The following information was provided by the
Washington State Department of Health (the Department) via email:
In early March 2025, a mixed-waste operator at Perma-Fix Northwest (PFNW) sustained a finger sliver while processing waste. Although the wound frisked clean, split 24-hour urinalysis later that month revealed 0.07 and 0.06 pCi Pu per L, projecting a maximum committed effective dose (CEDE) of up to 6 rem. PFNW did not alert the Department until June 10, 2025, about sixty days after receiving the positive result, and still has not submitted the 30-day written report that was due on April 28, 2025. These delays violate the 24-hour telephone-notification and 30-day written-report provisions of WAC 246-221-250, both incorporated into PFNW's licenses via license condition 11. Bioassay follow-up, dose modelling, and record updates have also lagged, contravening license condition 21, while no timely radiological unusual event file was routed to the Department as required by license condition 23.
No chelation therapy (Ca- or Zn-DTPA) was administered, and the contract certified health physicist (CHP) did not document why none was indicated. Immediate corrective actions included and include retro-logging the 24-hour call, submitting an overdue SA-300 written report within five working days, and certifying the committed dose by June 20, 2025. They are also to provide supporting records for the Department to review during the June 24, 2025 on-site inspection. Should the final dose exceed 5 rem CEDE, PFNW will breach the annual dose limit in WAC 246-221-010(1), and the dose must then be subtracted from the worker's planned-special-exposure allowance under subsection (2). In summary, PFNW's failures in notification, reporting, and bioassay execution constitute serious compliance deficiencies that require immediate, documented remediation to protect the worker and restore conformity with state and license requirements.
As the maximum calculated CED exceeds 5 rem, this event is being reported as a possible overexposure.
The Department is conducting a responsive investigation.
Washington Incident File: WNS-INC-25-04