Each year, the Project Management Institute (PMI) recognizes projects across the globe for their exceptional project management. This year, the Savannah River Site (SRS) in southwestern South Carolina received the PMI Award for Project Excellence. This prestigious honor is given to five projects globally; and the project can be from any industry, in public or private sectors. This award “recognizes complex projects that best deliver superior performance of project management practices, superior organizational results, and positive impacts on society.”

Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) and DOE-Savannah River, supported by our Envirocon team, were recognized for completing the first of two phases of work at the SRS D-Area Ash Basins ahead of schedule and under budget. Innovative solutions at this site accounted for $300,000 in cost savings while accelerating the completion date by a year. The second phase is on track for an on-time completion within budget.

DOE-Savannah River, SRNS, and Envirocon are cleaning up the basins used to manage ashes from the D-Area Powerhouse, which provided steam and electricity for SRS missions for more than 59 years. The project aims to protect human health, safeguard the environment, and prevent ash migration to the Savannah River.

In the first phase, 131,000 cubic yards of ash and dirt from a 15-acre basin were consolidated into an adjacent ash landfill. The project team covered the landfill with a geosynthetic clay liner and geocomposite drainage layer — more than 926,000 square feet over an estimated 21-acre area — to protect the landfill from rainwater and prevent ash from migrating into the environment.

The second phase, slated to wrap up in early November, consolidated over 400,000 cubic yards of ash from a 65-acre footprint into a 20-acre landfill, which was then covered with a 50 mil LLDPE geosynthetic liner system.

For additional information on this award and the project, please visit https://www.pmi.org/about/awards/winners/past-award/project-excellence/savannah-river-site.