Hanford’s Nuclear Wasteland

This article details the exceptional difficulties, both technical and financial, of nuclear waste cleanup on the Hanford site. In particular, the article discusses the immense challenges that lie behind storing, transporting, and processing various radioactive isotopes and byproducts of spent nuclear fuel. Usually lethal and highly radioactive, this nuclear waste has been known to leak from its storage containers occasionally, much to the detriment of surrounding soil, air, and water. Hence, multiple projects and agencies have attempted to tackle this nuclear waste cleanup and security problem but frequently fail to produce effective results due to the complicated nature of nuclear waste treatment as well as inadequate budgets. The end of the article reveals resources for further reading. KEYWORDS: Hanford cleanup; Nuclear Waste and Weapons; Department of Energy; Environmental Protection Agency; Plutonium Production; Manhattan Project; Uranium; Atomic Energy Commission; Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA); Radioactivity; Natural Resources Defense Council; Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board; Richland, WA.