The Hanford Site is a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) owned/contractor operated facility located near Richland, Washington, in the Southeastern portion of Washington State. The 582 square mile site supports programs in waste management, environmental restoration, science and energy.
Hanford was established in secrecy during World War II to produce plutonium for America’s nuclear defense. When weapons material production was halted in the late 1980s, the Hanford Site became engaged in the world’s largest environmental cleanup project.
Over the last few years Hanford has begun characterizing over 41,000 containers currently stored in a retrievable manner onsite. These containers of transuranic or “TRU” waste generally consist of clothing, tools, rags, residues, debris and other such items contaminated with small amounts of radioactive elements - including plutonium. The TRU elements are radioactive, man-made, and have an atomic number greater than uranium - thus transuranic (beyond uranium).
Prior to 1970, these wastes were managed as low level wastes and were disposed of in simple soil trenches with no anticipation of removal. Currently there are no plans to retrieve the pre-1970 TRU waste.
Beginning in 1970, TRU wastes and those wastes suspected of being TRU wastes were placed in retrievable storage. Many drums and boxes were placed on below grade asphalt pads stacked in storage modules. Fire retardant plywood sheets separated the container tiers and the completed module was then covered with plastic sheeting and soil cover. The storage process was intended to keep water out of the site, but condensation within the modules resulted in corrosion of many containers.
Current Situation
Hanford workers have initiated retrieval of TRU drums stored after 1970. Some show signs of deterioration from being stored in the trenches. The drums are stored in the Central Waste Complex prior to being transferred to the Waste Receiving and Processing (WRAP) facility. The Central Waste Complex is a series of 20 storage buildings. There are currently several thousand containers of waste stored in these buildings.
The WRAP facility is located in Hanford's "200 West" Area and is the first of its kind operating facility in the DOE Complex designed specifically to prepare transuranic waste for shipment to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico.
It is estimated that nearly 80,000 drums of waste will be processed through the WRAP facility during its lifetime.
After processing the drums will be loaded into state-of-the-art containers known as “TRU-Pact II” and placed on trailers designed to safely transport these wastes across the country.
WIPP is designed to dispose of TRU waste left from the research and production of nuclear weapons. Located in southeastern New Mexico, 26 miles east of Carlsbad, the WIPP project facilities include disposal rooms excavated in an ancient, stable salt formation, 2,150 feet (almost half a mile) underground. As time passes, the salt cake slowly entombs the waste for long-term safe storage.
Emergency responders in communities along the transportation routes to WIPP have been trained in the event of any traffic incidents. The Washington State Patrol in conjunction with Benton County Emergency Services and the local major incident response team have taken a pro-active role in the training effort by coordinating with WIPP to bring instructors from New Mexico to conduct training at Hanford's HAMMER facility. Additionally, the Washington State Patrol sent seven students from six different local jurisdictions to a "Train The Trainer" course at the WIPP facility.
Hanford expects to conduct approximately 2,500 TRU waste shipments with the completion of the shipments expected in the year 2032.
TRU shipments to WIPP from Los Alamos, Idaho, and Rocky Flats have already begun; soon Hanford will have its long awaited turn. The first Hanford TRU waste shipment is expected in the Spring of 2000.
Hanford Communities Position
The Hanford Communities see the transportation of transuranic waste to New Mexico as a significant achievement in the cleanup effort. The Hanford Communities believes that citizens of the region need to have information and answers to questions about the safe design of containers and trucks that will be transporting TRU waste to New Mexico through their communities.
In order to provide information to the public, the Hanford Communities have produced a number of information products such as videos, issue papers, and speakers to local civic organizations.
The Hanford Communities further supports the retrieval and treatment of Hanford’s other wastes in order to effectively cleanup the Hanford site and meet Tri-Party Agreement obligations.
For more information on the transportation of TRU waste contact Dick Wilde at Fluor Project Hanford (509) 373-8123, Lt. Steve Kalmbach with the Washington State Patrol at (360)753-0565 or Jeanne Wallace at the Department of Ecology (509) 736-3019.
To have a Hanford Communities speaker talk to your organization, contact the Hanford Communities at (509) 942-7348.