The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP) is located 15 miles west of Paducah, Ky. The PGDP was in operation from September 1952 to June 2013 and was operated historically for national defense purposes until 1964, after which it produced fuel-grade uranium used to generate electricity in nuclear reactors. The PGDP is located on a 3,556-acre federal reservation in northwestern McCracken County. The PGDP was designated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a Superfund site in 1988 following the discovery of trichloroethene (TCE) and technetium-99 in domestic drinking water wells near the facility and additional soil, sediment, and groundwater contaminated with trichloroethene (TCE), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and uranium in and around the plant.
The PGDP Section of the Kentucky Division of Waste Management provides independent and regulatory oversight of the cleanup of the PGDP site and functions as Kentucky’s representative in the Federal Facilities Agreement (FFA). The FFA is a three-party agreement between DOE, EPA, and Kentucky. The FFA was developed to ensure compliance with and to avoid duplication between the corrective action provisions of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) permitting program and the corrective action requirements of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). Moreover, the FFA outlines regulatory structure and guides interactions between the three parties.
The PGDP Section also oversees the Agreement in Principle (AIP) Program funded by the DOE. The fundamental goal of the AIP Program is to allow Kentucky to conduct independent and impartial assessments of the potential environmental impacts of DOE activities at the PGDP. Under the AIP Program, Kentucky manages independent environmental monitoring by either conducting or overseeing independent environmental research. Additionally, the program enhances communications with concerned citizens.
For additional information on the PGDP Section activities, contact:
Brian Begley, Section Supervisor, or call (502) 782-6317.