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Members of the 5,000th load celebration

North Wind Portage Team Reaches Significant Milestone on Luckey Project

Idaho Falls, Idaho –North Wind Group is proud to announce that on July 31, 2020, the 5,000th truck left the Luckey Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP) Site loaded with material contaminated with beryllium, radium-226, thorium-230, uranium-234, uranium-238, and lead, which marks the substantial completion of Phase 1. North Wind Portage (NWP) began shipping FUSRAP-related material from the Luckey Site in June 2018, for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers  (USACE) Buffalo District.

“Achieving this important milestone is a testament to the hard work, commitment to safety and continuous improvement, and collaborative partnership with our client and teaming partners,” said Chris Leichtweis, North Wind Group President/CEO.

Over 725,000 truck miles were traveled; safely transporting 83,839 tons of contaminated material off-site for disposal in Belleville, Michigan.

Each truckload averages approximately 16.5 tons of material and typically 70 truckloads leave the site each week. Since the cleanup contract was awarded in 2015 by the USACE, NWP has worked over 370,000 hours without a lost time accident. Cleanup began in the Phase 1 excavation area on April 16, 2018, and currently verification samples are being collected to confirm the area is complete. Overall, the entire cleanup is 37% complete.

“I am so proud of this team – they have overcome incredible technical challenges and worked safely and efficiently to achieve this important milestone while completing some of the most hazardous cleanup work across the complex,” said Jeff Scott, President of NWP. “We sincerely appreciate their hard work, their dedication to safety, and our partnership with USACE – all of which made this significant achievement possible.”

In a recent announcement from the USACE Buffalo District, Lt. Col. Eli S. Adams was quoted, “I’m incredibly proud of our team’s safe execution of the FUSRAP mission at this major milestone in the Luckey project,” said Lt. Col. Eli S. Adams, USACE Buffalo District Commander. “Our top priority during the cleanup continues to be the safety and protection of human health for both our community and the workforce as well as securing the health of the environment. I have family who live and work just a short distance away from this site so it is especially rewarding work for me personally. We are also actively monitoring the evolving COVID-19 situation and are in regular communication with our personnel and contractors to emphasize the importance of taking appropriate actions — such as social distancing, wearing appropriate protective equipment, temperature screening of individuals before entry into the site, and personal hygiene measures — to safeguard employee health and welfare while working during the pandemic.”

Click here to watch a video prepared using photos from the event. https://vimeo.com/445342326

For more information about the progress at the Luckey site – please visit: https://www.lrb.usace.army.mil/Missions/HTRW/FUSRAP/Luckey-Site/