VNS to Highlight Growing U.S. Strength, Global Capabilities at WMS 2022

As the world’s top waste management professionals prepare to descend on Phoenix next month for the annual Waste Management Symposia, the Veolia Nuclear Solutions (VNS) team is poised to highlight an impressive range of U.S. and global initiatives that underscore Veolia’s robust offering for its clients.

Scheduled to run March 6-10, the annual conference provides an opportunity for experts across the nuclear waste management sector to gather and discuss critical industry issues, convene discussions on important research, and highlight the best and brightest across the industry

VNS’ participation at the event includes:

• A focus on VNS Federal Services’ (VNSFS) continued growth as an innovative partner across the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), U.S. Department of Defense and commercial nuclear industries;
• Appearances on the technical program discussing critical VNS projects around the globe, including Fukushima;
• A Veolia display on the conference exhibit floor highlighting the work VNS does in the U.S., including its patented GeoMelt® vitrification technology;
• A special presence at this year’s spotlight pavilion, which is highlighting the nuclear industry in the United Kingdom; and
• Hosting the conference’s welcome reception.

This year’s conference theme, “Globally Focused, Innovative, Connected,” dovetails perfectly with Veolia’s mission to deliver transformative global ecological solutions locally to tackle the most complex and critical environmental challenges clients face every day. Backed by nuclear expertise from around the globe, VNS can take advantage of the company’s deep experience, technological development, and diverse service capabilities for legacy facility clean-up, decommissioning, and the management and treatment of radioactive waste.

The full range of VNS capabilities will be on display at WMS 2022, led by the pioneering VNSFS team. According to President & CEO Billy Morrison, the conference provides the perfect setting to highlight the important growth the company has enjoyed over the last year.

He also noted how VNSFS has continued to grow its presence at a number of U.S. government sites while also building out VNSFS’ expertise and management of RCRA/CERCLA landfill operations across the U.S.

Among the important VNS initiatives to be highlighted will be VNS’ growing waste management business. In the U.S., VNSFS technologies are increasingly being relied on to treat and dispose of particularly challenging and previously orphaned client wastes, including through the use of VNS’ GeoMelt® vitrification process. Two VNSFS GeoMelt® experts, Brett Campbell and Ron Mitchell, are participating in panels titled “Can Technology Really Transform the Ways We Handle Radioactive Wastes?” and “US DOE Mixed Waste: Proposals for Dealing with Problematic Waste Streams and Policy Changes.”

GeoMelt® is an important growth area for the company, and one of the reasons that VNS is well-positioned in the space as evidenced by the official launch of the Waste2Glass joint venture that Veolia and EDF are creating to develop innovative radioactive waste treatment solutions to serve its European markets. This is in addition to VNS’ long-term continued support for treating secondary waste as part of the Fukushima Daiichi cleanup project.

Among the topics at WMS 2022 will be how VNS plans to continue to build upon the momentum gained in 2021 for VNS and GeoMelt® including most recently, winning the prestigious award for innovative product and services at the World Nuclear Exhibition in Paris. Among the planned successes for 2022: the opening of a second off-site commercially operated plant in the U.S. that can treat for disposal DOE and commercial nuclear mixed low-level and reactive wastes, as well as continued work supporting critical waste management projects around the world.

Beyond highlighting VNSFS’ continued growth, this year’s WMS will also place a special spotlight on the UK nuclear industry, giving VNS the opportunity to highlight the important work its UK team is doing to provide cutting edge solutions in the U.K. France and Japan. VNS UK Chief Technical Officer Simon Delavalle is scheduled to sit on a panel at the event and will discuss the recent delivery of the Primary Containment Vessel Investigation (PCVI) Boom to Japan, a critical step in helping solve the retrieval of fuel debris within the damaged reactors at the Fukushima site. 

WMS 2022 promises to be an exciting time, and the VNS team will be right in the center of it – highlighting the company’s full suite of innovative capabilities, which help reduce the long-term environmental impact of hazardous waste while safeguarding human health and reducing exposure to harmful radiation.