRP direction and oversight moved from the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Environmental Management, to the National Nuclear Security Administration
National Nuclear Security Administration
The United States National Nuclear Security Administration is part of the United States Department of Energy. It works to improve national security through the military application of nuclear energy...
in 2003.
The project mainly addresses sources containing americium
Americium
Americium is a synthetic element that has the symbol Am and atomic number 95. This transuranic element of the actinide series is located in the periodic table below the lanthanide element europium, and thus by analogy was named after another continent, America.Americium was first produced in 1944...
and plutonium
Plutonium
Plutonium is a transuranic radioactive chemical element with the chemical symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal of silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes when exposed to air, forming a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four oxidation...
. The recently expanded mission also includes recovery of beta or gamma emitting sources, like caesium and strontium.
OSRP has been able to recover more than 18,000 sources from nearly 700 sites in 48 States, the DC area, Puerto Rico and a few foreign countries.