Waste Management Day 1
Monday was the proper start of WM2024 (although there was plenty going on yesterday too - I am briefly on the Sunday highlights reel on YouTube https://youtu.be/FHJW5wLPJyg?si=whOhItbT9g3LzLZ_).
The latest attendance list had increased numbers from my blog last week and, at now stands at over 3,300. Pretty impressive #wmsym2024!
The opening plenary was packed and had speakers from the IAEA, NEA and US DOE EM. Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director General, IAEA kicked things off, followed by William D. Magwood, IV, Director-General, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Nuclear Energy Agency and finished with Ike White, Senior Advisor for Environmental Management, US DOE EM.
The show floor opened soon after and it was the first chance to wander around and visit some booths.
The technical sessions started at 10am and, as usual, there are too many to go to and they run concurrently - so you have to pick and choose the ones of most interest to you. At the moment my main interest is in Aging Infrastructure (specifically ensuring supporting infrastructure can support the mission) and technology and innovation (to update the Idea Catalog with recent advances).
“Hot Topics in US DOE Environmental Management” chaired by Marty Schneider, President, Longenecker & Associates and Dorothy Davidson, President/CEO, Orano Federal Services was a great first choice as it focused on some of the key areas of strategic interest going forward.
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The panellists were:
Martin Schneider Kristen Ellis
I also managed to get to see “Past, Present, and Future - A General Approach to LLW/ILW Treatment Worldwide” and there was an interesting presentation on thermal treatment activities at Sellafield by David Connolly. He even mentioned WVP which was my first job as a graduate - which was a while ago :). Sellafield Ltd
In the afternoon there was a great session on “DOE Cleanup to Clean Energy” which all about using existing DOE land for clean energy projects. Rob Seifert, Director, Office of Infrastructure Management and Disposition Policy, EM gave a fascinating talk on "EM's Sustainability Initiatives" and this was followed by Seth Kirshenberg, Executive Director Energy Communities Alliance (ECA) on "US DOE HQ Developing a Cleanup to Clean Energy Program".
Rob Seifert Seth Kirshenberg
Unlike in previous years there wasn’t a host country so there was what was called a “World Networking Reception” instead after all the technical sessions had finished. This involved a selection of international food snacks reinterpreted by the Arizona catering firm - British Cornish Pasties, Belgium Waffles, French Crepes, Canadian Poutine, German cheese filled sausage (K?sekrainer) and American Hot Dogs. The interpretations had a Tex-Mex twist so Cornish Pasties were really Empanadas and so on which was a great talking point for networking conversations.
I plan to do another blog for day 2 (Tuesday) that will be published on Wednesday.