New Mexico waste storage facility works to prevent more explosions

Nature : In February the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in Carlsbad, New Mexico, suffered a radiation leak when a storage drum ruptured. The drum came from Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), which last year switched from using an inorganic, clay-based absorbent to a wheat-based commercial cat litter to absorb liquid waste. The Department of Energy believes the cat-litter substance reacted with nitrates in the drum, which led to the lid blowing off and radioactive material seeping into the facility and the surrounding environment. Now WIPP is working on a plan to seal off two of the underground storage rooms in which 368 drums containing the suspect material are stored. In addition, LANL has been tasked with securing another 57 drums that are still in temporary storage on its grounds. The only deep-storage repository for nuclear waste in the US, WIPP has been closed since the February accident.