What is a Solid Waste Management Unit (SWMU)?
Any identifiable site at which solid wastes have been placed at any time, irrespective of whether the unit was intended for the management of solid or hazardous waste. Such units include any area at or around a facility at which solid wastes have been routinely and systematically stored and/or disposed, such as waste tanks, septic tanks, firing sites, burn pits, sumps, landfills (material disposal areas), wastewater outfall areas, and areas that were contaminated from leaking product storage tanks (including petroleum). What is an Area of Concern (AOC)? An area at LANL known or suspected to be contaminated with radionuclides, but not contaminated by hazardous chemicals or hazardous waste. Contaminated media (such as sediments) within the canyons around LANL are considered AOCs. What is a Technical Area (TA)? LANL is subdivided into geographic and administrative areas called Technical Areas, based on location and on the kinds of operations that take place in each. There are currently 49
