Hanford nuclear plant continues to pose serious threat to PacificNorthwest

Hanford Plant

Hanford, Washington has been one of the areas along the West Coast that scientists believe is dangerous.  That's because there are leaks in the tanks that hold nuclear waste, and these tanks have lasted past their expiration date, which means these leaks can be particularly serious.

This is of particular importance as Washington Senator Patty Murray worries there is not enough money to fund the project at the level necessary to prevent a catastrophe.  She complains that funding cuts have taken place because of the large amount of money necessary for the project to build new containers for the nuclear waste.  Already the project is considerably behind the projected schedule for completion.

The Energy Department maintains that the shortfall is due to congress' unwillingness to maintain the level of funding needed to clean up Hanford and that it will be $8 million short over the next ten years.

Hanford, Washington is located just a few miles from the Tri-Cities of Pasco, Kennewick and Richland, Washington.  These small towns form the bedrock of the engineering activities that brought nuclear power to Washington, as the economy flourished there in the 1960's.  John F. Kennedy made a trip to the area in 1963, shortly before his death, to commemorate the building of a new reactor that year.

The plant was established as part of the maintenance program of nuclear energy the United States had maintained for the development of energy alternatives as well as weapons that were especially critical during the Cold War years.

But the research and development of the nuclear power plants brought increasing alarm about waste products and leaking from the area.  Many people maintained their health problems, including cancer, miscarriages, infertility and other diseases were related to exposure to nuclear material that leaked into the soil and water.  Litigation has taken place over many years, with some of the court cases continuing to be reviewed.  The evidence, however, that leaks were the direct cause of the health problems has not, however, been proven to the satisfaction of the courts.

The Columbia River is the major tributary believed poised to be polluted the most in the event of a major leak.  Some folks believe that leaks have already occurred and polluted the river in some areas.  The location of the plant offers a level of vulnerability not just to the State of Washington but also Oregon and the coastline to Canada.

Senator Ron Wyden, Democrat of Oregon, has announced his concerns that the documents he has seen show construction flaws in the tanks at Hanford, even as the cutbacks in funds has created alarm that there won't be sufficient money to encase the nuclear waste properly. tion for the Department of Energy to share more with the public about construction flaws in the double-shelled tanks is stirring up opinions.

Senator Wyden reportedly wrote a letter to Ernest Moniz, Department of Energy Secretary, stating, "The citizens living along banks of the Columbia River deserve to know the full story of what is happening with the Hanford tanks."

Dick Cheney, formerly Vice President under George W. Bush, however disagrees that government should be more involved and transparent in its involvement.  He is quoted as saying,"Get the government out of it. Let the people here, the engineers and the local people, who I believe are honest and hard workers, take car of the problem," says Dick Cheney, who disagrees with more politicians getting involved.

Many of the engineers in the Hanford area are worried about the reactor waste.  This is true especially concerning the cleanup project that some say has had so many secrets, delays, lack of funding and other issues that it has been difficult to get straight answers or to get the needed materials and work done.  There is enough radioactive waste deep under the earth that it poses a hazard to the health of the immediate community and the potential for another Fukushima tragedy.

It is referred to by experts as one of the most treacherously dangerous places on earth.

Hanford Reactor site leaking toxic waste, long-term risk to NW U.S.

[caption id="attachment_14981" align="alignright" width="480"] Hanford plant - wikimedia commons[/caption]

GHN — In the spring of 2012, a large group of activists gathered in Richland to demonstrate against the nuclear plant at Hanford and express their concern about the environmental threats posed by the toxic waste in containers from the now non-active nuclear reactors that are said to be leaking into the soil in the Tri-Cities area of Pasco, Kennewick, and Richland.  Today's news brought an announcement from the Department of Energy regarding a leak that has provoked Governor Jay Inslee to plan an immediate trip to Washington DC to stress his concern about the long-term risk created by these leaks.

Some scientists refer to Hanford as "the most toxic waste dump in the world" because of the toxic waste that is maintained in containers said to be deteriorating in capacity to contain it, thus posing a serious threat to the environment and people of the region. Washington State Governor Jay Inslee says that, "The leak raises concerns about the integrity of other storage facilities at the highly contaminated site".

The fact is that a leak of any kind in an area where radioactive waste presents a serious threat to the environment of much of the Pacific Northwest, is a serious matter, according to Washington State Governor Jay Inslee.

As reported by Green Heritage News Network in February 2012, an additional concern is that even though the project for cocooning the reactors with new containers is said to be ahead of schedule, there could be an earthquake of major proportions caused by damage to the earth's crust, according to some scientists, as occurred in Japan in 2011. Hanford at one time was said to have produced 25 percent of the world's plutonium.

Money for the continuation of the project has to be funded by Congress. Congress is presently facing an impasse over the allocation of funds for various projects in the United States. Governor Inslee wants to underline the urgency of monitoring closely the work being done at the plant to contain the toxic waste. Two scientists were said to have been threatened with termination, and in the case of one of them who was fired, told not to discuss their concerns about the lack of necessary oversight in the construction of the containers.

One critical issue is the fact that the leaking has been ongoing and poses a potential long-term threat to the Pacific Northwest because of the Columbia River's span into Oregon and Washington. There remains concern about the drinking water and the soil for farming and other human activities.

This news is being carried front page in Northwest newspapers but was not mentioned in the national news from NBC on Friday evening and given a brief news bite on CNN during the day. It is, however, a major source of concern for many of the world scientists involved in reducing contamination and the threat of toxic waste to the environment and the population of the Pacific Northwest