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Sarah Kanouse, Durango Disposal Site, 2014, Flickr
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Durango Disposal Site

Built in the early 1990s to hold contaminated materials from the Durango Mill, the Durango disposal site is located 3.5 south of Durango in Bodo Canyon. It  consists of a 2,400-foot-long disposal cell containing 2.5 million cubic yards of contaminated materials, estimated to hold an activity of 1,400 curies of radium-226. The cell, strengthened with riprap-keyed bedrock and topped with native grasses, comes equipped with 82 warning signs around its periphery. The disposal cell is located above the Cliff House Sandstone aquifer, which is currently not used for domestic purposes due to poor water quality. The cell was designed to be effective for 200-1000 years, although the radiological hazard will remain active far longer. 

Sources

U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Legacy Management. "Durango, Colorado, Disposal and Processing Sites" Fact Sheet. June 2020. Accessed August 7, 2020.

U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Legacy Management. "Durango, Colorado, Disposal and Processing Sites." Accessed August 7, 2020.

Last Updated:

09/12/2021

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