OAK RIDGE, Tenn. (WATE) -- Several government agencies confirmed that half the federal acreage on the Oak Ridge Reservation wasn't impacted by previous operations and doesn't need environmental cleanup, according to a press release on Wednesday.
The United States Department of Energy's Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation worked together to confirm these areas are eligible for reuse, OREM said.
The EPA originally placed the reservation on the Superfund program's National Priorities List in 1989. This meant all the contaminated areas could be investigated and cleaned.
However, large portions of the site weren't used for the DOE's mission, OREM said. Specifically, about 16,377 of the reservation's 33,069 acres don't need to be cleaned and can be reused according to OREM and TDEC's investigations and environmental surveys
"Ensuring communities around our cleanup sites are safe, clean, and prosperous is at the core of our mission," said OREM Manager Erik Olds. "This clarification is noteworthy because it helps Oak Ridge to continue growing and thriving in the years ahead by providing a more accurate view of the area and simplifying the land transfer process."
This comes as OREM works to clean land and facilities, allowing them to be used. For example, it recently demolished a former uranium enrichment facility at Y-12 and a Manhattan Project-era building. After OREM cleaned the East Tennessee Technology Park area, it was transformed into an industrial center, historic park and conservation area, OREM said.
This will make transferring the land easier, which should allow for more use and development of the land. So far, it has transferred 1,800 acres to the community, and that land is now home to over 25 businesses, OREM said.
"A principal goal of the Superfund program is to return contaminated properties to productive use," said EPA Regional Administrator Kevin McOmber. "EPA looks forward to continued collaboration with DOE and TDEC to clean up additional properties and return them to economically viable community uses."