Sandia Ships Final Barrels Of TRU Waste

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Sandia National Laboratories on Wednesday shipped its final four truckloads of radioactive legacy waste to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad.

Gov. Susana Martinez was on hand for a press conference marking the final shipment of the so-called transuranic waste. She called it a "significant milestone in our efforts to protect New Mexico's environment and keep our state beautiful."

Much of the waste at Sandia was generated in the 1970s and 1980s as part of nuclear defense research and weapons manufacturing programs. As part of the cleanup, Sandia has shipped 61 drums of the radioactive waste to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.