The purpose of this workshop was to bring together computer science researchers and environmental sciences data management practitioners to consider the role of metadata in managing large environmental sciences datasets. The objectives included: establishing a common definition of metadata; identifying categories of metadata; defining problems in managing metadata; and defining problems related to linking metadata with primary data.

This paper discusses a project performed to recover wet records discovered in January 1995 at the Fernald Environmental Management Project (FEMP). This paper discusses the emergency and record recovery phases of the project, the technical options considered for records recovery, and special measures which were required due to radiological contamination of the records. Also, the root causes and lessons learned from the incident, and path forward for future records management operations at Fernald, are discussed.

The 317 Area at Argonne National Laboratory-East (ANL-E) is scheduled to undergo a Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Facility Investigation, Act or RFI. Prior to the formal RFI, a voluntary, preliminary characterization of the 317 Area was conducted by ANL-E. The characterization results were used to formulate the RFI work plan and provided a better focus for the formal investigation. This site presents a difficult engineering challenge. The nature of the waste disposed at this site in the past includes both liquid chemicals and radioactive waste. The 317 Area is classified as a radiologically controlled area because of operations currently performed there. Present Department of Energy policy stipulates that waste material from such an area must be considered radioactive. The possible presence of hazardous constituents in the soil and groundwater would require the investigation-derived waste generated at the site be disposed as radioactive mixed waste. Besides the nature of the waste possibly contaminating this site, the geology of the site poses an equally enigmatic situation. The ANL-E site is located in a region of recessional glacial moraine deposits.