The Mound, Ohio Site and the Department of Energy’s Office of Legacy Management: How Did We Get Here and Where Does the Site Go From Here?

MOUND MUSEUM LECTURE SERIES SPOTLIGHTS

Summary

The Mound, Ohio Site operated from 1948 to 2003 as a part of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission and later the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). It was built to continue Dayton, Ohio Manhattan Project work on the initiators used in early atomic weapons. The site later expanded into an integrated research, development and production facility supporting weapons, energy, and space missions. In 1989, the site was placed on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s National Priorities List based on the discovery of volatile organic compounds in the groundwater beneath the site. This listing, along with the ending of the Cold War resulted in DOE’s reexamination of its sites across the country. This evaluation ultimately led to the decision for the Mound Site to be closed, its missions were moved to other DOE facilities. DOE’s Office of Environmental Management then spent over 1 billion dollars on the cleanup and remediation of the Mound Site. Most of the site has since transferred out of federal government ownership. Yet, DOE’s Office of Legacy Management (LM) continues to have responsibilities at the Mound Site. What is the Office of Legacy Management? What is LM’s mission? Why after such an expensive cleanup is DOE still at the site? What does the future look like for Mound? We will cover these topics and more during this presentation.

Speaker’s Biography

Tiffany Drake joined the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Legacy Management (LM) Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)/Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA)/Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP) /Defense Decontamination and Decommissioning (O&D) team in July 2021 as a site manager. She currently manages the Mound, Ohio, Site, the Boiling Nuclear Superheater (BONUS) Decommissioned Reactor Site located in Puerto Rico, the ongoing transfer of the Kansas City Plant (KCP) Site into LM as well as several others. She also serves as the Program Manager for Site Transitions.

After receiving her Bachelor of Science-in Chemical Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Tiffany first worked as a technical sales representative in the welding industry. She then attended the University of Missouri – Columbia (Missouri) 10 complete her Master in Business Administration. Tiffany then transitioned to an environmental engineering position with the State of Missouri. During her 16 years with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR), Tiffany worked in various positions, first in the Air Pollution Control Program and later in what is now the Environmental Remediation Program. Her final position with MDNR was as a unit chief in the Federal Facilities Section, supervising staff that provided state oversight at federal facilities that had radiological and chemical contamination. Tiffany is a registered professional engineer in the state of Missouri.

For additional details on this presentation call 937-247-0402 (MCWDC) or 937-353-4457 (MSEMA). The presentation is free and open to the public and has ample free parking.

Mound Cold War Discovery Center
E-Mail: msem475@gmail.com
Phone: 937-247-0402
Web: www.daytonhistory.org

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