Table B-3
 

Location:  Technical Area (TA) -50

Period of use:

Pits (6):  June 1948 to December 1964

Shafts (107):  1958 to April 1974

Size:  11.8 acres

Number and type of disposal units:

Pits 1- 4:  610 by 40 feet

Pit 5:  705 by 110 feet by about 18 feet

Pit 6:  505 by 100 feet by about 23 feet

Chemical pit:  180 by 25 feet by about 12 feet

Vary between 1 to 2 feet in diameter, and 10 to 25 feet deep

Specific wastes and quantities:

Estimated Volume: 3,186,000 ft³ of TRU waste

Pits contain, as of January 1973:
25 Curies (Ci) of uranium
26 Ci of plutonium-239
149 Ci of americium-241

Shafts contain: 
49,136 Ci of tritium
40 Ci sodium-22
20 Ci of cobalt-60
31 Ci of strontium-90
5 Ci of uranium-233
50 Ci fission products
200 Ci of induced activity
Also contains quantities of mercury, copper, cobalt, boron, beryllium, and silver. ⁽²⁾

Potential environmental impacts:

Lies near Ten-Site Canyon New Mexico Environment Department's (NMED) Hazardous and Radioactive Material Bureau (HRMB) ranks this MDA as an area with a high probability of contaminant mobilization and a moderate to high potential of release to the groundwater.

Map:

Figure B-5 has been removed due to illegibilty.

Sources:

1.  Rogers, Margaret Anne, History and Environmental Setting of Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory Near- Surface Land Disposal Facilities for Radioactive Wastes (Areas A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and T).
June 1977.  (Back to Text)

2.  Curie quantity can be corrected by referring to table A-1, "Half-lives of Radioactive Isotopes Frequently Disposed of at LANL."  (Back to Text)