Constructed in 1956, the 116,000-square-foot C-410/C-420 Feed Plant at Paducah was used to produce uranium hexafluoride for uranium enrichment during the Cold War. The Feed Plant operated until 1977, when the GDP began receiving UF6 from other sources such as Honeywell in Metropolis.
Besides its role in the enrichment process, the Feed Plant included offices and a machine shop. Its footprint was originally almost five acres — roughly equivalent to four football fields — and its tallest building stood at 85 feet.
Demolition included removal of 2,600 panels of cement asbestos siding and 9,000 feet of pipe. The amount of waste generated from decontamination and demolition would be enough to cover a football field fifteen feet deep.
"This is an exciting milestone for the Paducah Site, and is a reflection of the exceptional work done by the men and women who work here," said Jennifer Woodard, the Paducah Site lead for DOE's Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office. "Since 2004, we have safely removed 4,700 tons of waste related to the C-410/C-420 buildings complex, and importantly, this work has been accomplished while maintaining our focus on safety."
The return of the GDP at Paducah from the United States Enrichment Corporation (USEC) was accepted by DOE in October 2014 and those facilities are currently undergoing deactivation in preparation for future decontamination and decommissioning.
