A new federal investigation into possible safety violations related to a radiation leak at a New Mexico nuclear waste dump could have drastic consequences for the facility and the contractor that manages it, U.S. officials said Tuesday.

The investigation, undertaken by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Enforcement, will focus on "the facts and circumstances associated with potential programmatic deficiencies in the nuclear safety, radiation protection, emergency management, quality assurance and worker safety and health programs" in light of the leak detected on Feb. 14 at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), according to a letter obtained by local newspaper the New Mexican.

The letter was sent by the Energy Department to notify WIPP and its contractor, Nuclear Waste Partnership, of the ongoing investigation.

A separate investigation into the cause of the leak already has been commissioned by the National Nuclear Security Administration's Accident Investigation Board and is underway.

The WIPP, located in southeastern New Mexico, has been shuttered for months following the leak, which exposed 22 workers to low levels of radiation.

The underground dump stores transuranic waste left over from nuclear weapons research and testing from the nation's past defense activities. The waste includes clothing, tools, rags and other debris contaminated with radioactive elements, largely plutonium.

Officials said, if the latest probe foound Nuclear Waste Partnership failed to protect the public and workers at WIPP, the company's lucrative contract could be jeopardized.

Nuclear Waste Partnership has been operating WIPP on a base contract of 109 million dollars annually since 2012. Bonuses and incentives have elevated the contractor's compensation closer to 130 million dollars per year.

A preliminary report by the Energy Department has already found fault with the nuclear site operator. Federal regulators blamed poor management, ineffective maintenance and a lack of proper training and oversight for the WIPP leak.

Investigators suspect the leak might have resulted from a chemical reaction inside at least one of the waste containers stored in WIPP. The chemical reaction was believed to be caused by a kind of kitty litter, mixed in the waste to absorb moisture.

Officials have been tight-lipped about the anticipated cost of rehabilitating WIPP following the radiation leak. Earlier, they said it could take the federal government two years or more to seal off the underground rooms where several hundred waste containers are stored. And a full resumption of operations could take up to three years.

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