EPA Announces That Agreement is Reached On Cleanup and Assessment Activities for Paducah Gasseous Diffusion Plant.Business Editors & Environmental Writers ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 5, 2000 The Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), independent agency of the U.S. government, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1970 to reduce and control air and water pollution, noise pollution, and radiation and to ensure the safe handling and (EPA EPA eicosapentaenoic acid. EPA abbr. eicosapentaenoic acid EPA, n.pr See acid, eicosapentaenoic. EPA, n. ) Region 4 announced today that an agreement among EPA, the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection has been reached on the schedule for cleanup and assessment activities for the DOE Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Gaseous diffusion is a technology used to produce enriched uranium by forcing gaseous uranium hexafluoride, UF6, through semi-permeable membranes. This produces a slight separation between the molecules containing uranium-235 and uranium-238. Plant in Paducah, Kentucky Paducah is a city in McCracken County, Kentucky at the confluence of the Tennessee River and the Ohio River. The population was 26,307 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of McCracken County. . The agreement ensures the available DOE resources are being utilized for the highest priorities (e.g., initiating cleanup to mitigate potential for off-site contaminant contaminant /con·tam·i·nant/ (kon-tam´in-int) something that causes contamination. contaminant something that causes contamination. releases) during Fiscal Years 2001 and 2002. However, EPA recognizes that to achieve the 2010 goal for completion of cleanup, significant increases over the Fiscal Year 2001 funding levels will likely be necessary in future years. "I am pleased with this agreement," said John H. Hankinson, Jr., Regional Administrator for EPA Region 4. "EPA shares concerns raised in recent news articles showing possible plutonium plutonium (pl  tō`nēəm), radioactive chemical element; symbol Pu; at. no. 94; mass no. of most stable isotope 244; m.p. 641°C;; b.p. 3,232°C;; sp. gr. 19. contamination on and around the facility. The presence of plutonium off-site and the public concern should be a good reason for DOE to increase funding for investigation of off-site releases. The public should not have to chose between investigation of off-site contamination or high priority cleanups." Hankinson further stated, "EPA will continue to work with DOE and Kentucky to support DOE's requests for sufficient funding to meet its obligation to complete cleanup of the Paducah facility by 2010, including investigation and any response needed to address off-site contamination."
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