Frankfort, Ky. (March 8, 2012) – The Kentucky Labor Cabinet has awarded LATA Environmental Services of Kentucky, LLC; Babcock and Wilcox Conversion Services. LLC; and Swift and Staley Mechanical Contractors, Inc. with a Governor’s Safety and Health Award for having worked more than 1 million hours without a lost-time accident or injury.

The award is given to employers and their employees who together have achieved the required number of hours worked without experiencing a lost-time injury or illness.

The contractors are part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s project to perform environmental remediation work at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP).

Labor Cabinet Secretary Mark Brown said the project’s success depends on a safe work environment. “All employees working on the project understand the importance of safety measures that are in place. This group stands by the concept that productivity is achieved through safety.”

As prime cleanup contractor, LATA Kentucky is responsible for completing groundwater and surface water treatment, removal and containment of the site’s burial grounds materials, inactive facilities disposition, surface soil and sediment removal, polychlorinated biphenyls disposal, environmental monitoring and reporting, waste disposition, and project support.  

Babcock and Wilcox Conversion Services, LLC converts depleted uranium hexafluoride – a byproduct of the uranium enrichment process – into a more stable chemical form that can be disposed, reused, or stored.

Swift & Staley Mechanical Contractors, Inc. is responsible for performing infrastructure and landlord activities at PGDP; for example, Swift & Staley takes care of surveillance and maintenance of facilities, human resource management, waste management, pollution prevention and other support activities.

Altogether, the Paducah site remediation contractor and subcontractors employ more than 600 workers.